Yesterday's Roses (2 page)

“And you believed her?” retorted the young woman, expelling a short and thoroughly unpleasant laugh. “How many times have I told you not to believe everything you're told?”

“She say she have 'pointment with Mr. Jake.”

The woman snorted in an unladylike fashion. “I thoroughly doubt that.” Rounding on Hallie, the color high in her cheeks, she spat out, “I don't know who you are and I don't care. I just want you out of this house!”

“Mrs. Parrish?” inquired Hallie.

“No,” she snapped, rudely refraining from any introduction.

Hallie relaxed visibly at her retort. Thank God for small favors! She could only imagine the futility of her task if this termagant were Jake Parrish's wife. She was undoubtedly the type of woman who would browbeat her husband until he was a mewling Milquetoast unable to make any decisions without deferring to his wife's superior approval.

So if she wasn't his wife, who was she? A mistress, perhaps? That would certainly explain the woman's animosity at the mention of a wife. Hallie had had enough distasteful encounters with her adulterous father's mistresses to know the effect the word “wife” had on them.

The woman didn't miss Hallie's look of obvious relief. She crossed her arms tightly across her breast, a wary expression masking her rigid features. “I would suggest you state your business promptly. I have little time or patience with uninvited visitors.”

A hundred tart retorts sprang to the tip of Hallie's tongue, but she diplomatically suppressed them and answered politely, “I'm not an uninvited visitor. I really do have an appointment with Mr. Parrish. If you would be kind enough to inform him of my presence, I'd be most grateful.”

“I can't imagine what business a dreary creature such as yourself could possibly have with Jake. Obviously you're lying about your appointment—or it was too unimportant for Jake to mention to me. Besides, he happens to be indisposed and isn't seeing anyone. Hop!” She glanced furiously about, muttering beneath her breath, “Now where has he gone? Worthless Chinese heathen.” But the houseboy was nowhere to be seen.

Dreary creature, indeed!
Hallie would show this awful person what lay beneath her “dreary” exterior! Looking down her nose at the woman and adopting the pompous demeanor she had perfected to use on recalcitrant patients, she announced coolly, “I don't feel obligated to state my intentions to you. And I would suggest you let Mr. Parrish decide whether or not my business is important. By your own admission, you aren't his wife, and by your appalling lack of common civility I'd venture to guess that you're not his social secretary either. If Mr. Parrish is truly indisposed, then I suggest you find a more reliable doctor than this Barnes person. If there isn't one, I happen to be a doctor of excellent repute and would be willing to examine him myself.”

The girl looked appalled by her suggestion and when she looked to protest, Hallie effectively cut her off. “Be advised, I was invited here, and whether you like it or not, I will speak to Mr. Parrish. You can tell him that Dr. Hallie Gardiner from the Mission Infirmary has arrived and that he has kept me waiting long enough.”

Hallie was pleased to see the woman pale at her words.
Good,
she thought. It seemed that rudeness was the only thing these people understood, and by the look on the other woman's face, Hallie had made her point abundantly clear.

“You're from the mission?”

Hallie nodded. She was finally getting somewhere.

That somewhere wasn't exactly where she had expected. Whereas the woman had been merely hostile before, she now smoldered with hatred. “I knew it! You're one of Lavinia Donahue's spies! Come to collect more malicious gossip to spread to your petty little group of social reformers, have you? Well, you've wasted your time. If you think—”

Her tirade was interrupted by a short, sharp scream, immediately followed by a longer shriek. The shriek was quickly muffled, leaving both women frozen in their tracks. Being intimately acquainted with the sounds of human suffering, Hallie could tell that the person making those sounds was not only in pain but frightened as well.

The woman seemed to wilt as she cast a distressed glance toward the staircase, and for the first time Hallie noticed how young she was. Why, if you looked past the sophisticated attire and elaborate hairstyle, she was really nothing more than a jaded schoolgirl—one who could have benefited from a switch to the backside. She couldn't have been more than eighteen or nineteen, though her demeanor was that of a woman much older.

Mr. Parrish certainly likes them young
, Hallie thought sourly. Fighting back her disgust, she reminded herself that as much as she disliked this girl, there was someone upstairs who sounded badly in need of her help. And as a doctor Hallie had taken an oath never to forsake those who were suffering. She was about to offer her assistance when the girl resumed her assault.

“Haven't you people done enough damage to this family?” There was a growing note of desperation in the girl's voice. “I might have been naive enough to believe the lies about your noble intentions in the past, but I know better now. You go back to Lavinia and tell her that I'll do anything necessary to protect my brother from her viciousness! Tell her—”

Another sobbing scream from upstairs crescendoed into a series of louder ones and served to deflate what was left of the girl's waning confidence. “Just leave,” she choked out.

She looked on the verge of tears, and against her will Hallie found herself feeling sorry for the girl and seeking to reassure her. “I would be glad to give this Lavinia your message—if I knew her.” She gave a self-deprecating shrug. “But I've only been in the city for a little more than a week and have met very few people. I definitely haven't met anyone named Lavinia. From the sounds of her, I doubt we would have much in common.”

The girl didn't look at all reassured by Hallie's words. As another cry rent the silence and both women jumped in surprise at the crash of glass being forcefully broken, a tear rolled down the girl's cheek. She rubbed it away with her balled-up fist, a gesture childishly at odds with her adult appearance. Indistinct sounds of an argument seemed to agitate the girl even more, and when the argument was abruptly cut short by the slam of a door, she firmly grasped Hallie's arm and started to drag her toward the door.

“Look here, Miss—?” Hallie shook off the girl's hand impatiently. “You've got me at a disadvantage. You have my name, but I haven't the slightest idea who you are.”

A harsh grate of laughter forced the women to break the glower they had been exchanging and transfer it toward the tall, dark-haired figure slowly descending the stairs.

“Always keep your adversary at a disadvantage. Isn't that right, Penelope?” the man quipped as he came to a stop at the bottom step. He swept Hallie with a quick but all-encompassing look before asking drily, “It seems as if I'm also at a disadvantage. Who are you?”

“You've already decided that I'm your adversary.” Hallie didn't like the way his silvery-green eyes seemed to bore into her, and she definitely didn't like his handsome face. A man that good-looking was bound to be selfish, vain, and as past experience had taught her, cruel. If it hadn't been for his aura of raw masculine power, Hallie would have been inclined to call him beautiful. But she sensed that no one except a fool would dare call him that within earshot. And Dr. Hallie Gardiner was no fool.

She certainly wasn't fool enough to have her head turned by that face or, for that matter, by his tall, athletic physique. She'd seen how miserable a man like this could make a woman. Her own mother had been reduced to an unhappy shadow by such a man. Hallie had always believed there was no man on the face of the earth who could match her father's good looks, but this man was twice as handsome, and that made him twice as dangerous. So perhaps he had been right after all, for that pretty face was enough to make him her adversary.

It was Penelope who finally answered the man's question, her tone damning. “She's from the mission.”

“Ah. Well, that would explain a lot,” he replied, staring pointedly at Hallie's drab gown and unkempt hair. “What brings you here, Mission Lady? Undoubtedly Penelope has already given you her opinion of the Bible-thumping brethren of the Mission Society.”

“I have an appointment with Jake Parrish and unless you're he, which I doubt, I—”

“Why would you doubt it?” he interrupted lazily, amusement stealing into his cold eyes.

“Well, everyone knows that Mr. Parrish is a genius.”

“A genius, you say?”

“Yes. And rich.”

“Of course.”

Hallie's mind raced to think of something that would wipe the arrogant smirk off the man's face. “From what I can surmise, he's inclined toward a charitable nature. And renowned for his … kindness. So you see, you couldn't possibly be Mr. Parrish. You obviously possess none of the aforementioned virtues!”

The last part, about Jake Parrish being kind, was pure fabrication. Hallie had certainly heard no such thing and doubted that it was true, but it had seemed an inspired touch. She stole a glance at the man through her lowered lashes, expecting him to look thoroughly chastised. He was staring back at her, thunderstruck.

Kind?
he thought wryly.
She has imagination, I'll give her that. And rich? Since when is that considered such a virtue? Convenient, yes. But virtuous?
He threw back his head and howled with laughter.

“I don't see that any of this is funny in the least!” exclaimed Penelope in a querulous voice.

Ignoring her protest, he pointed out to Hallie, “It seems as if you're the one at a disadvantage. I am Jake Parrish, and it's been a long time since anyone has added kindness to my list of virtues. If that's what those crows at the mission are saying these days, I'm going to have to remind them that lying is a sin.”

Hallie had the good grace to blush at his words.
Oh! Good show! Now you've really done it! First you insult the man and then resort to lies. He'll never help you now. Never in a hundred—no, a MILLION—years! I definitely see a trip back to Philadelphia looming in your near future, Hallie … unless you think of something—and quick!

But what?

Ever heard of an apology?

But one look at his hard face told her that probably nothing short of groveling on her hands and knees would do to pacify him. Damned if she would stoop that low! Oh, Lord! Why couldn't he have been the pompous little toad she had imagined? Him she could have handled. Without thinking, she murmured, “You're not quite what I was expecting.”

“And what were you expecting?”

“Don't encourage her, Jake! Dr. Barnes should be here any time now, and we don't want her around prying into our affairs.” Penelope cast a meaningful glance toward the stairs, and Jake nodded in agreement.

“Well, Miss—” he began brusquely.

“Doctor,” she corrected him. “I'm Dr. Hallie Gardiner from the Mission Infirmary. You asked me to be here at four o'clock.”

“Really?” He pulled out a pocket watch and snapped open the case. A tune that Hallie recognized, but couldn't quite place, began to play. He raised his eyes to hers. “You're late.”

“I know, but the gate was locked.”

He clicked the case closed again, abruptly cutting off the music. “Why didn't you just ring the bell?” As he watched the heat rise in her cheeks, it suddenly dawned on him how she'd come by her unkempt appearance. A mocking smile twisted his mouth, and he asked with feigned innocence, “Just how did you get in, if not through the gate?”

“I found a back way,” she answered truthfully, unable to meet his cynical gaze. She would die before she admitted to climbing his fence.

“You obviously went to a lot of trouble to see me,” he said with pointed emphasis on the word “trouble.” When she didn't deny it, he admitted, “To be honest, I had completely forgotten our appointment. I'm afraid you've wasted your time and trouble. I can't see anyone today.”

“I told you he was indisposed,” Penelope crowed.

“Really?” Hallie swept him from head to toe with her skeptical gaze. “He looks healthy enough to me.”

“See, Penelope? You have a doctor's word on it.” Smiling slyly at Hallie, he added, “I'm glad someone agrees with me on that score. My overbearing little sister insists on treating me like an invalid.”

The challenging look he threw at Penelope forced her to protest, “Jake! You know what Dr. Barnes says about exciting yourself.”

“Proves my point that doctors are a pack of charlatans and butchers, doesn't it!”

Color infused Hallie's face as she pointed out, “I'm a doctor, and I am neither a charlatan nor a butcher!”

He snorted. “No. You're something worse.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. You're a straitlaced little spinster who is so afraid of your own femininity that you'd rather compete with men than admit to your failure as a woman.”

Her face darkened to an unbecoming shade of crimson in her anger. “And you're a typical narrow-minded ass of a man if you're stupid enough to believe that!” she retorted. “Could it be that you're actually intimidated by a woman who can do more than play the spinet, do needlework, and simper adoringly every time you stoop to grace her with your inane conversation? Why is it that every time a man—”

Her tirade was cut short by another loud scream, punctuated by several heavy crashes.

As the wailing continued, a tall, reed-thin black woman scampered down the stairs. Ignoring Hallie's presence, she blurted out, “She be bad, Mista' Jake, real bad! I done all I can, but the Missus, well, she ain't havin' nothin' to do with me. Won't let no one close! The Missus be needin' a docta' real soon! I cain't do no more!”