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Thoughts of families, children, wives and husbands brought her mother’s most recent husband-hunt to mind. “I saw the handsome Lord Miles last night,” Siobhan told her friend. “He asked to call on me.”

Henriette’s eyes rounded and she spoke reverently. “Ooh la, ma cherie. You must tell me everything. What did he say? What did you say?”

Despite the fact that just thinking of the arrogant but beautiful man brought butterflies to her stomach, Siobhan was sure nothing would ever come of their acquaintance. “First, we spoke just outside the ballroom. I was headed to the gardens, to…” She didn’t finish the sentence. Instead, she shrugged.

“To escape,” Henriette finished for her, with a grin.

Siobhan nodded, grateful to have a friend who understood her so well. “He stopped me and asked where I was going. We spoke of inconsequential things, and then I continued to the garden. Moments later, he was out there, chastising his sister and her friend.”

Henriette leaned in to ensure she did not miss a word. “I cannot imagine what he must look like, dressed like a prince and standing in the moonlight.”

“He looked the same.” Siobhan waved away any comments that her friend planned to continue with. “I had to take his sister to my bedchamber and repair her hairstyle. Apparently, she’d tangled with a bush. After that, he asked me to dance a waltz with him, and then, he asked to see me again.”

“What was your response?” Henriette asked, leaning even closer.

“Goodness Henriette, why do you not just sit on my lap?” Siobhan said, laughing. “I told him Amelia had her sights on him and that I would be here this morning.” She motioned to the church and the market stalls which were set up next to it.

Her friend whipped her head around to look outside. “Do you think he will come?

“Of course not,” Siobhan replied. “This is not the part of town people like him frequent. I doubt he knows where Saint Sebastian’s is.”

“But what if he does?”

Siobhan shook her head. “He will not.”

With over-ladened baskets, Siobhan and Henrietta hurried to the shelter. Not only did they carry food, but the driver followed with the bandages, tonics, and other items they’d procured at the market stalls.

A sturdy woman with gray-streaked hair pulled into a tight bun met them at the entrance to the shelter and took the supplies from them. It was not a safe place; some of the people who sought shelter there suffered from different afflictions, some contagious, so they rarely went inside.

“It is much too dangerous in there for you,” the woman repeated what she said most Saturdays. “Several people are sick with consumptive issues.” Then she inhaled deeply. “I come out here every so often to catch a breath of fresh air.”

“Are there any young ones?” Siobhan asked. “I have some dolls in the carriage.”

“Not today, thankfully,” the woman replied. “Just yesterday, a woman with a small girl left. The woman’s father came to fetch her.”

“That is good,” Henriette stated. “That they find family.”

From there, they decided to walk to Susan’s house and the driver went back to the carriage. He would wait outside on the street until they emerged. Siobhan knew that he often took advantage of this time to visit with his people. They lived just a few streets away.

Just before entering the building where the widow lived, Siobhan scanned the street. She looked over her shoulder, noting that only Jean-Pierre was there. He spoke to the driver and then rode away. After that, there was no one else she knew on the street.

“What is it?” Henriette asked.

Siobhan shook her head. “Nothing. We should hurry. The young ones will be anxious to see what we bring.”

Susan lived in a place consisting of three combined rooms. One was used as a kitchen and dining room, the other two were bedrooms. In one the two older children slept, the other Susan shared with her youngest.

After they knocked, the door opened, and a dirty little face peered up at them. Upon recognizing them, the girl, Emily, moved back, her mouth curving into a smile showcasing several missing teeth. Her brother, Billy, two years younger at six joined the girl, his eyes wide with excitement.

Like every Saturday before, the first task was to go to the window and call out to the driver for water from the nearby well. They lowered a bucket on a rope, which was filled and hoisted up several times to fill a tea kettle, and a stew pot. They set the vessels on the small stove to heat. Once the water boiled, they filled a small tub, adding some of the cold water so it wasn’t too hot, and they began the task of bathing the children. Emily and the baby, Sarah, were bathed together, then Billy took a hurried bath that she was sure he enjoyed even though he complained about it. As he was dried and dressed in clean clothes, more bath water was heated so that it could be added as needed, and so that once the children were clean, they could help Susan to bathe.

Although the woman was weak she did her best to ensure the children were fed and cared for.

“Everything is very clean,” Siobhan told the young mother. “You should not do so much.”

“My neighbor comes and helps with cleaning and cooking. In exchange, I share what you bring me on Saturdays.”

“Bravo,” Henriette said. “It is good that you can do that. You do need the help.”