A Perfect Mistress by Barbara Mack Read Free Book Online Page B

him. I’ll never see him again .
    “I don’t even know where he’s staying,” she said out loud .
    Bonita patted her hand. “That’s your man?” she asked kindly. “The one you been seein ’, and caused your sister to go so ...” She made a little twirly motion with her finger beside her head, and Sophie laughed despite herself. She nodded.
    “Nancy told me ‘bout him, and she was worrit that crazy Delia would tell him a bunch o’ lies. We sent m’ youngest boy over to the park and he waited ‘til he saw him. Good thing he’s got that eye patch, or my Robert would never have found him. He said the park was full to burstin ’ with dark-haired, handsome men. Nancy and I are goin ’ to dress up right smart and go there tomorrow. ” Bonita laughed and slapped her hips, and Becca laughed from the doorway , not knowing what the joke was, but happy to join in all the same . “He told him where you was , and your fella will be here to see you tomorrow at one o’clock, same time he was to meet you in the park .”
    “What about Delia? She’s gone mad, I’m afraid. We can’t let her go unpunished. What if she kidnaps a child and sells her, like she was going to do to Claire?” And me , she thought. Her own sister.
    “You don’t worry about that,” Nancy Ferguson said from the doorway. “Claire and I visited the police this morning. They know all about her now, and she won’t get away with anything. She was told that you would be pressing charges when you were well, along with Claire and her parents.  Claire’s uncle says she was seen leaving the house not an hour after the police visited , carrying a valise and hurrying like she was goin ’ to a fire .”
    Sophie let out a glad cry and held out her arms, and Mrs. Ferguson rushed over to put her motherly arms around her. Sophie put her head on her shoulder and hugged her tight.
    “I’m so glad you and Claire aren’t hurt . If it weren’t for you, both of us would be…”
    Mrs. Ferguson patted her back as Sophie began to sob.
    “It’s over now, Sophie. Don’t you worry about it anymore, you hear me? None of it was your fault. Your sister is mad, and that has nothing to do with you.”
    “She said my father…my father…”
    “It’s best to forget it,” Mrs. Ferguson said firmly , and her sister made an approving noise . “Let’s g et you cleaned up and get some food in your belly. Everything will look much brighter then, you’ll see.”
    “Yes, indeed,” Bonita said.
    Both sisters were staring at her in an identical manner, hands on hips. Sophie laughed shakily and brushed the tears from her face. They were as alike as two peas in a pod.
    “Yes, ma’am,” she said.
    “Yes, ma’am,” said Becca, and laughed gaily.
    Mrs. Ferguson was right. Sophie did feel better when her stomach was full of good food. The world didn’t seem such an awful place, and while she certainly regretted that her sister had gone off without receiving any punishment at all, she couldn’t regret that she wouldn’t be involved in putting her in jail.
    Robert had arrived, and he sat shyly beside her, sharing the cookies his mother had given him with his sister and peeping at Sophie with big, brown eyes. He blushed when she smiled at him, and Sophie hid a smile behind her hand. He seemed a sweet boy , no more than twelve. He was either on a growing spurt or his mother couldn’t afford to clothe him properly, because his pants and shirt sleeves were too sho rt, leaving his bony ankles and wrists sticking out. Sophie would bet on the former, judging by how many cookies he ate while he sat beside her .
    They sat talking quietly for a time, keeping the conversation light. Sophie sat with Becca on her lap until her mother whisked her away, stating firmly that it was time for little girls to be in bed. Becca protested vigorously, but her mother had her way in the end.
    “She’s a corker, that one,” Mrs. Ferguson said fondly. “Bonita has her hands full with