Steel Kisses

by Laura Strickland

  “I will trust you, Rey, to do whatever you think best.”

  “I think we should take you to Mrs. Gideon, explain your situation, and throw ourselves on her mercy. Maybe she can think of a way to keep you safe.”

  “Who is Mrs. Gideon?”

  “She runs a shelter for women and helps get them off the street.”

  “But, Rey, I’m not a woman. Will she still help me?”

  “Well, Lily, I guess there’s only one way to find out.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  “I’d like to request sanctuary on behalf of my friend.”

  “Sanctuary, is it?” The woman who stood before Reynold and Lily gave them the onceover. She looked far different from when Reynold had seen her in the tavern, much more soberly dressed, though her deep plum-colored gown had patches of glitter and the baubles hanging from her ears matched her eyes exactly—tawny gold. She’d bundled her black hair in a knot at the back of her head, rolled up her sleeves, and looked all business.

  Beside Reynold, Lily shifted on her feet. Still clad in her dull brown costume, she clutched bundles containing all her worldly possessions, including the books and the last of the enzyme formula.

  “This isn’t a church,” Mrs. Gideon snapped, and Lily took a step closer to Reynold. He clasped her hand in his.

  Mrs. Gideon’s gaze followed the movement before returning to Reynold’s face. Her expression softened marginally.

  “I suppose you’d better come in.”

  The Haven for Disadvantaged Women was located in a huge house on Ellicott Street, bulky and cavernous. And full—Reynold and Lily had already passed several groups of what could only be tarnished ladies or former streetwalkers outside. One, smoking a small cigar, had stared at them as they came up the walk.

  He felt uncomfortable, desperate, and out of his depth. If Mrs. Gideon refused to show them mercy, he didn’t know what he was going to do.

  And Mrs. Gideon didn’t look particularly merciful. She admitted them to the vast foyer and then stood like a marble statue, blocking the way.

  “I don’t recognize you,” she told Lily, “and I know most of the girls working this city. Where’s your patch?”

  Reynold answered, “She doesn’t have a patch, ma’am.”

  Mrs. Gideon’s brilliant eyes touched Reynold again. “Can she speak?”

  “Yes, but…I need to tell you her story. Privately.” Too many people here; two of the women had come in from outside. Others walked down the wide staircase that led from the foyer. All stared at the new arrival.

  Curiosity now stirred in Mrs. Gideon’s rather intimidating face. “Very well. Come into my office.”

  Her office, through a doorway on the left, appeared to have been partitioned from what had once been a parlor when this place served as someone’s home. Now it looked surprisingly ordinary, with a white desk, a few comfortable chairs, and stacks of papers. Mrs. Gideon closed the door firmly before gesturing them into seats and taking the one behind the desk.

  “I’m willing to listen, but I’m a busy woman. Don’t waste my time.”

  How to begin? Quite plainly Mrs. Gideon couldn’t tell what Lily was. Now she waited with a visible lack of patience while Reynold fumbled for words.

  Lily spoke before he could. “My name is Lily. I am an automaton.”

  Mrs. Gideon’s gaze abruptly narrowed; her interest quickened. “Ah,” she said softly. Her fingers tapped the surface of the desk. “I knew I sensed…something.” She smiled suddenly and, revealing her wits moved very quickly indeed, said, “You’ll be from that place that burned the other night—the Crystal Palace.”

  “Yes.”

  “Would you mind giving me a better look at you?”

  Lily pulled off her ugly brown hat and her hair tumbled down like sunshine. Reynold’s throat grew tight with emotion.

  Mrs. Gideon glanced at him almost as if she could feel what he felt.

  “And who are you? Or would you prefer I don’t know your name?”

  “Might be best,” he admitted. “Though we’ll need to trust you if you’re to help Lily. I hope you’re willing to help her, ma’am. She’s not a woman but she’s been forced into prostitution in that awful place—just like a slave. And if she’s found, she’ll have to go back again.”

  “Why don’t you tell me the whole story? Which of you wants to speak?”

  Reynold looked at Lily. Before he could marshal his thoughts, she began—her pale gaze fixed on Mrs. Gideon’s face and her hands folded in her lap, she told the tale of her entire existence like a recitation, beginning with her earliest cognizant memory, awakening naked and cold in Dr. Landry’s lab, recounting what sounded to Reynold very much like a journey into awareness.

  Before she had finished, Mrs. Gideon was on her feet, pacing the area behind the desk, scowling. She never interrupted Lily, but her gaze returned time and time again to Lily’s face, and after Lily concluded, she spoke.

  “And you minded serving in this capacity, as a Landry’s Lady? Of course you did. I should have known.”

  Since Mrs. Gideon seemed to have answered her own question, Lily did not and merely sat with lips parted slightly.

  Obviously troubled, Mrs. Gideon went on, “Indeed, I definitely should have known better—one of my best friends is an automaton, a hybrid like yourself.”

  “There are others such as me, other than my fellow Landry’s Ladies?”

  “Remember, Lily,” Reynold said gently, “there’s those hybrids in the police force—the Irish Squad.”

  “My friend is a member of the Irish Squad,” Mrs. Gideon admitted.

  Lily looked at Reynold. “You told me about them, yes—but how can they be like me? They are all male and not required to service clients.”

  Mrs. Gideon spoke a word Reynold didn’t expect any lady to utter. Perhaps Mrs. Gideon wasn’t all lady.

  “This is upsetting—very upsetting,” she said as she continued to pace. “My support was fundamental in the development of Landry’s Ladies. I—and other well-wishers in this city—contributed heavily in funding Dr. Landry’s project. I thought it would benefit the city and the poor girls who have to work the streets. I’ve seen what they endure and how difficult it is to escape the life.”

  She looked at Lily. “Damn it! When Dr. Landry came to us, she talked about automatons. I assumed she meant for the streets—I believe that was what she intended at the outset. It’s obviously turned into something else, though—highly-developed models, such as you, which I never had the chance to examine. And suddenly we have the Crystal Palace catering to the wrong clientele. The girls who need saving are still on the streets, and it seems a whole new class of slavery has been born.”

  She leaned down and stared Lily in the eyes. “I’m sorry, my dear. I contributed thousands—but this was never what I intended.”

  Reynold sensed her kindness then, a strong wave that did not differentiate between Lily, an automaton, and her other charges. The breath left his lungs with a rush. Perhaps if this woman took an interest in Lily, she would be safe.

  “Mrs. Gideon, will you agree to help Lily? She needs a place to hide and other things—the liquid formula that keeps her skin alive, and…”

  Again Mrs. Gideon addressed Lily directly. “You mentioned your friend, Chastity, fished out of the river. Do you think she committed suicide?”

  “I do, ma’am. She felt ever so much guilt over the loss of life at the Crystal Palace. And I’d showed her where our shutoff switch is located. It’s just here…”

  “No, don’t show me. That should be your personal secret, don’t you think?” Mrs. Gideon smiled briefly. “Give no one else power over you if you can help it.”

  “Yes, Mrs. Gideon.”

  “Call me Miss Topaz—all my girls do.”

  “Miss Topaz,” Lily repeated carefully, “I believe Chastity threw herself in the river and used her shutoff switch before her boiler extinguished, in an effort to pay for her mistakes. She never meant the fire t
o harm anyone, merely to provide us the chance for escape.”

  “Yes, but Dr. Landry may be able to restart her now and procure information as to your whereabouts.”

  “That’s what I fear,” Reynold put in.

  Mrs. Gideon jerked her head at him and asked, “Lily, how does he fit into this?”

  “He is my lover,” Lily pronounced proudly.

  “Oh?” Mrs. Gideon’s eyebrows soared. “Not just a john?”

  “What is a ‘john,’ please?”

  “A…client.”

  “Oh, no, not at all. I love him. And he loves me. We wish to remain together.”

  “Is that so?” Mrs. Gideon looked at Reynold.

  He nodded. “I’d like to marry her. But I don’t know how that will ever be possible.”

  Mrs. Gideon returned to her seat behind the desk. “Quite frankly, neither do I. Unfortunately, Lily is considered property, under the law. Dr. Landry has legal claim to her, and if you’re caught with her, you’ll be in considerable trouble.”

  Lily got to her feet. “I should go at once and turn myself in to Dr. Landry.”

  “No,” Reynold objected wildly.

  “I agree with your lover,” said Mrs. Gideon.

  “But if my being here endangers him—or you…”

  “Sit back down. You, like Chastity from the sound of it, are all too quick to sacrifice yourself.”

  “We are taught from the first we do not matter other than in providing comfort and pleasure to others.”

  “A lesson the better abandoned now.”

  Reynold’s heart lifted. “Does that mean you will help?”

  “Yes. But we’ll need to be very careful. Listen to me, Lily, and remember: it will be too risky to introduce you to the other girls here as ‘Lily.’ Dr. Landry may inquire after you if she’s not sure you were destroyed in the fire. I think, to make things easy, we’ll call you ‘Lana.’ And we will tell no one that you are an automaton. Understand?”

  “I am to let them believe me human?”

  “I feel it vital to your safety. I am fond of the girls here, and ordinarily I do trust them. But some are not always good at keeping secrets. And under the law, as I say, should Dr. Landry come here and lay claim to you, I wouldn’t be able to prevent you being turned over to her.”

  Reynold turned sick inside. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”

  “On the contrary. I have resources I believe will prove beneficial. I can connect Lily—or rather Lana—with the friend I mentioned, one Patrick Kelly. He may be able to procure the nutritional formula she requires.” Mrs. Gideon’s gaze slid over Reynold. “If you keep her hidden away somewhere, how will you manage that?”

  “I can’t,” Reynold admitted miserably.

  “But,” Lily objected, “I do not know whether I can successfully pretend to be human, living among humans.”

  Mrs. Gideon smiled brilliantly. “We will soon discover whether or not you can.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “I did not comprehend I would have to say goodbye to you.” Lily pressed close in Reynold’s arms. “Or that we would no longer be able to make love.”

  Reynold ran his fingers through her hair and caressed her cheek before pulling her still closer. “Neither did I. But it’s one of Mrs. Gideon’s rules—no men staying here. And I guess it makes sense. She’s trying to get these women off the streets. No sense allowing clients in.”

  “How will I endure your absence?” Lily listened to the sound of Reynold’s heart—the sound she prized above all others—and tried to envision existing without him. She was not good at imagining; trying to do so made her intelligence stutter and misfire.

  The two of them stood wrapped in one another, in Mrs. Gideon’s office where she’d left them alone for a few minutes.

  Reynold told her, “At least you’ll be safe, as safe as we can make you, anyway. That’s more important than anything else right now. And Patrick Kelly may be able to provide the formula you need.”

  “Yes.”

  “Right now, sweetheart, this is what we need to do.”

  “I will miss sleeping with you. Or lying with you while you sleep. I do not actually sleep.”

  “I’ll miss that too, more than I can say. But Lily—Lana—be sure not to say things like that in front of the other women here.”

  “Only to Mrs. Gideon. Or you. I understand.”

  “Maybe sometime in the future we can be together. I promise to do everything I can to make that happen.”

  “The future?”

  “The years ahead.”

  Years. Lily found that both comforting and disturbing. For her to survive into years ahead, so much needed to happen: she would have to continue functioning and remain free and independent of Dr. Landry, to whom she was a possession. And stay with Rey.

  So many impossible things.

  “Listen,” he told her, “Mrs. Gideon didn’t say we can’t see each other—only that I can’t stay here with you. Maybe I can take you back to my room sometimes, if it’s safe.”

  Lily lifted her head and looked at him. “I hope so, for we’ve yet to finish acting out the last few of Miss X’s adventures. I read the end. Her lover returns to her after all, and they rise to new heights of passion.”

  Reynold kissed her. “I can’t wait.”

  ****

  “I know you’re not able to eat or drink,” Mrs. Gideon said softly, “but most of the social engagements in this house take place over meals. So you’ll have to pretend. Just push the food around on the plate. The girls will think nerves have upset your stomach.”

  Lily peered into the dining room. “There’s a man there. Is he a client?”

  “Absolutely not. That’s my husband, Rom. He’s a liaison with the Canadian government and is usually too busy to take lunch with us. Today we’re in luck.”

  “He will not expect sexual pleasure from me?” Lily did not wish to enter the room. “I don’t want to provide that to anyone but Rey.”

  “You may relax—I promise you, I provide that man with all the pleasure he can stand. Now come along, Lana—you can do this.”

  “Yes.” Pass as human in a room full of humans? She’d never before attempted any such thing. Her legs trembled beneath her as she walked in Mrs. Gideon’s wake. Every head turned toward her, including that of the man who stood near the head of the table.

  Lily measured him against Reynold, her standard of perfection. This man, neither as tall nor as broad as Rey, stood only an inch or two over Mrs. Gideon’s impressive height and had fair, wavy hair that tumbled over his forehead. He wore dark trousers and a plain white shirt open at the neck, and his blue eyes regarded Lily with calm kindness.

  “Ladies”—Mrs. Gideon laid her fingers on Lily’s arm—“we have a new member of the household. Please join me in welcoming Lana. For reasons I’m sure you’ll understand, we’d like to keep her presence here under our hats. She’s been through quite an ordeal, so I hope you’ll make things as easy for her as you can.”

  Under our hats? Lily didn’t have a hat on her head, and neither did any of the eight women now staring at her.

  They ranged in age from quite young to middle-aged, but they shared in common a hard and assessing expression.

  The first to speak, Rom Gideon said, “Welcome, Lana. Please find a seat. I think the second from the end is empty. Right, Meggie?”

  A red-haired woman with a pockmarked face nodded.

  Mrs. Gideon’s fingers tightened on Lily’s arm briefly before she urged her toward the open seat. Everyone sat down.

  “I don’t recognize you,” said a brown-haired woman seated next to Rom Gideon. “Where did you work?”

  Lily froze in her seat, stumped by the very first question. She shouldn’t answer but had been trained not to be rude.

  “I mean,” the woman went on, “most of us have seen each other before, on the corners or in the taverns. I don’t remember seeing you.”

  Mrs. Gideon spoke. “Probably o
ne of the things we’d better not share.”

  “You from out of town?” demanded a fair-haired girl whose sharp tone belied her years. “I don’t think that’s fair. There are only so many places here. Why should a stranger get one of them?”

  “You know I give shelter to all, based on need,” said Mrs. Gideon. “Della, don’t you trust me?”

  “Yes, Miss Topaz.”

  “Lana’s come here for help, not badgering. This is a sisterhood.”

  One of the older women sniffed and pointed her nose in the air. “Looks a bit fine and well-bred, to me. What, Lana? Did you come from some high-class brothel?”

  Topaz Gideon’s gaze flew to Lily; a bit too close to the truth. Drawing upon her reading, Lily began to weave a story for herself.

  “Please, Miss Topaz, might I not tell them just enough so they will understand?”

  “Well, I don’t think—”

  Lowering her head, Lily said, “I was held prisoner—kept for the use of one man.”

  A collective gasp went around the table.

  “Mercy!” one of the women breathed.

  “You wouldn’t believe the things he made me do before I escaped. Or maybe you ladies would. You may be the only ones who could understand.”

  “My goodness,” the first girl responded. “How did you get away?”

  “I hurt him. Now they’re looking for me.”

  The women took it from there, the conversation steering itself.

  “Any man who treats a woman like that deserves what he gets, that’s what I say.”

  “Hope you gutted him, dearie—the nasty piece of work.”

  “A slave, that’s what you were. Just like the rest of us.”

  Rom and Topaz Gideon exchanged incredulous glances. Lily concentrated on pushing the food around on her plate while her new sisters closed ranks around her.

  “No one will learn you’re here, not from us.”

  “Just let them coppers come looking.”

  “If I had a penny for every john I’ve smacked, I’d be a woman of means.”

  Mrs. Gideon cleared her throat. “I’ve given Lana the little closet at the end of the hall. As I’m sure you’ll understand, she’s used to being alone and will need her privacy for a while.”