A Fragile Design (44 page)

‘‘And who’d be wantin’ to know?’’

‘‘I’m Lilly Cheever, and I wondered if I might have a word with you.’’

The woman fidgeted for a moment, running her fingers through her reddish-brown mass of greasy hair before answering.

‘‘What for? I ain’t done nothin’ to bring the likes of ya into the Acre.’’

‘‘I’ve come to inquire about Kathryn O’Hanrahan’s child.’’

Noreen’s fingers immediately locked around Lilly’s wrist. ‘‘Who says Kathryn ever had a child?’’ she hissed. The woman’s eyes reflected a jittery mix of surprise, fear, and curiosity as she pulled Lilly forward into the hovel.

Lilly swallowed down her fear and croaked, ‘‘Liam Donohue.’’

‘‘Liam!’’ The woman loosened her grip on Lilly’s arm. ‘‘That traitorous man. Did he tell ya he wasn’t possessed of enough manhood to tell me to me face that ’e was movin’ out? And now it seems he’s taken to spreadin’ false rumors.’’

The smell inside was putrid, a farrago of every foul odor Lilly could imagine. She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket but then thought the better of placing it over her nose and mouth. Most likely the woman would take offense. ‘‘Your sister didn’t have a child? Oh, please, this is very important.’’

Noreen held up an empty bottle. ‘‘How important?’’

‘‘I’m willing to pay for the information, and I promise no harm will come to you nor the child.’’

Noreen’s lips curled into a wicked grin, her broken yellow teeth resembling the ruins of a city wall. ‘‘If I should be decidin’ to tell ya anythin’, there best be nothin’ but good come from the use o’ me words. Otherwise, I’ll place a curse on ya that’ll take the life of that child ya’re carryin’ in yar belly.’’

Lilly shivered at the threat. ‘‘If I tell you why I have an interest in the child, perhaps you’d be reconciled to helping me.’’

Noreen nodded and pointed at a broken-down wooden chair. ‘‘We’ll see. Sit down.’’

Lilly carefully lowered herself into the chair, not certain it was capable of holding her weight without collapsing to the floor. Once seated and somewhat assured that the chair was stable, Lilly began to carefully explain the events surrounding her brother’s untimely death. She told of his dying declaration concerning the existence of a child, a boy with a mushroom-shaped birthmark, and her determination to find the boy, although she remained silent regarding her journey to Canterbury.

‘‘Yar brother’s name?’’

‘‘Lewis. Lewis Armbruster.’’

Noreen slowly wagged her head back and forth. ‘‘Me sister never mentioned anyone by the name o’ Armbruster to me. ’Course, that’s not to say she didn’t know ’im, ’cause I can’t say that for sure. But Cullan is not yar brother’s child. He was sired by William Thurston, and of that there is no doubt. For reasons I never understood, me sister believed that one day Thurston would leave ’is wife and marry ’er. Such nonsense! I told her so, too, but she wouldn’t listen. William Thurston did nothin’ but use her, and ’e was angry as a bull seein’ red when Kathryn told ’im she was givin’ him a babe—like he had nothin’ to do with it.’’

‘‘Did he accept the boy as his offspring?’’

The Irish woman’s lips curled in disgust. ‘‘He didn’t like it none, but when he saw the birthmark, ’e knew. Besides, whether he wanted to admit it or not, he knew Kathryn hadn’t been with other men. Kathryn said sometimes ’e was kind to the boy, but mostly not. I think Kathryn knew he’d never accept the lad. In fact, she told me should anything ever ’appen to her, she feared for the child’s life. When she died, I figured Cullan would be safer outside of the Acre.’’

Lilly nodded. ‘‘And you took him to the Shaker Village in Canterbury.’’

Noreen jumped up from her chair and was leaning over Lilly. ‘‘How’d ya know that?’’

‘‘Purely coincidence, Mrs. Gallagher, but I’ve been to Canterbury to see the boy. They named him David but mentioned he had been known as Cullan.’’

Noreen’s face softened slightly. ‘‘Is ’e well? How’d ’e look?’’

‘‘He appeared very well. He was neat and clean, obviously well nurtured—a fetching child,’’ Lilly related. ‘‘I’m curious why you took him to Canterbury. You’re obviously not of the same religious beliefs.’’

Noreen cackled and clapped her hands. ‘‘No. I doubt ya’ll find many Irish among them Shakers. Odd sort of people, what little I saw of ’em, but I told Kathryn when the lad was born that if anything ever ’appened to her, I’d make certain the babe didn’t come to any harm. I didn’t think he’d be safe with me—figured if William Thurston heard tell I had a young boy living with me, he’d figure out soon enough the child was his and come after ’im.’’

Lilly remained silent, her gaze fixed upon Noreen’s rough hands, the dirty fingers laced together as if in prayer. She didn’t want to believe this woman’s story. Lilly had fought against the idea the child could belong to anyone other than Lewis since she’d heard Liam Donohue’s tale. But Matthew had willingly believed every word he’d been told. And as far as Lilly’s husband was concerned, the matter was resolved—not that she hadn’t attempted to resurrect the topic at every given opportunity. But Matthew always managed to change the subject. Today, she’d had no choice but to take matters into her own hands.

‘‘Farfetched as my idea may seem, don’t you think we should explore this matter more deeply? What if Lewis really is the boy’s father? Wouldn’t you want to know?’’

‘‘Me? I already know the truth. William Thurston’s the boy’s father, and there ain’t nothin’ ya can dig up that’ll change that fact. I figure I could lie to ya. I might even make meself some money in the tellin’. Who would be the wiser? But the fact is Cullan might end up dead because of it. There ain’t much I wouldn’t do for a few coins, and folks here in the Acre would tell ya that’s a fact. But I won’t break a promise to me dead sister. If ya go and bring that lad back to Lowell, ya best be ready to accept the fact that yar actions will likely kill him. Are you so stubborn that ya’re willing to see the lad die?’’

‘‘I’m stubborn enough to want him to have a better life, a life with his true family.’’

Noreen shook her head back and forth. ‘‘You ain’t his kin, Mrs. Cheever. I don’t know what else I can be sayin’ to convince ya. But I’ll tell ya this much—if ya have a speck of sense, ya’ll leave this house and forget the lad.’’

Lilly knew she had been dismissed. There was, after all, nothing else to say. Reaching into her reticule, she pulled out several shiny coins and extended them to Noreen.

‘‘Keep yar money. Just do as I’ve asked—forget the lad.’’ Noreen’s lips were set in a tight, hard line as she stood and looked down at Lilly. ‘‘Go back to yar fancy house, have a nice healthy baby of yar own, and pretend none of this ever ’appened.’’

Lilly stood, nodded, and dropped the coins into a metal cup as she slowly walked out of the shack. She remembered little of her journey out of the Acre. If there had been stares or whispered remarks, she’d been unaware. If there had been a yapping dog or an old woman pitching waste, it had gone unnoticed. So focused were her thoughts that she was surprised to find herself walking up the front steps to her home.

The first step was easy, but the second was halted as pain ripped through her abdomen and spread into her back. Gasping, Lilly put a hand to her stomach and tried to ignore the pain. In a moment it passed and she was able to reach the house. Drawing a deep breath, she knew her time had come. Now she would have to see about reaching Matthew and the doctor before the baby was born without them.

C
HAPTER
37

Bella coughed, then sputtered, carpet fibers invading her airways as she strained to fill her lungs with fresh air. A voice somewhere in the distance instructed her to breathe slowly and relax. Yet she couldn’t. Her body ached for oxygen. And so she fought for air—in short panicky gasps until her body finally responded and the distant voice became clearer, saying her name and instructing her to remain calm and open her eyes.

Fingers cradled her head, and she could feel the warmth of someone’s breath on her face. She struggled to open her eyes. They felt heavy, as though a weight had been placed upon them, sealing them tight. Once again she heard someone calling her name in the distance. Her eyelids fluttered momentarily and then languidly opened to reveal a face that was nearly touching her own. Startled, Bella lurched upward and struck Taylor’s forehead with her own. The force of the blow caused her to drop back onto the boat’s deck.

Taylor moved to her side, his hand now rubbing his forehead. ‘‘Are you all right? I was so worried.’’

Bella focused upon Taylor’s face and watched as a small bump began to rise on his brow. She gave him a faint smile. ‘‘I believe I’ve injured you.’’

‘‘Don’t concern yourself with me. Try to sit up,’’ he encouraged, taking her hand. ‘‘How do you feel?’’

Loosened strands of hair fell across her face as she lifted herself into a sitting position. Instinctively, she brushed the hair behind one ear. ‘‘I think I’m fine. The other girls, are they injured? Where is Ruth?’’

Ruth moved closer, with the other girls following her lead. ‘‘I’m right here, Bella.’’

Bella glanced toward Hilda. ‘‘And you, Hilda, did they hurt you?’’

Hilda gave her a bright smile. ‘‘I’ll be fine once we get back home.’’

Turning her gaze to Taylor, Bella said, ‘‘Hilda works at the Hamilton. And poor Ruth, they’ve been holding her longer than any of us. We had given up all hope of being found.’’

Ruth nodded her head. ‘‘I was certain I’d never see my family again. Several times they said I was being sent to Boston.’’

‘‘Where have you been all this time, Ruth?’’

‘‘I wish I could tell you, but I truly don’t know. They blindfolded me and put me in the back of a wagon. I have no idea where we went, but I think it was somewhere out of town. I was kept in one room with no windows, and then they brought the other girls, one by one,’’ Ruth explained, her gaze now shifting to Hilda and the Irish girls. ‘‘But they never brought Bella. We didn’t see her until they moved us to the warehouse here at the millpond. Of course, we didn’t know it was the millpond, but we could hear water and boats. We knew we were near water and that we were going to be shipped off somewhere.’’

Bella glanced toward Matthew and Liam. Both of them appeared to be listening intently as Ruth related her story. The two men in charge of the boat shifted about, obviously growing more and more uncomfortable as Matthew glared down at them. ‘‘I’m not going to waste much time on the two of you,’’ Matthew growled. ‘‘You know we’ve already sent for the police. If you have any hopes of leniency, I suggest you cooperate and tell us everything you know about this illegal business you’re conducting. Otherwise, I’m going to tell the police you both deserve as much punishment as can possibly be meted out by the judge.’’

‘‘Now, wait a minute,’’ one of them objected, ‘‘this wasn’t our idea. We’re being paid to haul cargo to Boston—nothing more.’’

Matthew grunted. ‘‘Don’t lie to me. You two men kidnapped these girls and knew what was going to happen to them.’’

The other man stroked the bristly stubble along his jawline. ‘‘Well, yeah, that there is true, but we was following orders. It was them or us. If we didn’t do what we was told, we’d find ourselves taking a bullet or floating in the river. I’m too young to die.’’

‘‘Then you’d best tell us who put you up to this whole thing. I want names—all of them, starting with yours.’’

The two men exchanged a look before the second one continued. ‘‘My name is Jake Wilson and this here’s Rafe Walton. But you ain’t gonna believe me when I tell you who set this up.’’

‘‘Try me. You may be surprised what I’ll believe.’’

‘‘William Thurston’s the one in charge. Him and J. P. Green. They put us up to this whole thing, and they’re the ones getting rich, not us. But I doubt you want to hear it’s some of your fancy Associates dealing in human flesh. You don’t believe me, do ya?’’

‘‘Unfortunately, I do. Have you left out any names? Is there anybody else involved?’’

Rafe slowly moved his head back and forth. ‘‘If there is, they never told us. Thurston and Green are the only ones we ever met with, and I doubt they wanted to share their profits with anyone else.’’

‘‘Me too. They wasn’t paying us hardly anything,’’ Jake said before turning his attention to the girls on the other side of the boat. ‘‘You tell ’em we never did you any harm.’’

Taylor jumped to his feet and took three long strides to where Jake was sitting and glared into the man’s face. ‘‘What do you mean you didn’t do them any harm? You tore them away from their homes against their will, kept them as prisoners—and you almost killed her,’’ he shouted while pointing toward Bella.

‘‘And if we hadn’t stopped you, they would be bound for the slave market in New Orleans. I’d say you did plenty of harm.’’

Bella gasped. ‘‘Slave market? They were going to sell us as slaves? Is that what you’ve discovered, Taylor?’’

Her words brought him back to her side. ‘‘It’s a long story, but Matthew discovered these men have gotten into the business of abducting girls when they are out alone at night. It appears as if they were waiting until they had a goodly number of you before making the journey to Boston.’’

The words struck fear in her heart. Foolish pride had nearly caused her ruin. She didn’t want to imagine what would have happened had Taylor and the other men not arrived. Bella looked across the boat to where Matthew and Liam had now secured Rafe and Jake. ‘‘One of them said they were taking us to Boston and from there we would be taken south; he mentioned New Orleans. He said there was no need for concern—that we’d have lovely new homes. I inquired why he didn’t advertise for girls to work in these homes if these were desirable positions, pointing out the fact that the Corporation advertises in the newspaper for mill girls. He quickly told me to shut up and labeled me a troublemaker. But the thought of slavery never entered my mind.’’

Taking her hands in his own, Taylor gently warmed her cold fingers. ‘‘It’s best you don’t dwell on what might have happened, Bella. You’re safe and that’s what really matters.’’

She couldn’t believe his kindness. ‘‘After the way I acted, I’m surprised you would even bother to look for me.’’