each of the women bade farewell to the last of her customers for the night, the door of the sleeping chamber would open and close repeatedly as the women and boys drifted in, yawning, falling asleep almost as soon as they lay down on the rustling straw pallets. Finally a great safe blanket of darkness would settle down upon the brothel and the torture of waiting would be ended for another night. Usually Elena would sigh with relief and curl up into sleep, pausing only to pray that God would keep her little son and her beloved Athan safe, and that she would see them again soon. Tomorrow, let Athan come for me tomorrow, she'd whisper fervently.
But tonight Elena lay awake in the suffocating heat listening to the snuffles, snores and groans of the sleepers and the occasional distant barking of a hound somewhere in the town. Finch had not returned. His small, fragile face floated before her eyes. She was haunted by that look of fear and abandonment he had cast at her as she'd walked out of that room, leaving him alone with Hugh and that monstrous cat.
But Finch wasn't the only thing keeping her awake. Luce was absent from the sleeping chamber too. If she was still on watch, that must mean that Hugh was still somewhere here in the brothel. Maybe he too was lying awake at this moment or sipping his wine, trying to remember where he'd last seen the whore in that chamber. It was the sort of thing that people nagged at in their minds. It was the kind of recollection that came suddenly in the middle of the night.
Even with her dyed hair, he might recall her face, an expression, a gesture. What if he'd already left and was even now on his way back here with the sheriff? Elena lay rigid, her stomach aching with fear. Despite the heat, she had not dared to undress. It made her feel less vulnerable to be clothed, and if they came for her, it would be easier to run and hide, or even break away from them at the door.
She found herself planning how she might escape. If they came while it was still dark, she could run down into the cellar where the animals were. She was sure none of the other girls knew the entrance, for if they did then she'd have surely heard them gossiping about the identity of the mutilated man in the cage.
But if they came in daylight, what then? Would Ma be able to hide her before they searched? Would Ma even want to hide her? She'd already threatened to hand her over if Elena didn't earn her keep, and she knew she had hardly done that.
Elena became aware of a movement in the darkness. Slowly and silently the door of the sleeping chamber was opening. Elena drew herself up and crouched tensely in the darkness. Please let it be Finch, she prayed.
The figure behind the upraised lantern was short enough to be Finch, but it wasn't. Ma held the lantern aloft, sweeping the soft light over the sleepers, most of whom barely stirred. When the yellow beam caught Elena crouching on her pallet,
Ma beckoned with a long pointed fingernail, the flame glinting in the ruby on her hand.
Panic tightened Elena's throat. Was this it? Was Ma going to hand her over to them? On shaking legs she picked her way through the sleeping women, her mind galloping ahead of her. If she pushed Ma over, she could run, but where to? Ma knew all about the cellar. Her only hope was to make a dash for it once she was outside the brothel.
Elena blundered towards the door. Ma caught her wrist and pulled her outside.
'You're trembling, my darling, I can feel it. Are you getting a fever?' She held the lantern up, peering suspiciously into Elena's face.
Elena shielded her eyes from the light and stared wildly round the courtyard. 'Have they come for me?'
Ma chuckled softly. 'Ah, so that's it. No, they've not come . . . yet. But I need your help with Finch. This way.'
She started off in the direction of the upper chamber, but Elena hung back.
'Come on, my darling. If you're afraid of running into Master Hugh, he's long gone, for now anyway.'
Ma thrust the lantern into Elena's hands as she heaved herself up the staircase, clinging to the rope which ran alongside. Although the steps were shallower than normal to accommodate Ma's