A secretary answered and informed him Mr. Stillwell was in a meeting and couldn’t speak with him, but she was happy to make an appointment. Waterson checked his watch and asked if Stillwell could see him in an hour. The secretary allowed that he could and set the appointment. That gave him just enough time to hire a wagon and arrange to pick it up after his meeting with Stillwell. The women should have everything at the storefront packed by then and they could drop the big stuff off at the express office and catch the next train out of the city.

He wouldn’t breathe easy until they were well away from New York. At least they’d made enough money here to set them up even without the thirty thousand they’d lost, and they were about to do even better.

—

You can’t leave,” Madame Ophelia said.

Elizabeth and Anna looked up in surprise.

“Are you going to kidnap us?” Anna asked scornfully.

“You can’t leave until you tell me how I can save myself.”

“How can I do that?” Elizabeth asked.

“I think you’re forgetting, she already told you how to do it,” Anna said.

“I did?” Elizabeth asked. “What did I say?”

“You said she had cheated the person who wants to kill her, so it’s obvious that the way to stop them from killing her is to give that person their money back.”

“But you didn’t say who the person is,” Persephone added plaintively. “Surely, you know.”

“I . . .” Elizabeth looked around at the circle of faces still staring down at her. “Are there really so many that you can’t figure it out?”

Madame glared back and Persephone sighed in frustration. “Not many, but more than one,” Persephone admitted.

“Didn’t I give you any hint at all?” Elizabeth asked.

Anna patted her shoulder. “I don’t think so, dear. You were rather vague, except when describing the blood running down Madame Ophelia’s face.”

Madame winced at that.

“Maybe if you concentrate, you’ll remember something,” Persephone said. “You did remember a lot of what happened with the wagon accident and Mr. Miller.”

“What wagon accident?” Anna asked. “Don’t tell me more than one person has died.”

“Two died,” Elizabeth admitted in a very small voice.

“Two?” Anna echoed, horrified.

Elizabeth winced but turned to Madame Ophelia. “Are you suggesting another séance, because I don’t think I can endure that again.”

“Let’s try just sitting quietly,” Persephone said. “Perhaps that will be enough.”

“Or I’ll take you home and we forget all about them,” Anna said.

Madame chose not to hear Anna’s suggestion. “Yes, sit back down at the table. We will try to focus and help Mrs. Bates to see more clearly.”

“Elizabeth?” Anna asked.

“Yes, that . . . that sounds fine. But if I faint again—”

“Then we’re leaving for sure,” Anna said.