Caleb bowed and Nell blew him a kiss.

They pushed their way through the crowded bar. Tobacco smoke hung like a foetid cloud in the warm evening air, mingling with the yeasty smell of beer and unwashed bodies. A fiddle player in the corner scraped out a cheerful tune that could barely be heard above the chatter. At the far end of the room behind the wide counter, a large woman, who must have been close to six feet in height and not much less in width, dispensed beer and banter in equal proportions. She saw the newcomers and waved.

‘Penrose, ’aven’t seen you in a while. Sissy’s been pining for you.’ She gestured at a table and a couple of stools tucked away in a quiet corner. ‘Kept your usual spot.’

Caleb turned an inquiring glance on Penrose. His friend coloured again and threw a glance at a closed door by the bar.

‘Who’s your ’andsome friend?’ The woman stood with her hands on her hips and looked Caleb up and down. Her lips pursed and she nodded as if in approval.

‘Caleb Hunt, this is Lil White,’ Penrose said.

‘It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma’am.’ Caleb bowed.

The woman surveyed him with perceptive but faded blue eyes. ‘You’re the American everyone’s been talking about. ’ad enough of lemonade and the good widow’s company, ’ave you?’ Before Caleb could answer she said, ‘What’s your pleasure?’

‘Do you have American whiskey?’

She smiled. ‘I’ve a fine American bourbon, if that’s your taste, Mr ’Unt.’

‘A young lady by the name of Nell suggested my first drink in this fine establishment was at her pleasure,’ Caleb said.

‘Nell did, did she? I ’eard ’ow you stood up for my girls so, yes, ’Unt, this first drink’s on the ’ouse.’

‘You are a lady,’ Caleb said.

The woman laughed. Her giant bosom, barely constrained by her corsetry, wobbled with her mirth. ‘A lady, is it? Been a long time since anyone called me that. Now where’s that bourbon?’ Lil bent to rummage through the bottles under the counter.

‘Will!’

A young woman with curling chestnut hair falling around her face and a loose gown covering her corsetry, leaned against a door jamb. Behind her was a flight of stairs, no doubt leading to the girls’ rooms, where they ‘danced’. Her provocative pose garnered the attention of several of the bar’s patrons but she ignored the whistles and catcalls. She had eyes only for Will Penrose. This must be the Sissy who was pining for Penrose.

Penrose whipped his hat off. One look at the younger man and Caleb knew where Will Penrose’s heart lay and why he was a regular at Lil’s Place.

He nudged his friend in the ribs. ‘Go.’