The Last Honest Seamstress (41 page)

"Surely you remember the nasty note you sent the Captain."

He looked blank. Either he was an excellent actor, or he really didn't recall.

"You know, the one that called him a foul name and asked him to pay up. It was back in January. I told Mr. Tetch to take care of paying the debt. Surely you must have suspected then?"

Bailey broke out laughing. "That explains why Con never placed his bet. Tetch pinched that too." Her confused look prompted him to explain. "I like to race the
Eliza.
She's a fast girl, faster than any other. However, I have to prove that to Captains Riggs, Fulbright, and Scott every year. We hold an annual race, always take bets. Con didn't place his wager this year. Guess with the break-in and all, he forgot. I sent him a friendly reminder is all."

"Oh." She felt foolish.

"What were you thinking? That Con cheated a friend?"

A hot, guilty flush crept over her. She looked at the table, reaching for her cold tea as a cover.

"Mrs. O'Neill, let me tell you something about your husband. He's a true friend, an honest man. In all the time I've known him, he's only done one dishonest thing, and that involved you." A devilish little glint lit his eye. He looked down into his teacup.
 

Fayth guessed he'd finally come to the second point of his visit.
 

"I probably shouldn't even mention it," he said.

"Me?" Her heart pounded. Would Captain Bailey confirm her suspicions about Con's connection with Lou? She didn't want to know, but morbid curiosity prompted her. "Captain?"

"You'll have to swear never to tell Con I told you."

Her mouth felt like batting, dry and thick. She forced a weak smile as she tried to lighten the atmosphere. "A lady never swears, but I give you my promise." She watched Captain Bailey, imagining his internal debate as they sat silent.

"Now that I've opened my mouth, I guess I better say, or I'll have you imagining the worst. I can see from your expression you already do."

"I'm that transparent?"

Captain Bailey gave a nervous chuckle. "Yes, ma'am." He took a deep breath, muttered something about Con forgiving him and plunged ahead. "Con has been in love with you for a long time. Long before you proposed to him. Ordered himself about half a dozen shirts he didn't need, just so he could see you."

She smiled, the first genuine one in days. He had? He loved her? What romantic notions he had.

"But Con had this odd plan about how he was going to go about courting you. He was thinking; well, I don't know exactly what he was thinking." Captain Bailey paused.

"That's the dishonesty?" It wasn't dishonesty. It was joy!
 

His next words stopped her mental dancing mid step.

"No, ma'am. I'm getting to that. He turned down your marriage proposal, felt real bad about it."
 

A scarlet blush flashed across Fayth. She felt the heat flame all the way down her neck

 
Captain Bailey was kind enough to look a bit embarrassed himself. "I guess he figured to win you over himself, given enough time. But the fire came and disrupted his plans. After the fire, he was certain you were going to go off and propose to someone else. He knew you wouldn't propose to him again, and he didn't think you'd accept his proposal without some help, so he forced your hand."

Fayth shook her head, uncomprehending. If only she could shake away the mental dust blocking her understanding.
 

"How could he do that? I accepted of my own will. You make it sound as if he held me hostage." Amusement crept into her voice as she spoke and the humor of Captain Bailey's assertion came to her.

"He did, in a way. He went to Jacob Finn, and made sure he didn't give you a loan. Oh, he wouldn't have Finn compromise his ethics, just asked him to scrutinize your application carefully. Give a conditional refusal and allow time for Con to make his proposal to you. I don't know what story Con used to convince you. But you should know that his deception has eaten away at Con all this time. And I wouldn't have brought it up at all, except that—"
 

He cleared his throat nervously. "From Con's manner, I gathered there were problems between you. It worries me, thinking of Con with trouble at home, and trouble with the business." Captain Bailey sat in his chair looking like he expected a lashing.

Fayth realized she was gaping, snapped her mouth shut, and thumped back against her chair. Captain Bailey stared uncomfortably into his lap. A mixture of relief and joy filled her. She started to giggle. She tried to restrain herself, but happiness bubbled to her lips in laughter. The irony!
 

"I thought it was Lou Gramm who got to Mr. Finn!" Her words came out garbled by laughter. Tiny tears slid down her cheeks. "You mean it was the Captain all along? I just gave Lou her power over me. No wonder she was confused!"
 

Captain Bailey looked at her like a bird, head cocked sideways, brow furrowed. "Are you all right, Mrs. O'Neill?"

"I'm hysterical. You couldn't have made me happier!" She wiped her cheeks with the back of her hands, and took deep breaths, interrupted by insidiously persistent giggles, as she tried to calm down.
 

Captain Bailey still looked confused, but he smiled now, seemingly pleased with himself.

She picked up her napkin and dabbed at her eyes. "The only thing you could tell me that would add to my elation is that I'm the only woman Con has ever loved. And even to mention it is egotistical of me, and irrelevant, as long as he loves me now."

Captain Bailey smiled ear to ear. "I believe you are the only woman."

"Captain Bailey, bless you and your candor." Her tone sobered. "Speaking of the traitorous Mr. Tetch, what should I do about him? Does Mr. Tetch know the Captain knows that he has been stealing from him?"

"Probably not. The man has a gigantic, arrogant ego. Believes he's brilliant enough to get away with anything. If Con ever confronted him, he would have to stop, or Con would be forced to fire him. Tetch knows of Con's fondness for his late father. Tetch has to feel Con would forgive him almost anything, especially petty thievery, at least once. I'm sure Tetch feels confident Con would give him a second chance. He has before."

"What do you recommend I do, Captain Bailey?"

"Keep an eye on Tetch from a discreet distance. I'll do what I can, but I'm out of town most of the time. I'll ask a few friends to be my eyes while I'm out. Secondly, get the books for the business. Without arousing his suspicion, if possible. We don't want him taking the midnight train out of town before we find out what he's up to.

"If you get the books, I'll have my accountant take a look at them. See if we can find out if Tetch has been taking larger amounts than we suspect."

Fayth nodded. "Thank you."

Captain Bailey rose. "Let me know if he makes any suspicious moves. I'll be in and out. If it looks like Tetch is about to leave town, contact the sheriff."

Chapter 18

Fayth's heart danced. Bailey's words washed away doubts that had been months in the making. Doubts that stood between her and the man she loved. She allowed herself the indulgence of dwelling solely on Con for some minutes. She stood in the garden and hugged herself in rapturous delight, sighing like a girl infatuated. Moments later, when she could no longer ward off thoughts of Tetch, she broke into a frown.

Cold, hard fury filled her. What if Mr. Tetch had been pilfering large sums of money all along? Wouldn't that explain why Con's business was in trouble? Further, what if Mr. Tetch had hidden the money somewhere? He certainly couldn't bank it. What if he planned to retrieve it and sneak away soon? Then again, what about all that spending Coral had mentioned? Had Mr. Tetch already blown through it all?

As Fayth wondered about things, she developed a new and startling suspicion of Mr. Tetch. A pattern of behavior became suddenly apparent. Every time Fayth set about righting Con's books, Mr. Tetch planted some new fear in her, or she met some new adversity that diverted her attention away from O'Neill Shipping, almost always while Con was away.

It was Tetch who told her that Con pilfered from the business, and all the while it was him. Had Tetch left Captain Bailey's letter where she'd find it and misconstrue it? In retrospect, Tetch had seemed totally unconcerned about it. Suddenly, though she'd probably never be able to prove it, Fayth felt quite certain that Tetch had been behind the newspaper articles and the threats. Who else had anything to gain by them, or knew so much about her business? Blast him! She wouldn't let Tetch get away.

If Tetch still had the money, Fayth would find it and return it to Con. If Mr. Tetch had taken enough to weaken the business, returning it should provide a large enough cash infusion to make the business solvent again. She would have to find out whether it existed, and if so, where it was. And she would have to do so soon.

A thorough search of the offices after Tetch left for the evening turned up nothing to incriminate him, or point to a hidden stash of cash. Fayth scanned the account ledgers, but they were suddenly fastidiously maintained and legitimate looking. Either Mr. Tetch suddenly had mastered good accounting techniques, or the books had been doctored or replaced since Fayth last had checked them. Several cabinets were locked, but Fayth was pessimistic that they held anything important to her search. Tetch would be most likely to keep anything of importance at his room at the Sealth Men's Hotel. She'd have to search his room, but she needed his keys. She went to see the only person she thought would be of any help—Coral.

As Lou's serious business hours were just beginning, Coral met Fayth on the walk outside the parlor house. She wore a low cut gown with a lacy shawl over it. Coral's actions were jumpy and agitated as Fayth explained her plan.

"In answer to your question, Tetch comes in on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, always around seven."

"He'll be in tomorrow then. How long does he usually stay?"

In reply to a cool gust of wind, Coral pulled her shawl closer over her thin shoulders. "He seldom pays for a full night with a girl, but he usually stays for a few drinks after his call. Visits with friends, that sort of thing. If you assumed he'd be out two or three hours, I think you'd be safe."

"You can get his keys?"

"Easily. It'll be just like the days when my old man was alive. I used to pick my old man's pockets for money to feed us all the time." Coral's expression warned Fayth away from any show of sympathy. "I owe you at least this favor before I go. When do you want to do it?"

"Tomorrow evening."

Coral nodded. "Wait for me in front of the shop. I'll bring the keys to you. It would be no good for Tetch or anybody else to see you loitering around the house. I've got to get back now." She left.

When Fayth got home, she found a note from Drew tucked in with her mail. She opened it without enthusiasm, scanning it quickly. He wanted to see her. He begged her to make up her mind quickly. She crumpled the paper up. She'd been so distracted with other matters, she'd forgotten about Drew. Fortunately, he'd had the good sense to stay away from the shop. He probably believed Con was still in town. If he didn't know, she wasn't going to tell him. As soon as she took care of Tetch, she would send Drew away. For now, she couldn't be bothered.

The next evening, Fayth paced in front of the shop for nearly twenty minutes, heart pounding in her ears before Coral showed up with the keys at seven thirty.

"Tetch was late," Coral said between breaths. She looked winded and fragile as she held the keys out to Fayth.

"Thank you," Fayth said. "How long before he misses these?"

Coral frowned. "Not long enough tonight. He seemed agitated and anxious. He didn't bother to wait for his usual girl, just took the first one available." Coral rested her hand on Fayth's arm. "Don't go to the hotel tonight. He mentioned something about having to get home early."

"Blast, I’ll have to wait until tomorrow," Fayth said as she looked at Coral. "You don't think he'll suspect you stole these?"

"No. His wallet is still there. Why would someone steal keys and not his wallet? He’ll think he misplaced them. I have to get back." Coral slid out the door.

Fayth patted the keys in her pocket and turned from the window, mulling over her next step. She would let Tetch stew over losing his keys for at least one night.

Every morning, especially now with Con gone, Fayth realized how much she missed Coral's company and help. Dressing alone was tedious and time consuming. She never got her waist as small as Coral tugged it down to. It was a barely adequate blessing that she cinched herself tight enough to fit into her dresses at all. Coral was right. She needed a servant. Someday, when the businesses flourished again . . .

Fayth wrapped her corset strings around her waist and tied them in front. She felt nervous, fluttery with excitement over the hope of recovering what Mr. Tetch was supposed to have stolen. Humming one of Con's silly Irish tunes, Fayth pulled her deep mirage blue watered silk gown over her head and began buttoning the bodice. Fayth hummed a little louder, filling in the melody with the few unintelligible words she remembered, dreaming of Con's homecoming and how she planned to make everything up to him. After Captain Bailey's confession, how could she doubt Con would come home? Please, let him still love her.