“You have very smart little girls. I also have fresh rye and mead bread that just came out of the oven.”
“Two of each and also give me a box of pastry.”
Mirisa turned and asked her husband to hook the back of her dress. She pulled her hair up as he kissed the back of her neck causing her to look around at him. Meeks kissed her lips, her chin and started working down until the dress interfered with his intent. “Alexander?”
“There is a reason I don’t stay in the room when you are dressing to go out.”
She brought his face up so he was looking at her. “Would you rather stay home because it has been an awfully long time since I have pampered you?”
Meeks slowly slipped her dress off her shoulders and lifted her up as she wrapped around him smothering him with kisses. They both knew that she would tease him until he could no longer handle it then he would restrain her as he made love to her.
“I think this time it will be my fault that we’re late.”
“We can stay home and just forget about the theater.”
“No, we need to be there.”
She got up on her elbow and looked at him. “I think I should get dressed…again.”
Garnett and James stood outside the theater talking to friends when they saw Meeks’ carriage turn the corner and come down the road. Garnett excused himself going into the theater and James waited for their coach to stop.
Mirisa’s smiled when she saw the dozen red roses lying across the settee. Mirisa picked them up and put them under her nose as she lifted the small card smiling. She turned to her husband and tears ran down her cheeks. Meeks had given her flowers every single day since Cassie was born.
“Darling, I don’t think my heart has any more room to love you.”
“Well, I don’t know what you are going to do because I plan on romancing you until my dying breath.”
James stepped into the box and stopped to watch them. He thought they tried hard to appear appropriate in public instead they were always on the border of making women swoon.
“You do realize that everyone is watching.” James took off his hat and sat down. “Did they invent fans so women could appear to not be gossiping?”
“It is so you can’t read their lips. Pray tell James, how many of the women in this theater have you slept with?”
“Factor out the ones who are too old, too loud, too demanding, wear too much face paint then you have your number and I try to never have sex with single women for it is a trap ready to spring.”
Mirisa turned his face to her. “Was it because I was married that…”
James looked at her. “You must not remember the first night I took advantage of you.”
Mirisa leaned over whispering. “I remember mostly how beautiful your eyes were when you kissed me.”
“You know I have no ability to resist you when you are enticing me.”
“I’m not enticing you. I am merely remembering at what point I became aware that your ego was so well deserved.”
James looked over her at Meeks who merely smiled as she turned to her husband. “Sweetheart, James needs to keep his mind on the play.”
“But it hasn’t started yet and I haven’t been able to play with him in such a long time.”
“Darling. I believe James is afraid to play with you.”
“Alright but I really don’t break.”
James sat back as the lights came down and the curtain slowly rose to a dark stage with two chairs in the middle and a lantern on a small table between them. Mirisa leaned forward as a man came out and sat down on stage. The actor lit the lantern turning it up, picked up a book and took a draw on his pipe. After a moment, he began to talk to himself about the foolishness of wars and his movements were so dramatic as though he were a conductor with a full orchestra. He was joined by a younger actor who sat in the other chair and they began to argue over the younger man wanting to go to war. James reached over and wrapped his hand around hers. The older man argued eloquently and the younger one appeared to be frustrated and finally burst into an angry tirade leaving the stage as the curtain went down.
Garnett slipped into the back of the theater as the actors were in their final frenzy and too busy to notice him. He picked up a prop coat and hat blending in with the confusion as he picked up a box and walked down the hallway to the dressing rooms Garnett stopped next to the door with “Miss Monroe” written in scribble on the tacked up paper. He leaned up against the wall and listened. He could hear her reciting her lines as the male voice told her she was perfect.
“Oh honey, you are so sweet.” She was mumbling as the man laughed. “Here button me up…oh you have such great hands.”
Garnett moved into the shadows as the door opened and Miss Monroe turned back talking to the man in the dressing room. She straightened out her bosoms as she ran down the hallway in high heel boots as LaBelle followed her.
Garnett slipped into the dressing room and took the cap off of the bourbon and poured in the contents of the vial and swished it until it was thoroughly mixed. Garnett walked down the hallway discarding the coat and hat before heading back to the box.
Garnett slipped into the chair in the beginning of the second act. You could see Thomas LaBelle turn from the side curtain and disappear. Mirisa looked over at Garnett before she turned her attention back to the play. After the play, they headed home. Mirisa looked out the coach window watching the patrons going into the restaurant for a late night dinner and socializing. Meeks walked Mirisa upstairs and talked to her while she slipped into a black nightgown. She crawled under the quilt as Meeks stoked the fire and added more wood. He walked down to the nursery and brought Cassie back putting her into the cradle.
“I’m going to bring you up a cup of tea.”
“Do you worry about me?” She touched his cheek. Meeks swallowed because neither of them had talked about the birth but he couldn’t respond to her.
“I’ll be back up in a minute.” Meeks stood and looked at her before he bent over and kissed her lightly. He came back up with the tea tray.
“James made your favorite tea.”
Mirisa smiled. “That means he put herbs in it to make me sleep. He hasn’t talked to me. All of you seem to want to forget what I obviously can’t seem to remember.”
Meeks handed her the tea cup. “You were so close to death that your father brought Father Ryan to sit with you. I don’t think I could ever talk about that night because I would have to admit that you…I don’t want to ever lose you and yet my actions have jeopardized our love.” He kissed her lightly. “I need to talk to Garnett about business but I’ll be up before you are asleep.”
“If not, wake me when you crawl into my bed.” Meeks picked up the book near her chair and handed it to her.
He walked into the library and poured a shot before sitting on the edge of the desk. “Where are we?”
Garnett smiled. “We let nature take its course but I would suggest being on your toes since I don’t know if LaBelle has already engaged someone to do what the others couldn’t.”
“When does it end?”
“Soon. In the meantime, I suggest that James move back in with you after I go back to Washington.”
“When are you leaving?”
“At the end of the week.”
The sound of the tray falling was followed by a screaming maid hastening down the hallway. The housekeeper ran up the stairs as the maid screamed to send for the doctor. The housekeeper walked to Mr. LaBelle’s room. The tea tray was upside down on the oriental carpet with the tea spreading deeply into the rich wool. Mr. LaBelle was half in and half out of the bed. His face was chalk white and his eyes were red and bulging as he tried to talk. She sent for the stable boys who were reluctant to enter the room. She instructed them to get Mr. LaBelle back into the bed as she had the maid clean up the mess from the tray.
The butler answered the door as the doctor took off his hat and coat handing it to him before proceeding to the stai
rcase as the maid was coming down with the tray.
“Have you been in the room?”
“Yes sir.”
“I want you to stay up in the landing until I have a chance to determine whether we have something serious.”
The doctor put his bag on the bed and told the housekeeper to isolate anyone who had been in the room, including herself, until he was finished. The doctor examined Thomas and tried to talk to him but he was incoherent. His temperature was extremely high and his heart rate was very thready. There were no skin lesions and no other visible signs of a contagion but for some reason he was drowning in his own fluids. The doctor did not believe it was infectious and probably had more to do with his heart condition and the constant infliction of bouts of the pneumonia that was prevalent in the city all winter. The doctor gave him a concoction of lungwort hoping that if he could clear up his watery lungs that he would slowly get his strength back. He packed up his bag and stepped out onto the landing.
“You can send everyone back to their work. Mr. LaBelle is suffering from a nasty lung ailment that has put too much stress on his heart.” He handed the housekeeper several bottles of medicine instructing her to give them to him every few hours and he would be back with the ambulance to take him to the hospital.
The doctor ran into Mr. Sampson’s solicitor on the front steps and stopped and talked to him briefly.
“You don’t believe it could be infectious?”
“Not at all. Why do you ask?”
“Do you believe he should be removed to the clinic for treatment?”
The doctor smiled. “Mr. Sampson is concerned with the health of his staff. A very compassionate man I must say. I am already making arrangements to have him moved that is if Mr. Sampson is willing to be responsible for the treatment.”
“Money is no object but I would rather have him moved immediately.”
“Alright.” The doctor put his bag in the buggy and climbed in. “I’ll have the wagon here in an hour to pick him up.”
The lawyer immediately went into LaBelle’s office which was located off the back wing of the house near the stables. He emptied out his desk then went through the cabinets and finally opened the safe and emptied it replacing what he took with benign paperwork and books. When he was finished, he loaded everything into the small carriage and went back into the house.
The housekeeper was standing in the foyer with not only two men dressed in white but two police officers.
“Mrs. Tibbly, is there a problem?”
“I am afraid that when we went to move Mr. LaBelle that he had passed on.”
He turned to the police officers. “I don’t see how this could possibly be a police matter in as much as his doctor had just attended to him this morning.”
“Pardon our intrusion but until the doctor provides us with a formal decree, we must investigate the death especially one that has the appearances of poisoning.”
“Why in the world would you believe he had been poisoned?”
“Sir, he has been seen in the accompaniment of one Miss Monroe who came down with an ailment several days ago, which the housekeeper advises is the same time that Mr. LaBelle took to his beds, and she passed on this morning at the clinic.”
“And they believe it was poison?”
“They are not sure at this point and she has been taken to the morgue for an autopsy. The doctor also indicated that she has been on opiates for quite some time and it is quite possible that they obtained bad opiates. We have had a rash of sudden deaths and they all seem to stem from a particular Chinese Herb store. Are you aware of any habits of Mr. LaBelle?”
“I am not but his social life was not one I would inquire into unless there was some concern.” He turned to Mrs. Tibbly. “Have you called for the doctor?”
“He should be here soon.”
“Fine.” He turned to the police officers. “Mrs. Tibbly will make you comfortable until you finish your inquiry. I shall be in the library if you wish to speak to me further.”
“Thank you sir.”
Mr. Sampson was not going to like this turn of events at all but the relationship between Thomas and Miss Monroe had been a big concern that they had discussed in detail before Louis departed. Whatever happened made getting rid of Thomas easier. He opened up the hidden wall and went into the large wall safe taking out a package of white opium that was uncut. He took out a small amount before he closed the safe. Killing with uncut opium was the easiest method of murder considering so many people used it and doctors prescribed it like candy. He took down the small glass bowl and mixed it with a touch of arsenic before putting it into a small envelope.
Slipping up the back stairs, he went into Thomas’ room and walked over to the bed. Not a pretty way to die but he didn’t think there was a good way to die. He looked around the room spotting his jacket lying on the chair. He slipped the package in his pocket before checking the room for incriminating evidence that could lead to further problems before going back downstairs.
The doctor spoke to the orderlies and police officers who followed him up to the bedroom. He pronounced him dead and had his body removed while the officers searched the room finding not only the opium in his jacket but several packets in the top drawer of his secretary. When everything was tied up in a nice little bow, the lawyer slipped money to both officers seeking their discretion. A dispatch was sent to Louis Sampson and everything incriminating was discretely removed from the residence.
The New York Times
In the Court of General Sessions yesterday Philip Block, John Lutzen, George Kumberger, Otto Malchon, John Randall, and Peter Sweeney were each fined $50 for adulterating milk.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 7. The reforms which Postmaster General Jewell has instituted in the transmission of mails promise that Washington shall no longer be treated like a country village off the regular route. Yesterday Mr. Tyner…
The local police responded to a call to the Sampson estate regarding the death of a houseguest. Upon arrival, they were escorted to the bedchambers of Thomas LaBelle, a long time resident and solicitor of the city. The city coroner was summonsed and pronounced Mr. LaBelle deceased from what appeared to be a case of dropsy. Interviews with the staff revealed that he took to his beds several days earlier but refused medical attention. His next of kin has not been located and no services set. The coroner said no autopsy was required since his personal physician indicated he was being treated for congestion and other ailments. Mr. Louis Sampson was not in residence and is said to be in the orient for the winter.
The death of actress Miss Monroe was listed by the City Morgue following a brief stage career. No other details were provided.
Mirisa was curled up on the couch reading the manuscript as James folded the paper nodding to Garnett who smiled before going back to his writing as James passed the article to Meeks.
Mirisa leaned forward and poured fresh coffee and sat back again. “Garnett?” Garnett stopped writing and looked at her knowing the question before she asked it. “Is this personal?”
“All my stories are based on some personal experiences with a lot of literary freedom to embellish details.”
“I am always confused with you. You are so controlled and intelligent and yet you are the most passionate man I have ever met in my life.”
Garnett wondered what she would say if she knew he had written about their lives with her. He didn’t think he would ever publish it but maybe one day he would let her read it or maybe he would just keep it to himself. “Is that how you see me?”
“Your intensity scares me and yet the softness of your words makes me recklessly abandon my better senses to the point that I seek you out. I am like a moth with singed wings flying into your promises of…” Mirisa took in her breath. “I do not understand how any woman could not bring favor to your beds or ever wish to abandon them for your heart is so beautiful.”
“Beauty is brought by judgment of the beholder. Trust me; no man looking down the barrel of my gun
has ever thought my heart was anything except black.”
“I guess that is true.”
Garnett smiled because he knew she wasn’t experienced enough to even find words to describe what wickedness her imagination created when she was too close to him. “You should never be afraid of life or a man holding a rope.”
Mirisa looked at him biting her lip as he smiled. “Is the story about your marriage?”
James looked up surprised that after all the time and the hidden pain that Garnett would finally write about Julie. It was a subject that he thought had been buried years ago.
“It is. It’s been a long time since I have thought about Julie or our relationship and very few people know the true story. I decided that it was time to write it.”
“Does it haunt you?”
“I would probably say no but I have little patience for deception. Love can turn to hate at the flip of a coin but when bitterness and revenge creep in you lose the ability to understand how damaging your actions are to another person. There are bad people and there are people who don’t handle life well. You should not treat them the same.”
“Is that what made you so detached?”
“I don’t know. I think it is just easier to not acknowledge feelings.”
Mirisa put down her cup and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m sorry you were hurt.”
“The only regret I have is that I didn’t pursue you despite the fact that Dominic made it clear you were off limits.”
“You know that I would have still ended up with Alexander.”
“I know but he would have had a far harder time stealing you away.”
Mirisa leaned back when the crackle of the oak logs as the flames ate through a soft spot of the wood lured her into her own thoughts. “I have never talked about the night I walked into the card room.”
Both Meeks and James stopped and looked at her. “I know that everyone thinks that moment was the pivotal point of my life but it happened long before that. It was a clear, warm day for that late in December. Sometimes I miss Texas so much. I was in the river washing my horse when that woman rode up to the riverbank. I remember slipping off my horse and walking up to her but she remained seated. She introduced herself but for some reason I could never recall her name.”
The Visitor - The Final Ride 1875-1928 Page 3