Six
Vivian kept her eyes on the commissioner as she turned up the lamp, watching him take in the details of the room: the rickety table and two chairs that took up most of the floor, the bed with its rumpled quilt, only half-made in her haste to get to work that morning. The radiator hissed and shuddered as it tried to heat the little room, and if she pulled aside the curtains she had sewn, the only view out the window would be the trash piled in the street.
Vivian had been to the commissioner’s house once before, escorted in through the back door to wait in his study, battered and bruised from one of the worst nights of her life. She could only imagine what her home looked like to him as he compared it to the warmth and sophistication of his own. But she wasn’t ashamed of where she lived. If he was uncomfortable there, it didn’t bother her. At least that way he wouldn’t linger.
“Have a seat, if you like,” she said. The police officer who had come with the commissioner followed them in, shutting the door and taking up a post in front of it. Vivian tried not to look at him. “I’d offer to make you coffee, but I’m fresh out.”
His eyebrows rose as he pulled out one of the chairs for himself. In the half-hearted light, she could see the amusement in his expression. “Nothing stronger to offer?”
“I don’t keep liquor in my house,” Vivian said softly. “You might not have heard of it, but there’s a thing called Prohibition.”
That made him chuckle, though the sound was not a friendly one. “And why would you need to? You can drink much better quality at work than you could ever buy for yourself.”
Vivian didn’t answer, and he smiled, clearly not expecting her to. It had been a reminder, nothing more: he knew details of her life that she might have wanted to keep hidden. They weren’t on equal footing in this chat, and she had better watch her step and her mouth if she wanted to make it through in one piece.
She swallowed and, hesitating only a heartbeat, took the seat across from him. There was nowhere else to sit except her bed, so Leo leaned against one wall, his face in shadow as he nodded to the officer by the door. “Evening, Levinsky. How’s the new baby?”
“Green.” The man, Levinsky, nodded. “Good to see you’re staying in one piece. She’s nearly six months old now.”
“Mazel tov,” Leo said quietly, before turning back to his uncle, whose lip was curling in distaste. “All right if I stick around for your chat, Commissioner?” Leo asked, ignoring the expression. There was very little emotion in his voice, but his weight was planted, his stance wide and solid. He looked ready for a fight; Vivian wondered nervously if he knew something she didn’t, or if he was just on edge from his uncle’s presence.
“By all means,” the commissioner said, his face unreadable once more. He sounded unsurprised by the request. “What I came here to say concerns you as well.”
“And that is?” Leo asked. In spite of his tense posture, there was something polite, even deferential, to his tone that Vivian wasn’t used to hearing. It sent a shiver down her back, though she tried to hide it. Leo was worried.
The commissioner glanced at the officer by the door. “That’ll be all for now. Wait for me downstairs.”
Levinsky looked at Leo, a quick flicker of his eyelids, before nodding. “Yes, sir.”
When the door had closed behind him, the commissioner turned to examine Vivian. Whatever he was thinking, he hid it well. Vivian tried to stare back without any of her nerves showing, but she wasn’t sure she was succeeding.
He wasn’t a large man; Vivian thought he was shorter than Leo, and he didn’t have the muscled build of a man who worked with his hands or knew how to hold his own in a street fight. But those kinds of men would take one look at him and give him wide berth anyway. His clothes were polished, his hair pomaded, and a silver mustache curled above his mouth. But his expression was cold as he looked her over, as though she was an interesting, even irritating problem, but nothing as important as a person. Vivian wanted to shiver, but she wouldn’t give him that satisfaction.
At last, the commissioner spoke. “Let’s not waste time with pleasantries none of us care about. You’re in a difficult situation, Miss Kelly.”
She nodded. “That’s a hell of an understatement. Sir.”
“Well said.” Her agreement seemed to amuse him. “I’m glad you’re not inclined to argue.” He settled back in his chair, fingers steepling under his chin. “I let you walk out of that station today, Miss Kelly. Give me a good reason why I shouldn’t have Levinsky haul you back.”
Vivian swallowed. She clenched her hands in her lap so he wouldn’t see them shaking. “Because I didn’t kill him,” she said, as firmly as she could manage. “I think that should count for something.”
“Perhaps for something,” the commissioner said, still studying her. His finger dropped to drum briefly on the table before one side of his mouth lifted in a cynical smile, nearly hidden under his luxurious mustache. “But not for much, especially if you can’t prove it. Buchanan was a well-known man, and well-connected. There are people who will be clamoring for answers. For accountability. The sort of people I’d hate to disappoint. And the press will have a field day with it if I can’t give them a killer.”
“So you just offer her up, is that it?” Leo said. He spoke evenly, almost conversationally. But Vivian could hear the controlled anger in his voice. She wondered if his uncle could hear it, too. “I thought your fine officers could do better than that.”
The commissioner gave him a look that was almost pitying. “Mr. Green, your friend”—he gave the word a twist that Vivian didn’t like, though she couldn’t blame him for it—“was found with Buchanan’s dead body. She was the last person to see him alive, and the state she was in… Well. There’s isn’t a bleeding-heart do-gooder in this city—in the entire damn country—who would blame me for arresting her. And you know it.”
“Then what am I doing here?” Vivian asked quietly, wanting to insert herself back in the conversation before Leo was provoked into saying something unwise.
The commissioner gave her another emotionless glance. “You’re here out of the goodness of my heart, Miss Kelly.”
“You’re here because he likes it when folks on his payroll owe him favors,” Leo said softly, his eyes fixed on the man who would never acknowledge him as family. “And I haven’t owed him one this big in a long time.”
“But like any reprieve, yours won’t last forever,” the commissioner continued, ignoring his nephew. “You have one week of freedom, and you can do with it what you wish. But make no mistake, we will be keeping an eye on you.” He pointed at Leo, carelessly, dismissively, without even turning his head. “On both of you. And at the end of that week, if we don’t have another suspect in our custody, you’ll be under arrest once more.” He leaned forward, his elbows propped up on the table and his fingers laced together in front of him. When he spoke, the menace in his soft, uncaring voice made her feel sick. “And the second time, Miss Kelly, it will be far more difficult for you to gain your freedom.”
He meant that she wouldn’t, of course. If she was arrested again, that would be it. Vivian swallowed against the fear in her stomach. “A lot can happen in a week,” she said defiantly, refusing to look away from him.
He smiled. “True. And if one of those things that happens is you skipping town, or if anyone helps you disappear, then I won’t have qualms paying a visit to, let’s say, a sister. Or a friend. Or a father.” He glanced at Leo again before turning back to Vivian. “There are all sorts of crimes happening in this city, you understand, just waiting for the perpetrators to be found.”
The sick feeling in Vivian’s stomach tightened into a knot. Of course he knew about Florence. Of course. She bit the inside of her cheek, the pain bringing some strength into her voice. “I understand,” she said, glad the words didn’t shake.
“Good girl,” he said.
The patronizing curl of his voice made Vivian grit her teeth. But she didn’t argue; they both knew he held all the cards in this game. He stood, looking satisfied, and Vivian climbed to her feet too. God, she was tired.
“You do good work when I need you to, Mr. Green,” the commissioner added as he crossed to the door. “So I don’t mind you asking for an occasional favor. But I’d hate for one of those favors to cause trouble between us.” He met Leo’s eyes, his hand on the doorknob. “Do you understand?”
Vivian could see the muscles clench in Leo’s jaw. “I do, sir. Here’s hoping we can all be pleasantly surprised by the end of the week.”
“I do enjoy your optimism, young man.” The commissioner gave them both one final considering look before turning to open the door, as though they were already dismissed from his thoughts. “You’ll hear from me if I need you.”
And then he was gone, though the chill of his presence lingered, and silence filled the room where he had been. Leo was staring at the door, though by the rigid set of his neck and shoulders, Vivian suspected he wasn’t seeing it at all.
The silence continued to stretch between them, and Vivian wasn’t sure how to break it. “Real charmer, your uncle,” she said at last.
That made Leo laugh shortly. “Don’t let him hear you calling him that,” he said as he turned away from the door.
Vivian hesitated a moment, then went to him, laying a hand on his arm. “You’re better off, you know,” she said gently. “Without him. Without any of them. It’s a hell of a raw deal, having family that doesn’t want you. But imagine if you’d grown up into someone like that.”
Leo wrapped his arms around her, and Vivian burrowed against his warmth, her eyes closed. He rested his chin on top of her head. He didn’t reply, and she could still feel the tension in him, but he didn’t push her away either. At last he sighed. “Well, sweetheart, what do you want to do?”
“With my one week?” Vivian pulled away, walking three jittery steps into the room. “If running away isn’t an option, I guess it’s time to start calling in some favors.” She glanced out the window. “And if I’m going to be asking for favors, that probably means I shouldn’t be late for my shift.”
He nodded, his eyes back on the door as she collected her shoes, her dancing dress, her treasured pair of silk stockings, tossing them on the bed one by one. Then she hesitated. She and Leo had gotten a bit frisky a time or two, enough that she shouldn’t feel so strange changing her dress with him there. But tonight, she felt raw and exposed, even with all her clothes still on. One week. Only one week.
Snatching up the pitcher from the washstand, she thrust it toward Leo. “Will you get fresh water? The washroom’s up one flight.”
He frowned as he took it, still looking distracted. “You sure you’re up for it tonight? You’re all right?”
“Of course,” Vivian said, giving her head a little toss to settle her hair and beginning to hunt for her lipstick. “All things considered, I’m swell.”
She didn’t look back toward him, and after a moment, she heard him go out into the hall, closing the door behind him.
Her hands were shaking as she reached for her dress. She clenched them into tight fists until the tremors stopped. Then she yanked the pretty gown—she had raised the hem and sewn the fringe on herself—over her step-in, shimmying her hips until it fell into place. When she glanced in the mirror, her cheeks were pale against the stark black frame of her hair, her eyes wide and scared. She took a deep breath and smiled at her reflection until the expression felt right.
If she didn’t think about the future, if she just kept moving forward, she could get through it. She had one week. And, as she had said to the commissioner, a lot could happen in a week.
By the time Leo came back with the wash water, Vivian was able to take the pitcher from him with hands that were steady. “Thanks, pal,” she said, pouring out just enough to wet her hairbrush and slick down her bob. When every sleek hair was in place, she twisted it back on one side, sliding in a pin decorated with feathers and glass pearls. Tilting her head as she considered her reflection, she met Leo’s eyes in the mirror. “Ready to get to work?”
For a moment, she thought he would say something that she would have to ignore, something that matched the worry in his eyes. But instead, he nodded and held out his hand. “Let’s see what we can find.”