I pulled my shawl around me, bid everyone a hasty good-night and hurried home. The Rue des Martyrs, where it met the boulevard near Pigalle, was now coming to life. A girl wearing a short skirt and showing black fishnet stockings almost up to her knee was leaning against a lamppost on the corner. A couple walked past, arms entwined about each other. A group of young men came toward me, singing lustily—something about “Auprès de ma blonde, qu’il fait bon dormir,” meaning “It would be good to sleep next to my blonde”? Such things would never be heard in New York.

They called out to me as they passed on the other side of the street. “Hello, ma belle. Come with us. We go to the Moulin Rouge. Come and dance and drink.”

I ignored them, suddenly feeling alone and vulnerable. I heard ribald comments as I fled toward my front door and went inside. Madame was back on alert this time. “You’ve been walking the streets, I see.”

“I had no food for my evening meal. I needed to eat.”

“It is not wise to wander the streets alone in this part of the city,” she said. “People will get the wrong idea about you.”

“I’ll remember that. Thank you.” I gave her a civil nod. As I went to walk past her up the stairs she called after me, “How long do you think you’ll remain here to see if your friends will return?”

“Until I find out what has happened to them,” I said. “You told me that the rent had been paid until the end of the month so it doesn’t really concern you whether anyone stays in their apartment or not, does it? Good night, madame.”

Then I stomped up the stairs. I had had a long, frustrating, and frightening day and I was not prepared to tolerate Madame Hetreau’s attempts to intimidate me.

Chapter 17

Seventeen

I awoke to wind rattling the shutters. Outside clouds were racing across the sky bringing the promise of rain. Not an auspicious start to a day when I would be roaming the streets once more. Liam was awake and full of energy, babbling noisily and wanting to get up and going. I took him with me down the five flights to buy our breakfast. The baker made a big fuss of Liam and put a sweet roll into my bag for him. “You have cheered up Madeleine marvelously,” he said. “She had not recovered her full strength after the birth of the baby and had lost her joie de vivre. Last night all she could talk about was your son and how funny and clever he was.”

“I was delighted to find her,” I said. “It would have been a huge problem to carry my son around with me all day.”