Page 136 of Disturbing the Dead
We’re sitting in the funerary parlor—Isla, Jack, and myself. Jack and Isla have been in charge of solving this particular mystery. I’m just here because I’m invested in the results, not only in stopping those serials but in learning Lorna’s fate.
Gray isn’t home. To him, this is a domestic concern, and so it is Isla’s province. That might sound like a man washing his hands of “women’s” work, but he’s given his sister control of the household and the staff, and to take part in discussions like this would make it seem as if he’s still in charge. If there’s a man in the room, people will look to him for the final word.
“All right,” Isla says. “Mallory, would you bring Lorna in, please? Jack, we appreciate all your help in this, and my brother will ensure you are adequately compensated.”
“Oh, I know he will, but I am in no rush to leave.” Jack stretches out, propping her feet on Gray’s desk. “I’d like to see this play out. Also, feel free to blame me for uncovering the truth.”
“Blame you? Or credit you?”
Jack smiles. “Either.”
They’re still talking as I head downstairs to where Mrs. Wallace has Lorna scouring pans.
“Lorna?” I say. “Mrs. Ballantyne and I could use your help in the funerary parlor.”
She drops the pot in the water basin and fairly scampers after me. Before, I would have thought she was just tired of scrubbing pans. Now I know she’s just leaping at the chance to hear something useful.
We walk into Gray’s office. Jack is still seated behind the desk. Seeing her, Lorna tenses.
“What is he doing here?” A note creeps into her voice, and it isn’t curiosity. It’s the sound of hackles bristling. She might not realize Jack is a woman, but she seems to know Jack works for McBride’s main rival.
“Jack is a friend,” I say. “You have seen him before when he’s dropped off notes.”
“Notes which you read,” Jack says.
Isla and I exchange a look. So much for the subtle approach.
Isla cuts in. “We know you are spying on us for Joseph McBride, who is writing the Dr. Gray serials.”
“McBride even admitted it,” Jack says. With a smug smile, she adds, “Or he did when I offered to give him better information, as I know Dr. Gray and have been involved in his investigations.”
“So please let us skip any protests that you are not employed by Mr. McBride,” Isla says to Lorna. “He hired you, knowing we were in desperate need of a housemaid, and he helped bring you to our attention. The question now is not whether it’s true, but what we are going to do about it.”
Lorna hasn’t said a word. Nor is she cowering in fear of repercussions.
Few crime stories in Victorian Britain are as popular as those with domestic servants as the villains. These are the people allowed into a family’s inner sanctum. One would sooner hire a lazy maid than an untrustworthy one. If Isla spreads the word of Lorna’s betrayal, she’ll never find another job. Yet she only stands there, stone-faced.
Isla clearly expects more, and her hand dips into her pocket for a mint, a sign of unease. She stops herself and straightens. “I believe we can come to an arrangement, Lorna, one that might not even see you losing your position. You have been a good maid, and we are willing to consider keeping you on—”
“One hundred pounds.”
Isla stops and stares. “I beg your—”
“A hundred quid, m’lady.” Lorna twists the last word. “That is the cost of my silence.”
“Your silence in what?”
“Everything.” The girl crosses her arms. “For one hundred pounds, I will keep all the secrets of this house.”
Isla meets her gaze square on. “No.”
Lorna blinks. Then she laughs. “If you are trying to negotiate, I would suggest you ask this one”—she waves at me—“to do it. You lack the backbone.”
A muscle twitches in Isla’s cheek. “Perhaps, but I am not negotiating. I am refusing to make any payment.”
“So you want me to tell the world what happens inside this house?”
Now it’s Isla’s turn to laugh. “And what does happen here, child? We are odd, but all you can threaten us with is public embarrassment for our eccentricities. That only works on a family far more respectable than ours. Everyone knows we are eccentric. What else would you tell them? There is nothing truly scandalous happening here, and certainly nothing criminal.”
