Alice looked off to her right for a moment. Victoria could almost see the scales balancing in the nun's head as she weighed the request. If Sister Alice refused to help her, Victoria would chain herself to one of the pews until this Father Baez appeared. If he couldn't help her, she would just have to move on to the next city.
"Well," Sister Alice said, turning back to her, "I don't normally like to bother him, but since you've come all this way, I suppose I can go check on him. Don't expect much, though."
"Thank you so much," Victoria said.
The nun nodded. "Have yourself a seat," she said, pointing to a pew. "I'll be back soon."
Victoria sat, the wood creaking slightly under her. Sister Alice disappeared through a door on one side of the altar, her habit vanishing into the shadows beyond.
Leaning back into the pew, Victoria folded her hands in her lap. She tried to imagine what her father or mother would say if they found her in such a place, waiting to hear whether or not a Catholic priest knew where to find an American bounty hunter. She shook her head and smiled. It really did sound absurd, and that she was traveling alone made it all the more so.
Still, she had reason to believe she could follow through with what she'd started. After all, she'd managed the trip across the Atlantic with little difficulty. It had taken the Jewel of Scotland just over two weeks to make the passage. Victoria spent much of her time aboard in her cabin, searching histories from her father's collection for any references to black shucks. When her eyes grew tired, she would venture above deck to watch the ocean swell beneath the ship. Spring storms blossomed on the horizon, dark and menacing, but the Jewel slid by them without incident.
When she'd made port in New York City, she gave the immigrations office slight pause. They were unused to a woman traveling alone, but in the end they'd waved her through. One of their officers had pointed her in the direction of the rail station, and she'd easily found a coach to take her through the maze of streets. Grand Central Station had been grand indeed, and the endless press of bodies took her breath away. Once she'd regained her head, she found a train bound for Denver and bought herself a ticket. Indeed, the hardest part of her journey had been adjusting to the coarse way Americans had of speaking.
Echoing footsteps pulled her back into the present. Looking up, she saw Sister Alice emerge from the doorway. A man entered with her, clutching her arm in one hand and the head of a cane in the other. Victoria rose to her feet as they approached.
"Victoria Dawes," Sister Alice said, "may I present Father Emmanuel Baez."
"The honor is mine," Victoria said, extending her hand.
The priest released his hold on Sister Alice's arm and kissed the young woman's hand. Drawing himself up as straight as he could, he looked at her and smiled. "A pleasure, my dear."
Sister Alice guided him to the pew and helped him to sit. Victoria took a seat nearby, careful to maintain what she considered a respectful distance. The priest leaned back against the pew, his white hair and beard seeming to shine above his robes. He looked at her again, and she could see a spark in his dark eyes. "Now, then," he said, "Sister Alice tells me you have some business with me."
"Yes," Victoria said. "I don't want to waste your time, so I'll come straight to it. I'm looking for a woman named Cora Oglesby."
Father Baez's eyes went wide, and he drew in a deep breath. "There's a name I haven't heard in years." He smiled then, a thin line beneath his beard.
"So you know of her?"
"Of course." The priest cleared his throat and sat upright. "She and I have a history. Not a very happy one, but a good one."
"Do you know where I might find her?" Victoria asked.
Father Baez started to answer, then paused. "Might I ask why you want to find her?"
"I have urgent business with her," Victoria answered, trying to sound as harmless as she could.
The priest considered that, then turned to Sister Alice. "Would you excuse us for a moment, sister?" Taken aback, the nun stood to her feet, nodded, and stalked across the dais. Once she disappeared through the side door, Father Baez turned back to Victoria. "Cora Oglesby deals