Sleep, Pale Sister

Not that I expected anything more than a ridiculous confrontation between Effie and Henry: the girl would break down or go into hysterics as soon as he recognized her. I’d be lucky if I escaped arrest and, if Henry wanted it, here was the finest possible excuse to put his wife away in an asylum for ever. What was more, if she was goose enough to think that he might not recognize her, she belonged in one.

I was so engrossed in my bitter thoughts that for some time I did not really notice details of the actors in the little shadow-play Fa

I could not hear what was being spoken, but my eyes had adjusted to the red light, and I could distinguish the features of both Henry and the girl.

Effie?

I squinted through the tiny hole, frowning. ‘That’s not Effie.’ I had spoken aloud without meaning to, and I heard Fa

It definitely wasn’t Effie. Oh, there was a superficial resemblance, something in the figure and the shape of the face, but this girl was younger, her hair darker. In the deceitful light it might have been any shade between black and auburn, but it looked thicker than Effie’s. The eyes were darker, too, and heavy with make-up, the brows were thick and black. But the real difference was in the way the girl moved: she had the fluid, snakelike grace of an exotic dancer, the teasing ma

But just as angry relief threatened to burst out in further imprecations against Fa

When Henry finally left the house, Fa

Effie was passive throughout, uninterested in my observations or even my praise for her spectacular performance; and, when all traces of her disguise had been removed she fell into a heavy, somnolent state as if she had been drugged, hardly responding when I spoke to her. With a sharp glance at Fa

It was three o’clock when I was able to take Effie home. She spent some time drying her hair in front of the fire before Fa

‘Now, my dear,’ she said softly, ‘it’s time to wake up. Come now.’

Effie, who as far as I could see had not been asleep, stirred and lifted her head a little.

‘Shhh, yes, I know you’re tired, but you have to go home now. Remember?’

Effie made a small sound of acquiescence or protest.

‘Come now, Effie. You’ll be back soon.’

Effie looked up and, as she saw me, the confused expression dropped from her face and she smiled with more vivacity than I had seen all night.

‘Mose!’ she exclaimed, as if I had not been sitting there beside her half the night. ‘Oh, Mose!’ And I’ll be damned if she didn’t leap up there and then and fling her arms around my neck.

I was inclined to give her a sarcastic reply, but at that moment I saw the expression of complex satisfaction on Fa

So, as I said, I had to take Effie back home before the servants woke up: her hair was nearly dry by now and she put on her old dress and cloak. She seemed almost exhilarated, though she was evasive about the events I had witnessed in the parlour. In the cab I ventured to ask her a direct question and she looked at me with an odd expression of blankness.

‘Ask Marta,’ she said simply, and would say no more.

I forbore to tease her. I expect she knew I had been watching and felt a certain embarrassment to talk about it. It was natural enough, I suppose. No, it was Fa

33

I knew he’d come back. I’d seen him watching us with six kinds of hell in his eyes and I knew he wasn’t at all satisfied. He liked to be in control, did Mose. He didn’t like to be kept in the dark and he hated being used-he was bright enough to see that in a way he had been used, and it was important for me to keep him sweet until I didn’t need him any more.

I was careful to show more warmth than at our previous meeting: to tell the truth, it wasn’t difficult. My plan had succeeded even better than I had expected, and when Mose arrived I was feeling elated and suffused with energy. He, on the other hand, was cool and wary, suspecting a conspiracy but not certain where to begin looking. He walked into the parlour, hands in his pockets, his brows winged in a slight frown.

‘Mose, what a pleas-’

‘That was a dangerous game to play with my future, Fa

I gave him my sweetest smile.

‘Temper, Mose,’ I chided laughingly. ‘What are you complaining about? You were never in any danger, and you know it.’

‘That’s hardly the point,’ he snapped. ‘We had an agreement, and I expected you to keep it. In any case, you took a gamble and I was the stake: what if Chester had recognized Effie? I would have had the devil to pay. Chester’s an influential bastard-do you think he’d let me go with a rap on the knuckles? He’d do his utmost-’

‘Oh, stop whining,’ I interrupted cheerfully, ‘and do sit down. I can’t bear to crane my neck to talk to you. I took no gamble. In that light, in that disguise, no-one could have recognized Effie. Especially not Henry. The idea of finding his wife in such a situation is beyond him.’

‘Maybe. But why take the risk?’

‘Sit down!’ I repeated.

Sullenly he obeyed, and I suppressed a smile of triumph. I had him!