Fallen Women

by Sandra Dallas

  “She did not leave her address.”

  “Even in her room?”

  “No.”

  “Then no one knows where she went?”

  “No. I believe Louise told you that. Do you want to check her room—again?”

  Beret colored. “That won’t be necessary. Thank you, William,” she said, walking past him toward the stairs.

  “Madam.”

  Beret stopped. “Yes.”

  “Mrs. Stanton believes the third floor is the servants’ sanctuary. She would not be pleased you were here.”

  Nor would you, Beret thought, but she said, “And will you tell her?”

  “Do you wish me to?”

  Beret did not reply. She hurried down the stairs, thinking again that she did not like the butler much.

  Chapter 24

  Beret returned to her room, not at all pleased with her performance. She had made a fool of herself. She had found nothing to interest her, and she had aroused William’s dislike and suspicion, although it was clear to her he already disliked and was suspicious of her. Well, she was suspicious of him, too. There was something about his actions that wasn’t right. Beret wondered if he would tell Varina she had been snooping.

  She closed the door of her room, thinking to lock it, but that would be hypocritical after the way she had snooped upstairs. She had not slept well the night before and was tired. The soiled skirt was on the bed where she had thrown it, and she picked it up and started for the wardrobe. Beret would have to take it to the kitchen later in hopes she could remove the stains herself.

  She opened the wardrobe and looked for a place to hang the skirt. The wardrobe was filled with clothes, Lillie’s clothes, of course, although right in the center was the suit that the dressmaker had altered for her. It hung where she couldn’t miss seeing it. Nellie would have put it there before she left. The dressmaker had said the suit was too plain for Lillie, but Beret had liked it best of all of her sister’s clothes, much better than the ball gowns. Her aunt had mentioned a meeting with the solicitor, and the outfit would be suitable. It also would be appropriate for the train—in case Varina asked her to leave. She remembered her aunt had a suit of the same material, and would have to inquire whether Varina planned to wear it that day, so that the two would not be dressed alike.

  The idea amused Beret, two women dressed like twins. That would give the ladies of Varina’s circle something else to gossip about.

  Beret decided to try on the ensemble to see if it had been altered properly. She removed her dress and stepped into the skirt, buttoning it. Then she put on the jacket and went to the long mirror that rested in the corner of the room to admire herself. But the fit was off. The skirt was too short, the jacket too large. Beret frowned, wondering how the dressmaker could have been so sloppy. The suit would have to go back, and Beret removed the garments, laying them on the bed.

  She donned her day dress and returned to the discarded suit, then she realized the mistake. This was not her suit at all but Varina’s. Nellie must have hung it in Beret’s wardrobe by mistake. The dressmaker would not have returned an outfit that was crumpled—and dirty, Beret realized, as she lifted the jacket. The piece was badly stained. She held the garment close to her face to examine the damage. The stains were dark against the dark fabric, which was why Beret had not spotted them at first. She studied the skirt and found it, too, had been fouled. She felt her heart race as a thought occurred to her, and she went back to the wardrobe. Hanging on the hook where the suit had been was a white shirtwaist covered with blotches that stood out against the starched white cotton—deep red stains, almost brown. It was as if Varina had been sprayed with something.

  Beret held the blouse close, then wet her finger and rubbed it on the stain. She examined her finger and shivered, hurrying into the bathroom where she ran the taps until the sink was full, and dipped the shirtwaist into the water, watching as the water turned red—bright red, red the color of blood. No, Beret told herself, staring at what were now pink smudges on the blouse. It was a mistake. She sat on the edge of the tub and put her forehead down on the cool porcelain of the sink. “No,” she said out loud. “Aunt Varina, you couldn’t have.”

  “Oh yes I could,” a voice said from the bedroom. Startled, Beret looked up and found herself facing Varina. With the taps running, Beret had not heard her aunt enter the bedroom.

  The shirtwaist still in her hand, dripping bloody water onto the tile floor, Beret went to the bathroom door. “What is this blood?”

  Varina didn’t answer.

  “Is it Lillie’s?”

  Beret’s aunt cocked her head.

  “You stabbed Lillie?”

  At that, Varina gave a harsh laugh. “You didn’t think your poor besotted uncle did it, did you?” Her eyes glittered in her gray face.

  “Your own niece? How could you?”

  Dressed in black, as if she had just returned from a solemn social event, Varina stood in the middle of the room, staring at Beret. “She was indeed my niece. How could she?”

  “You killed her?” Beret had not fully processed the idea.

  “Oh, I didn’t intend to. I only wanted to talk to her. But you know how insolent Lillie could be. She laughed at me.” Varina’s back stiffened, and she repeated, “After all she had done, after she betrayed me, she laughed at me. You know how she was.”

  Beret knew. She knew now. But nothing Lillie could have done justified her murder. “What happened?” Beret asked, thrusting aside the dripping blouse and wiping her hands on her skirt.

  Varina studied her niece for a long time. “I suppose I can trust you,” she said, as she leaned against one of the bedposts. “I went to that foul place to ask her to release your uncle. He fancied himself in love with her. At his age! He was willing to give up everything we’d worked for to be with her. He was convinced the child was his, although I’d told him a hundred times she had been with other men. Jonas had told me about them. But your uncle didn’t care. He didn’t care that another might have fathered the baby. He was that crazy to have a child. It was enough that the baby was Lillie’s. He would have thrown me over for her! How could I compete with Lillie? Look at me, Beret. I’m old and wrinkled. I would have been alone and shunned, and all because of her.”

  “She was selfish,” Beret said, trying to sound sympathetic.

  Varina ran her hand against the post. “Jonas had found out Lillie was alone at that place, and he drove me there. He parked the carriage in an alley so that no one would see us, and I went to the back door—me, in that degraded place. Lillie opened it, expecting your uncle or some other degenerate, I suppose. She was surprised to see me, oh my, yes. But it didn’t seem to bother her. ‘Hello, Aunt Varina. Nice of you to call. Won’t you come in? I’ll fix tea.’ That was what she said to me, just as if it were natural for me to call at a whorehouse.” Varina spat out the last word. “Perhaps it was. It was I who sent her there, you know, after I found out about the business between her and your uncle. It was fitting. She was already a harlot. I sent Jonas to speak to Hettie Hamilton. She didn’t know Jonas worked for me, but she figured Lillie was from a society family, so she demanded five hundred dollars.”

  “You paid her to take in Lillie?”

  “Oh, I knew I didn’t have to pay, but I did. I wanted Lillie gone that much. And she was amused at the whole idea of being a prostitute. Amused! I didn’t even have to insist on it. She told me, ‘At least it’s an honest life, Aunt. We’re all fallen women one way or another. You included.’ Oh, you didn’t know her, Beret, although you do now. She was a degenerate. A fallen woman is worse than any man.”

  “You thought Uncle John wouldn’t visit her in such a place?” Beret asked.

  “I was wrong about that, wasn’t I? Jonas told me what was going on. Your uncle had the impertinence to ask Jonas to drive him there.”

  “He was loyal to you, Jonas.”

  “Oh yes. More than to your uncle.”

  “So the two of you went t
o see Lillie?”

  “No, Jonas stayed outside. I went in alone. Lillie took me to her room. I offered her money to give up John, jewels. She didn’t care about him. I knew that. Women like Lillie play games, you know. They make men fall in love with them, and then they throw them over.”

  “I have seen it,” Beret said.

  “She turned me down. So I told her I’d have her arrested for stealing my diamonds. I knew she’d taken them. She said if I did, she would tell the newspapers your uncle had given them to her. And then she laughed. She said, ‘It was so easy to make him fall in love with me. I was tired of him, but now I think I’ll keep him on my string. Poor old dried-up Aunt Varina.’”

  “That was cruel.”

  Varina nodded. “I had never been so angry. She wouldn’t stop laughing at me. I picked up the scissors. I didn’t intend to hurt her, but I had to stop her from laughing. You understand, don’t you, Beret? She must have laughed at you, too. She told me how she and Teddy laughed at you.” Varina searched Beret’s face for some sign of sympathy.

  But Beret’s face was rigid now. “And so you stabbed her,” she said in a monotone—a statement, not a question.

  “You understand, don’t you, Beret? You would have done the same thing, wouldn’t you?”

  “And then you took the earbobs.”

  “I saw them sitting on the bureau, but I forgot about them until I got to the carriage. I sent Jonas back for them. I had to. I couldn’t leave my own sister’s jewelry for some whore to wear. You wouldn’t have wanted that.”

  “I would not have wanted you to kill my sister,” Beret said by way of reply.

  “They were Marta’s, and they are yours now.”

  Beret could not believe her aunt could speak so casually about jewelry after admitting what she’d done. “I don’t want them,” she said. Then she had a sudden thought. “If you killed Lillie, why did Uncle John admit to it?”

  “Why, to protect me, of course, because it was all his fault. He knew that. I’d gone there to protect him, you see. He knew the minute you showed him the earrings what I’d done, but he couldn’t allow me to take the blame. You must know that. He is honorable that way. But he was foolish. He should have said Jonas put the earrings into my jewelry box. That would have been so much easier. He thought he could trust you, I suppose. How would he know that detective was lurking behind the door? Now you must convince the police it was Jonas, after all, that your uncle confessed only to protect him.” She all but smiled at Beret.

  Beret ignored the suggestion. “I don’t understand why Jonas attacked the other two prostitutes.”

  “That was his idea, and I told him it was brilliant. We agreed that if another prostitute or two was murdered, people would think a madman was on the loose. I knew he would take care of things for me. He was such a loyal boy.”

  “You would’ve let him kill two women?”

  “They were only whores. I’m sorry Jonas is dead, but it worked out perfectly, don’t you see? You shouldn’t have any trouble making the police believe Jonas was guilty of Lillie’s death, too. You’ll find a way to explain it to them.”

  “But he wasn’t guilty, Aunt Varina.”

  “A small point. The thing now is to clear your uncle before all this scandal robs him of the Senate appointment.”

  Speechless, Beret stared at her aunt. The woman thought after everything that had happened, Judge Stanton would become a senator.

  “No, Aunt. You must go to the police and tell them the truth.”

  “What?” Varina jerked up her head and stared at Beret.

  Beret nodded.

  “Why would I do that?”

  “Because it’s the only thing that will save Uncle John.”

  “I thought you understood. I thought when I explained what had happened, you would help me. We are flesh and blood.”

  “So was Lillie, and you murdered her.”

  Varina looked incredulous. “You won’t help me?”

  “No. I will accompany you to the police station, and if you refuse, I shall go there myself.”

  “Who would believe you? It is your word against mine.”

  “Detective McCauley will believe me, and I think Chief Smith will, too.”

  “You are as heartless as your sister, Beret. I should have known I couldn’t trust you. I will make sure you tell no one.”

  “You would stab me, too? There are no scissors in this room.”

  Varina stared dumbly at her niece, and then she said, “No, but I have this.” Varina fumbled in the pocket of her jacket, then withdrew a small gun and pointed it at Beret. It was a woman’s pistol that contained only one shot, but Beret knew if the gun was aimed properly, it would be deadly. “I always carry this when I go out. Jonas gave it to me.”

  Beret stood very still and thought about how she could reason with her aunt. “The servants will hear the shot. And how would you explain my death to the police?”

  “William will take care of everything. He is loyal to me. And don’t bother to cry out. The servants are in the kitchen. They won’t hear you.”

  “What about the suit? Look there, on the bed.” Varina looked away, and at that instant, Beret leaped forward, knocking the older woman down. Beret reached for the gun, but Varina held on to it, as the two women rolled across the floor. Beret felt the gun against her head and was still.

  “I am sorry, Beret. You were my favorite. I thought if I explained, you would understand, that you would help me. But you give me no choice,” Varina said.

  Desperate for some words to stop her aunt, Beret closed her eyes, and at that instant, a voice said, “Madam.” She felt the gun ease as her aunt turned to the voice, and Beret reached up and yanked the gun from her aunt’s hand. She rolled away from the older woman and stood, not knowing whether to point the weapon at Varina or at William.

  “Take it from her, William,” Varina hissed.

  William looked at the old woman, then at Beret, who realized then that the butler might be the greater threat. If she shot Varina, William could overpower her, but without William, she had a better chance with her aunt. Beret pointed the gun at the butler.

  William stared at it, disdain on his face. And then he said, “You may put down the weapon, Miss Osmundsen. We have heard the confession, Louise and I, and can back you up. Louise has already gone to summon the police.” He turned to Varina and helped her stand. “I am sorry, madam.” Then he looked again at Beret. “And I am sorry we put you in danger. I allowed this to go too far.”

  “You knew about my aunt?”

  “We suspected after the judge was arrested, but we had no proof. Then this morning, Nellie found the garments hidden away in Madam’s dressing room. She brought them to me, and I knew the blood on them was Miss Lillie’s. I sent Nellie away for fear Mrs. Stanton would harm her if she found out Nellie had discovered where the clothing was hidden. It was I who placed the soiled garments in your wardrobe where you would be sure to see them. I believed you would know the right thing to do. I had assumed you would take them to the police and had not thought you would confront Mrs. Stanton. Fortunately, I saw her go into this room and took the liberty of listening at the door.” He said, as if explaining a breach of etiquette, “It was not closed, you know.”

  The three of them stood like that, not speaking, until they heard heavy footsteps on the stairs. “That will be the police,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. He turned to go, then stopped and looked at Beret. “Will that be all, madam?”

  Beret closed her eyes and nodded. “That is all.”

  Chapter 25

  Varina Stanton did not go to jail for the murder of her niece Lillie Osmundsen. Judge John Stanton, Varina’s husband, was a powerful man with many friends in the judiciary, and he arranged for his wife to be found insane and incarcerated in a sanitarium for the rest of her life.

  The judge did not stay on in the Grant Avenue house. He moved into his club and put the house with a sales agent. Beret offered to help him ma
ke the adjustment, but he said it was not necessary, that William would do it. Judge Stanton offered Beret his wife’s jewels, but she wanted nothing and suggested her uncle sell the pieces and donate the proceeds to charity. There was no further mention of a Senate appointment.

  Beret sought out her former husband, Edward Staarman, to bid him good-bye. She wished him well, and they parted amicably. Neither brought up the subject of a reconciliation. Later, Teddy married a California widow who had inherited a good-sized estate. Beret never saw him again.

  She called at the police station for a final meeting with Detective Sergeant Michael McCauley but was told the detective had been sent to Leadville to bring back an escaped prisoner and would not return for several days. Beret was downhearted by the news, because she had wanted to see Mick one more time.

  So just a week after her aunt was arrested, Beret left Denver. She felt uncomfortable and unneeded in the Stanton house, as William had taken complete charge, and there was no further reason for her to remain. She returned to New York, although not by herself. Nellie, the maid, would be out of a job as soon as the Stanton house was sold. So the girl accompanied Beret, who gave her employment at the Marta Osmundsen Mission. Nellie was both tough and compassionate and became a great favorite among the women and children who sought help there.

  Beret returned to her duties. With time, she came to accept her sister’s death and the sordid events that surrounded it, although she never could bring herself to forgive her aunt for murdering Lillie. From time to time, she remembered Detective Sergeant Michael McCauley and wondered what might have been between them if things had been different.

  Epilogue

  Mick McCauley sat at his desk in the police station for the last time, looking around the room where he had worked for so many years. He straightened the chair beside him where the snouts and boosters, the bummers and touts once sat and swept off the top of the desk with his arm. Only the pen and ink bottle, a sheet of paper and an envelope remained.