The Hyde Park Headsman - Anne Griffin Perry [78]
“Gracie! What is the matter this morning? Something is wrong. Tell me what it is before you cause a disaster!”
Gracie’s cheeks were bright pink and her eyes were full of fear, her whole face pinched with urgency. Still she could not find the words.
Charlotte felt a lurch of fear herself. She was extraordinarily fond of Gracie, perhaps she had not realized how much until this moment.
“What is it?” she said with more sharpness than she intended. “Are you ill?”
“No!” Gracie bit her lip. “I know summat about the gennelman wot goes inter the park arter girls.” She swallowed hard. “I got ter talkin’ ter one o’ them tarts in there one day.” Her eyes were brimming with misery. She was lying, at least in part, and she hated it “An’ she said as there was one gent wot liked ter beat women, beat ’em really ’ard, ’urt ’em bad. I reckon as mebbe that were Captain Winthrop. She said as ’e were big. An’ mebbe it were a pimp as done fer ’im. An’ the other gent knew it. Mebbe ’e saw it, or summat, an’ that’s why ’e got done too.”
For a moment Charlotte could think only of the likelihood of what Gracie said, and her spirits soared upwards.
“It could be,” she agreed quickly. “It could very well be!”
Gracie gave a sickly smile.
Then the further meaning struck Charlotte.
“Gracie! You’ve been out detecting again! Haven’t you?”
Gracie’s eyes lowered and she stared in silent misery at the floor, waiting for the blow to fall.
“You went to the park at night to find one of those women, didn’t you?”
Gracie did not deny it.
“You stupid child!” Charlotte exploded. “Don’t you realize what could have happened to you?”
“They’re goin’ ter throw the book at the master if ’e don’t catch the ’Eadsman.” Gracie still did not look up.
Charlotte felt a stab of alarm, if what Gracie said were true, and then of guilt for her own so frequent absences.
“I could beat you myself for taking such a risk,” she said furiously, swallowing hard. “And I will do, I swear, if you ever do anything like it again! And how on earth am I going to tell the master what you know without telling him how you found out? Can you answer me that?”
Gracie shook her head.
“I shall have to think of something very clever indeed.” Gracie nodded.
“Don’t just stand there waggling your head. You’d better try to think as well. And get those grease stains out of his sleeve while you’re doing it. We’d better at least have his clothes clean for him.”
“Yes ma’am!” Gracie lifted her head and gave her a tiny smile.
Charlotte smiled back. She intended it to be tiny also, but it ended up being a wide, conspiratorial grin.
Charlotte spent the afternoon in the new house. Every day it seemed to be some new disaster had been discovered or some major decision must be made. The builder wore a permanent expression of anxiety and shook his head in doubt, biting his lip, before she had even finished framing her questions to him.
However, with the purchase of an excellent catalog from Young & Marten, Builders Merchants and Suppliers, she was able to counter most of his arguments quite specifically, and very slowly was earning his exceedingly grudging respect.
The principal problem was that she was racing against time. The Bloomsbury house was sold, and they must leave it within four weeks, and the new house was very far from ready to move into. Most of the major work was accomplished. Aunt Vespasia’s instructions had been followed to the letter, and there was now an immaculate plaster cornice where the old one had been. There was even a flawless new ceiling rose as well. But it was all innocent of paint or paper, and the whole question of carpets was not even touched upon. Decisions crowded in from every quarter.
When talking to Emily about it she had thought she knew precisely what color she wished for each room, but when it came to the details of purchasing paper and paint, she was not at all certain. And if she were honest, her attention was not totally upon the matter. She could not help but be aware of the newspaper headlines and the tone of the articles beneath them criticizing the police