A Dark and Starless Night

Chapter Thirteen

Eve moved through the city. There was an energy in the air that had her on edge. People whispered to each other as they went about their day, likely wondering the same thing she was. Was it the same killer?

Fan had given her the details she'd heard on her way to the house that morning. A courtesan found dead, this time in the brothel she'd been working in. Or rather outside it, in the small courtyard to the rear. They were saying it had happened last night, and Eve could hardly believe it when she had heard the name of the brothel.

The Sea Lily.

The very brothel Nadia had worked out of. How many coincidences could exist in one city? She slowed as she approached the Greydocks. There were a few city guards moving through the streets, patrolling, but not many around the brothel itself when she reached it. She had opted to wear nondescript clothing, wanting to avoid drawing attention to herself. A lone guard stood by the door of the brothel, the building looking, for all the world, like it was empty. All it took to get inside was a coin pressed into the hand of a bored child and instructions to steal the guard's coat. He'd left it hanging on a crate, and darted after the little girl as she ran down an alley with it, likely discarding it as soon as she'd turned the corner.

Eve wasted no time slipping inside the building. It was empty, except for a few of the girls, all of whom looked up at her with startled expressions. Saf, thankfully, wasn't there. Rose was, and she gave Eve a half-hearted smile.

"I was wondering if you'd show up," she said, gesturing for Eve to sit.

"I'm so sorry, Rose," Eve said, leaning forward. "What happened?"

"Queenie was working the East Room all night. I saw her go up, but I didn't see her come down."

"Is it just the one staircase?"

She nodded. "All her clients that went up, came down, and none came back. All the usuals, too. We haven't been taking any strangers in since what happened to Nadia." She rubbed her arms.

"Have you all been interviewed yet?"

"Not yet. We're waiting on the grumpy lieutenant."

"We've been waiting for hours," one of the other girls said, angrily as she stood and paced.

"I'd like to have a look at the room she was working," Eve said, standing.

"Why?" someone asked, crossing their arms.

"It's alright, Liv," Rose said, standing and waving the girl away. "You can trust Eve. And if the lieutenant arrives before I'm back, don't mention she was here."

The girls nodded, if a little begrudgingly.

"Thanks," Eve said as she followed Rose up the stairs.

"Don't mention it."

"I'm not complaining," she said, as they stopped outside a door, "but why do you trust me?"

"Like I told you before, I'm a good judge of character. Besides," she said, opening the door. "None of the gangs have claimed Nadia's death, so the more people poking around, the better. At least in my humble opinion. I'll leave you to it. Once you're finished, I'll show you the garden where she was found."

Eve nodded as Rose headed back downstairs. The room wasn't much, small enough, the bed taking up most of the space. There was no window, which was strange, even for a brothel. She checked the bedframe quickly, running her fingers along the underneath. Nothing. There went that theory. There was nothing personal of Queenie's in the room, at least not on display. She quickly made her way through the drawers. The bottom one snagged, so she jerked it hard, pulling the drawer out of the frame, revealing a stash of items.