Page 19 of A Star in the West

“Yes, ma’am.”

The sound of more knuckles cracking directly behind Frank sent a shudder through him, but he held his ground. Stella was counting on him. He’d not let her down.

The madam’s eyes gleamed with malice. “None of my girls would be foolish enough to get themselves with child, and I won’t have you disturbing my guests with your unfounded accusations.”

Because men facing the consequences of their actions would be bad for business. But if he couldn’t ask around for the missing mother, how would they find her?

A blond woman in a blue dress that left most of her chest and all of her arms exposed pushed away from the bar she’d been leaning against and sashayed toward them. A leg wrapped in black stockings peeked through the slit of a skirt that stopped several inches above her ankles. Her attention seemed fixed on Frank, but he couldn’t manage to hold her gaze. He trained his eyes on the floor until she pressed up against his side.

“Hey, sugar. Buy me a drink?” She leaned close and blew softly in his ear. He jerked involuntarily, which caused her to laugh, but she didn’t pull away. In fact, she took hold of his arm and squeezed. “Leave this one to me, Opal. I’ll make sure he has a real good time.”

“And I’ll take care of this one.” A giggly redhead who looked younger than most of the female students at Baylor cozied up to Muir. “You know how I love older men.”

At her age, every man was older.

Frank’s companion tugged on his arm and drew him toward the bar. Deciding that going with her was less dangerous than engaging with Mr. Hastings, Frank followed. She ordered a pair of drinks, Frank paid, then she started doing the ear thing again. Only this time instead of blowing air, she whispered instructions.

“Relax, Professor.”

Professor? She knew who he was? A mortified moan rumbled in his throat.

“I know who you’re looking for, but you’re gonna have to play along, or Opal will get suspicious. You found the baby, didn’t you?”

Frank reined in his surprise and dipped his chin in a subdued nod. It seemed his thespian skills weren’t quite ready for retirement after all.

“Put your arm around my waist,” his instructor whispered before reaching for the glass of whiskey he’d bought her. “What’s your name, sugar?” She asked the question in a normal volume, cueing him that the performance had begun.

“F-Frank.”

She beamed a smile at him, ignoring his stammer. “Strong name for a strong man,” she purred, her flattery as empty as his wallet was sure to be at the end of this evening. She took a tiny sip of her drink, then walked her fingers up the front of his jacket. “I’m Pearl. You and me are gonna get along just fine, honey.”

Frank swallowed hard. “You, ah . . . want to go upstairs?”

Her eyes lit with approval as her mouth curved into a well-practiced seductive smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”

She slid her hand down his arm, laced her fingers through his, then led him past a distinctly uncomfortable-looking Muir, who was dancing by the piano with the giggly redhead.

Frank tugged Pearl to a halt. “What about my friend?”

She laughed as if he’d said something exceedingly witty. “Don’t you worry, sugar. Miss Ruby will show him a great time.”

Frank decided to focus on the don’t you worry part of that statement, praying it meant Miss Ruby was in on the subterfuge. Offering no further resistance, he followed Pearl to the second floor and down a dim hallway. Instead of stopping in one of the rooms with an open door, however, Pearl led him to a narrow back staircase that led to the third-floor attic. A single long room with a ceiling that slanted on both sides stretched out before him. A series of cots lined each wall with a washstand on one side and an open wardrobe containing a handful of colorful dresses on the other.

“Wait here.” Pearl released his hand and hurried down to the last cot on the left, where someone lay under a dingy-looking blanket. “Jade? It’s Pearl. Wake up, honey. There’s a man here to see you.”

“I can’t, Pearl. Not tonight.”

Frank strained to hear her from across the room. Her voice was small and clogged with tears.

Pearl sat on the edge of the cot, her face aglow from the light of the candle next to Jade’s bed. Pearl glanced back at Frank, her face suddenly looking years younger than it had downstairs. “He’s not that kind of man. He’s one of the wise men we saw in the nativity play this afternoon. He found your baby.”

Jade gasped and sat straight up in bed, her wild gaze searching through the dark. “Curtis?” She grabbed Pearl’s arm. “He can’t be here. You know that. Opal will kill him.”

Frank stepped into the room. “Your baby’s safe, miss. He’s with a friend of mine. On the other side of town.” Thank the Lord. The idea of Stella or an innocent babe being anywhere near this place filled his chest with ice.

“It is the wise man.” Jade’s voice shook with awe as she pushed aside the blanket and swung her legs over the side of the cot. She wore a simple calico dress of modest design, likely one that had belonged to her before she’d come to work at Sherod’s. “You found my baby? Is he all right? I hated leaving him out there in the cold, but I didn’t know what else to do. Opal threatened to kick me out if I didn’t get rid of him. I have no money and nowhere to go. No one to take me in. Without the protection of this house, I’d freeze to death on the streets.”

Frank felt her desperation claw through him like a living thing, and his heart melted. “Your baby is fine. He’s out of the cold and being tended to by a pair of ladies who’ll see he has everything he needs.” He walked deeper into the room. “But what Curtis really needs is his mother. That’s why my friend and I have come. To offer you and Curtis a chance for a fresh start.”