Page 10

O f all the days for the skies to open up and let loose with hard rain, it had to be the morning that Lily and Daisy were supposed to meet with the judge at the courthouse.

Lily stared out the bedroom window at the muddy mess of a street they would have to cross.

She dreaded getting the hem of her best skirt dirty or stepping in a mud puddle in her good shoes.

“Too bad we don’t have a chivalrous gentleman to throw his coat down on the street so that we can get to the courthouse without tracking mud into the judge’s quarters,” Lily said.

“That don’t happen in real life.” Daisy’s tone had an edge to it.

“Are you all right?”

“Why would you ask that?” Daisy fired back.

“Tell me what has got you so riled up. Did I do something to upset you?” Lily asked.

Daisy threw her hairbrush across the room, and it bounced off the far wall.

“It’s not you. I get a ball of anger in my belly when I even think about Judge Wesley Martin.

He could visit me at the brothel and whisper sweet things to me, but I’m still just a prostitute, even though I’ve left that life behind me.

I can see it in his eyes every time I’ve been around him. ”

“The first step in getting over the past is not letting it control us,” Lily told her as she picked up the brush and handed it back to Daisy. “And we both need to remember to say that we are from Spanish Fort and not mention that we lived at the Paradise.”

“You are right about the control, but it’s easier said than done,” Daisy snapped. “I want to do something to wipe that better-than-you sneer off his face.”

“There’s more than one way to kill a snake,” Lily said.

Daisy sat down in the rocking chair and closed her eyes. “Shoot it or chop its head off with a garden hoe. I could easily do both to him without blinking an eye.”

“Why are you closing your eyes?” Lily asked.

“I’m imagining how good it would feel to put a bullet right between his pretty eyes,” she answered. “I still carry my little pistol with me.”

Lily pulled the ladder-back chair from the corner and sat down in front of Daisy.

“So do I, but there’s not a man alive on the face of this earth worth hanging for, and that’s what will happen if you kill him.

You’ve already stretched your luck pretty thin with the blackmailing. Remember what Miz Raven taught us?”

“Never get attached to a customer,” Daisy answered, but she did not open her eyes.

“That’s right.”

“I used to pretend that other men were Wesley.”

“I can’t speak for the others, but I used to do the same.

Not Wesley, but another repeat customer who was always very nice to me.

It was a way we got through the guilt. If we imagined that the customers were our husbands, then we didn’t feel like our kinfolks were sending us to hell for what we did. ”

“I never did pretend that a customer was John Andrew, but I do still feel guilty,” Daisy admitted.

“Me, too, but we’re going to put all that behind us,” Lily assured her with a sideways hug.

“Baby steps, right?”

“Yes, one at a time until the past is nothing but a blur in a dense fog behind us,” Lily said.

Daisy began to brush her hair. “Thank you.”

“You are welcome. When I get mad and throw something, you can talk me out of committing murder.”

“It’s a deal,” Daisy said. “Let’s get this business over with, and then I don’t ever intend to deal with the almighty judge again.”

“His loss,” Lily said as they finished dressing. “If he was truly honest about taking you home with him, he must have loved you at one time.”

Daisy stood up and donned her hat. “Or he was just spouting off words that didn’t come from his heart.”

“What if he wasn’t able to buy the property?” Lily asked. “Or if he calls your bluff and slaps cuffs on your tiny little wrists?”

“Then it will be time for you to get a big dose of bravery, pull your pistol out of your purse, and shoot our way out of the courthouse,” Daisy told her.

Lily opened the door and stepped out in the hallway. “I’m willing to run from the law if it comes to that, but the first bullet might have to go toward Preacher Jones.”

“From ‘soiled doves’ to respectable women to outlaws. That would be quite a story,” Daisy giggled. “I just hope that he doesn’t get so mad that he takes his wrath out on Alma and the girls.”

“If they do, she and her daughters could move in with us, and Alma can help us in the shop,” Daisy suggested. “That could be her salvation. And any man who acts like Joshua Jones is not a good preacher. He’s a wolf hiding in sheep’s clothing.”

“It could be the death of Alma if he gets really angry,” Lily fretted. “But we can’t worry about what might happen because ...”

“What will be will be—and what won’t be, might be anyway,” Daisy said.

“More words of wisdom from Miz Raven.” Lily smiled. “I needed that today. Just think, if we get this building, we won’t have to live in this hotel much longer. I’m so ready to cook our own meals and get our business started.”

“Then it seems like we better brave the weather and go see Judge Martin.” Daisy growled his name.

“We’ll do that right after breakfast,” Lily said. “I’ve appreciated having our meals here, but I’m tired of the heavy food three times a day. Ready for pancakes?”

Daisy held her head high and led the way down to the dining room. “Definitely, and I’m also ready for our own place like the Paradise, where we don’t have to get dressed in the mornings.”

“Where is Paradise?” Frank asked.

His voice startled Lily so badly that she whipped around. Finding him at the top of the staircase, she lost her balance and had to hang on to the rail to keep from falling down the last two steps. “Where did you come from?”

“I had to run a pitcher of hot water up to a guest,” he answered. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop.”

“We were thinking about our home in Paradise, when we arrive there,” Daisy said and bowed her head for a moment as if in prayer.

“Well, then, what are you ladies having this morning?”

“Pancakes and coffee,” Daisy answered.

“People are already talking about y’all,” Frank whispered. “Are you sure you want coffee? And maybe you shouldn’t sit by the window.”

Lily nodded. “Yes, we are sure, and we like to watch the people, so the window is a fine place for us.”

He set the empty pitcher on a nearby table and frowned. “Suit yourselves, but you aren’t making friends in town by acting the way you are.”

“What does that mean, Mr. Calvin?” Daisy asked.

Frank set his mouth in a firm line and drew his brows down. “You shouldn’t be keeping company with Beulah. And it’s never a good idea to make one of the preachers angry, especially Preacher Jones. Both he and Beulah can sully a woman’s reputation.”

“Is that all?” Lily asked.

He squared his shoulders and glared at them. “You should not be ordering coffee. Women drink tea. In some places, women even have private rooms to eat in public. We didn’t think to have one here, as the ladies we host travel with their husbands.”

“Well, we’re not traveling with any, so we’ll have to make do,” Lily informed him.

“And we don’t really care what Preacher Jones thinks of us,” Daisy added.

“And one last thing—Beulah is our friend, so don’t besmirch her to us,” Lily said. “But answer me this: Did us attending church with Beulah and then visiting with her for lunch generate all this gossip you are talking about?”

“That didn’t help,” Frank answered in an icy tone. “She’s a troublemaker. Poor old Orville was a good man and just wanted to manage her money for her. Womenfolk aren’t made to take care of such things.”

Daisy’s brows shot up toward the ceiling. “Oh, really? So men are the only human beings blessed with brains in their heads? Women just have empty space between their ears?”

Frank tilted his chin up and looked down his nose at Daisy. “I’ll get your breakfast, but if your business doesn’t do well, don’t come crying back to the hotel.”

“I believe we can manage not coming back here just fine, Mr. Calvin,” Lily told him. She didn’t have a big S embroidered on the back of her jacket for Shady Lady —not yet, anyway—but she didn’t intend to do business at the Crockett Hotel again after they’d both left the place.

“Can you believe this?” Daisy whispered. “Just because we have a meal with Beulah and drink coffee—”

Lily shot a dirty look toward Frank’s back. “And don’t have a man to submit to ...”

“—we aren’t a bit better accepted here than we were in Spanish Fort. It doesn’t matter what a woman does, saint or sinner. She has practically no rights,” Daisy finished.

“Seems that way,” Lily said with a nod. “But that doesn’t mean we have to run away. We can fight and teach any other women who are sick of the way things are done these days to join us.”

Daisy unfolded her napkin and laid it on her lap. “We might still get run out of town. But like you said before, we can always join the others in Jacksonville or Nechesville if we do.”

Frank set a plate and a full cup of coffee in front of each of them. “Enjoy your breakfast. I believe this is your third day here. You will want to start looking for another place soon.”

“We plan on seeing what we can do about that right after breakfast,” Lily answered with a sarcastic smile.

“That would be good,” Frank said, then stopped at several tables full of people to whisper, no doubt about the new women in town who didn’t know how to hold their tongues.

He had barely cleared the room when the judge came into the hotel and sat down at a table next to Lily and Daisy.

“Ladies,” he said and tipped his hat toward them.

“Good morning,” Daisy said in an icy tone.

“I understand that you are looking for a place to set up a seamstress shop,” he said.

“Yes, sir, we are,” Lily answered.

The judge didn’t crack a smile or show any emotion. “I have recently come into possession of the old hardware store. I do not want to sell it, but I would be willing to lease it to you on a month-to-month basis. Are you interested, or do I offer it to someone else?”