A Drowned Maiden's Hair_ A Melodrama - Laura Amy Schlitz [45]
A voice spoke from the far side of the wall. Maud stepped forward, listening.
“You assured me this would be the end of it,” accused Victoria. “That was what we agreed —”
“But we’re just getting established!” Hyacinth sounded exasperated. “This summer alone, I’ve been asked everywhere. Not just for séances, but to speak — I’ve half a dozen engagements in the next month. And if Eleanor Lambert —”
Victoria interrupted. “You said we’d get the money for the mortgage and stop,” she insisted. “Judith, you were there. We said —”
It was Hyacinth who answered, not Judith. “Eleanor Lambert is just the beginning. Only consider, Victoria! Once we’ve convinced Eleanor Lambert, we’ll meet others in her circle. People who wouldn’t trust an ordinary medium, people who are discreet —”
“People whose children have died,” Victoria said harshly. “Judith, this is wrong.”
“Of course it’s wrong,” Judith said flatly. “But we need the money. During the last two weeks, we’ve had the expense of two households —”
“We could economize,” pleaded Victoria.
“You could and I could. Hyacinth won’t. The mortgage must be paid. Muffet doesn’t cost much, but we have to give her something. Even Maud is an expense.”
Maud felt her stomach twist in terror.
“Maud is a godsend,” Hyacinth said vehemently, to Maud’s unutterable relief. “Really, Victoria! Have you no imagination? Can’t you see the possibilities now that we have Maud? Besides, it’s a waste — to adopt her and train her and stop after —”
“We should never have taken her,” Victoria said bitterly. “To force her to go on and on . . . This is the worst possible home for her.” She sounded close to tears. “It’s not just that she’s a child; it’s the kind of child she is.”
Maud let out a yelp of outrage. Her hands came up to cover her lips. She stood rigid, hoping the sisters had not heard her cry.
Victoria went on passionately. “If we can’t take her back to the Asylum, we ought to send her away to school —”
“And how will we pay for the school?” Judith gave a short, mirthless laugh. “For heaven’s sake, Victoria! I don’t like Hyacinth’s schemes any more than you do, but I don’t see how we are to live without money.”
“There must be something —” Victoria began.
“Are we likely to marry, do you think?” Judith’s sarcasm was withering. “Do you suppose anyone wants to hire a seventy-year-old housekeeper? Or a factory worker?”
Maud had heard enough. She stepped out of the half library and headed for the door at the far end of the passage. She turned the doorknob and stalked inside.
The three women turned to face her. Hyacinth’s cheeks were becomingly flushed; Victoria’s were mottled with anger. Judith might have been sitting for a portrait, her face was so calm and still.
“There you are!” Hyacinth sounded as merry as if the three sisters had been having a party. “Welcome to the back parlor. The front parlor’s larger, but this is where we’ll have the séances.” She extended her hand as if she were about to lead Maud into a dance.
Maud took stock of the room. There was stained glass in the side windows and a chandelier overhead. The walls were hung with dark blue paper and oil paintings of ships. Maud nodded toward the round table in front of her. “Is that where I’ll be hiding? Under there?”
Hyacinth shook her head. “No. That’s where we sit. We have something much better for you.” She crossed the room and ran her fingers over the carved mantelpiece. “Watch.”
The side of the mantelpiece swung outward, revealing a closetlike space.
“You see?” Hyacinth flickered her fingers inside the dark cavity. “This house was built as a summer cottage. The fireplace isn’t real and the mantelpiece is hollow. Mr. Llewellyn used to keep his maps inside. It’s the perfect place to hide you.” She nodded encouragingly. “Come closer.”
Maud peered inside, intrigued. The space was roughly