Only the Thunder Knows_East End Girls by Rena Mason Gord Rollo Read Free Book Online Page A

morning
sun cutting through the gloom to give the large man excellent light to guide
his clearly skilled hands. Before him on a raised dais, a stone bust was taking
shape, the head and shoulders of a man with piercing eyes peering out from
within an ornate armored helmet. The work was nowhere near finished but was already
intricately detailed enough that it took William’s uncultured breath away.
    “My
God, Mr. Black. It’s stunning!” William took a few steps closer but a noise to
his left stopped him. It was the bird. The owl, perched on the bed frame as
still as the statue its master was chiseling. Only its eyes moved, riveting
Hare to his spot just inside the door, the sight of its immense body and razor-sharp
talons deterrent enough that William approached no further.
    “Well?”
Black asked without looking away from the bust. “Did you find anything last
night?”
    “No
sir. We didn’t.”
    “Then
why bother me? Can’t you see I’m busy?”
    “Sorry.
I just wanted you to know Billy and I dug up three more, after you left. It was
hard work and—”
    “Your
pay is on the table. Take it and get out.”
    “No,
it’s not the pay, sir, it’s where you ‘ave us digging. Everything in the old
part of the cemetery is, well…old. Dusty boxes filled with chalky bones and
threadbare rags teeming with spiders. We were hoping to have a go at some of
the, shall we say, fresher graves.”
     “You’ll
dig where I damn well showed you. Grab a recent corpse for your doctor friend
on your own time if you want, but best do it sparingly or you’ll attract unwanted
attention. Your work for me comes first. Let me know when you find it.”
    “Find
what, sir? That’s just it. Billy and I have no bloomin’ idea what we’re looking
for. Perhaps if you—”
    “Trust
me; you’ll know when you see it. It’s impossible to miss. Take your
money and get out. I’m trying to concentrate.”
    Dismissed,
and despite having other questions for his employer, William had no choice but
to bite his tongue and walk over to the wooden table to gather his pay. There
was a pile of shiny guineas on the board, much more than Black owed, and for a
moment William considered taking more than his do. When he looked over his
shoulder though, the white beast was still intently watching his every move and
he thought better of stealing anything from this odd, mysterious man.
    William
gathered his coins and left without another word.
     
    *  
*   *
     
    Burke
was awake, or to be more precise, half awake, sitting droopy-eyed and hung over
at one of the tables in the common room. He looked up, bleary-eyed and
miserable, when William entered the room to sit across from him. Mind you,
after his frustrating visit with Ambrosious Black, Hare wasn’t in the best of
moods either. He was a man not used to being intimidated, and being afraid of a
crazy old man wasn’t sitting well in his belly. There just wasn’t a lot he
could do about.
    Not
yet anyway.
    “So
did our boss tell us what we’re supposed to be looking for?” Burke
asked. “Or is it still some bloody big secret?”
    “He
said we’d know when we see it…whatever that means? I’m of a mind to
march right back in there and tell him to stuff his job up his holier-than-thou
arse! I mean who does he think he is?”
    “Don’t
know, mate, but his coins are all that matter. I don’t give a fiddler’s fart
about him as long as he keeps paying us.”
    “I
suppose.”
    “And
speaking of pay…what happened to the seven pounds we got from Doctor what’s his
face?”
    “We
spent it already. Well, actually you spent it already.”
    “What?
That’s impossible. How could I go through that much money in one bloody night?”
    “You
couldn’t, but the five whores you were sniffin’ around sure could. Pissed away
all our stash without even getting in their britches. Nice work!”
    Burke
only had vague memories of the night before but enough snippets to know his
friend was probably