Ride The Wild Wind (Time Travel Historical Romance) (10 page)

Elena sighed.
“Halle, do you know how to avoid getting the pox?”

Halle’s heartbeat
thudded to a screeching halt, her mind tumbling a few short steps behind before
it crashed. Um…no, she had no idea since condoms were pretty much nonexistent
here. “Um…not really.”

 “Check his
penis.”

 Halle’s body
went instantly numb. She sooo did not want to have this conversation.

“You are blushing.
Do I embarrass you with such talk?”

After three months
of living in the brothel, Halle had seen more naked body parts than was ever covered
in her college Anatomy and Physiology class. And it wasn’t as if she’d never
seen a naked man. Well…just
one
, anyway. Her memories of the handsome
stranger and how he’d bathed her in the stream were as vivid today as three
months before. Still, she found the subject of male genitalia uncomfortable.
She nodded in response to Elena’s question.

Elena shrugged. “I
suppose all this talk this does not concern you since you are not one of my
entertainers.”

Elena’s
sugar-coated word for the dirty truth
.

The madam tilted
her head to the side, then leaned forward to stare at her intently. Her gold
slipper dangled on the end of her toe.
Uh, oh.
Halle didn’t like that
look. Trouble was on the way.

“Have you ever
been intimate with a man?” Elena inquired.

Halle gulped. The
room turned warmer. Again she tugged at the starched collar on her dress. She
shook her head no.

Elena lifted a
finely arched brow. “Never?”

“Um…no.”

Elena hesitated.
“With a woman perhaps?”

Halle shook her
head no again, but with more emphasis.

Elena gave her a
once over. “Well, you are pleasing enough to have at least received offers from
both sexes. I am certain you have not retained your virginity for a lack of
suitors of either sex.”

The madam’s
patronizing tone wasn’t lost on her. She knew she wasn’t pretty, that she
didn’t have gi-normous boobs most guys seemed to require. She’d never been on a
date, and had shared her first and only kiss with the hunk who’d rescued her.

     Halle’d
been a gawky, straight-A nerd in an all-girl parochial high school. Not much
had changed her first couple of years at U of New Mexico. She simply didn’t
know how to relate to guys.

Elena smiled
wickedly. “Do you even like men?”

Halle swallowed
the growing knot of tension in her throat, uncertain where Elena was going with
this line of questioning. “Yeah, I like guys.”

Elena motioned.
“Come closer.”

Halle hesitated.
“Have I done something wrong, Miss Costanza?”

Elena smiled like
a cat that was about to taste-test the canary. “No. You have done nothing to
displease me. Now come closer,
querida.
”

Halle stopped an
arm’s length in front of Elena. She was no fool. If Elena even attempted to put
one move on her, she wanted the advantage of being able to make a speedy get
away.

Elena made a face,
leaned forward and grasped her hand to pull her closer until the madam’s knees
bumped the front of her thighs. Halle stiffened, uncomfortable at the contact.

Elena reached up
and began straightening Halle’s dress collar. “We have not spoken privately
since your unfortunate incident with
Senior
Hamilton two evenings ago.
We must speak now.”

What was there to
discuss? Ben walked into the office in time, pulled the filthy leech off Halle
before he could get a hand down the front of her blouse, and then held the
lecherous bastard down while Elena delivered a ten pound iron to his
outstretched hand.

“He did not touch
you otherwise?”

Halle shook her
head. “No.”

“I am only
concerned because this because Hamilton has a reputation of being forceful.
Unfortunately, he made the mistake of bringing his arrogant cock into my
house.” Elena drew Halle’s hands into hers. “Your encounter has troubled me.
You are a beautiful young woman—so innocent of the ways of the men who come
into my establishment. Know that I would express the same concern for any of my
ladies who have been manhandled.”

Halle was no fool.
In the short time she lived and worked at the brothel, she’d already figured
the madam out. This woman gave not one good crap about her ladies, although she
had been extremely kind to Halle. She’d not witnessed any of the rumored
beatings, but Molly had confided in her that Elena often starved her or locked
her in her room when she didn’t comply with her wishes. No, Elena Costanza’s
only concern was for the enormous amount of money she made plying liquor and
women. If the patrons got a little rough with the ladies, Elena managed to
wheedle extra cash out of them.

Halle managed a
weak thanks, then eased her hands from her boss’ and turned away.

Elena snagged her
wrist again. “Do you know how to defend yourself against a man?”

“Nad him,” Halle
quipped.

“
Perdon
?
”

“Kick him in the
balls.”

Elena chuckled.
“Yes, well kicking a man in the
cojones
might work under certain circumstances,
querida,
but once a man pins you down and holds a knife to your throat,
such thinking is useless.”

Elena slid from
the credenza and opened the drawer. She retrieved a small, pearl handled
switchblade and flipped it open.

“Tuck this into
your garter and wear it at all times. Practice using it on a melon when you are
alone. If a man ever tries to take what does not belong to him, push it as far
into his gut as you can, then twist it right or left. If he survives, I
guarantee he will think twice before doing such again.”

  Elena
took her by the hand and led Halle to a nearby chair. “Please sit so we may
discuss the reason I brought you to my room.”  Elena paced before her. “I
need you downstairs in the gaming suite at seven o’clock tonight. I will not be
available to oversee matters as an old friend is arriving this evening and I
will be entertaining privately until tomorrow. Being short handed, I require
your assistance with serving drinks. Most important of all, tonight I want
you
—not
Ricardo—to count the money. I think he has been stealing.”

Ricardo stealing
money from Elena? No one in their right mind dared cross this woman unless they
wanted to be eviscerated. “Maybe his eye sight is failing,” Halle suggested.
“After all, he is getting old.”

Elena gave her a
cross look. “There have been too many discrepancies of late. I will not
tolerate a thief. You
will count the money tonight and bring it to room
twelve no later than eleven.
Comprendes
?”

Halle thought it
odd that Elena wanted the money delivered to room twelve—the one usually
reserved for high paying clientele and ahem…
group activities
. She
wondered why, on a Saturday night in particular, the room hadn’t been reserved.

“Wouldn’t it be
better if I put the money in the safe in your office downstairs? Then you can
count it again in the morning.”

Elena lifted the
nearly burned down cigarette in the tray and snubbed it out. “Bring it to room
twelve and come alone. I will have one of my ladies meet you there.” Elena
sighed and clasped her hands together. “Now let me select your wardrobe for
this evening.” Elena crossed over to the mirrored wardrobe and peered inside.

Halle swallowed
the elephantine lump in her throat. She could only imagine what type of
‘wardrobe’ Elena had in mind. “No lingerie, right?”

Elena turned. “A
suitable gown for a proper young woman, of course.”

“What’s wrong with
the dress I’m wearing?”

Elena frowned. “I
cannot have you traipsing about in a flour sack. This is a brothel, not a
convent. My customers wish to see bosoms and ankles. And you are pretty enough
to display your treasures whether your body is for sale or not.”

Well, she hadn’t
been displaying her ‘treasures’ the other night when old man Hamilton surprised
her in Elena’s office. She’d been minding her own business, filling out a
catalogue order. The last thing she wanted was to encourage a repeat of that
incident by wearing skimpy attire in a room full of drunken, horny men.

Halle started to
protest, but Elena held up a hand. “I will put the word out that you are not
for sale. Still, I am certain some of the gentlemen will enjoy having a pretty
girl serve their drinks. Perhaps you might sit on their lap and wiggle that
shapely bottom of yours. You will do that?”

Halle nodded, but
only to appease her boss. She’d no intention of doing anything that might get
her groped or fondled.

Elena, appeared
pleased by her response, and settled her hands on her hips. “Stand.”
The madam studied her up and down, instructing her to turn for her. “I am
trying to determine your best feature but it escapes me at the moment. You have
a small waist and well rounded hips…nice, firm little breasts. Lift your
petticoats so that I might view your legs.”

Reluctant, Halle
hiked up her skirt and petticoats.

“Dare I say we are
about the same dress size?” Elena opened the wardrobe and shuffled through
several pieces. “This would do well for you with your darker complexion.” She
snatched a cream- colored silk and lace gown from the rack. “Sheer and
revealing.” She handed it to Halle. “But also virginal looking, allowing the
gentlemen to enjoy but warning them not to touch. Try it.”

Halle fingered the
beaded silken gown that reminded her of a vintage wedding dress while Elena
rummaged around in one of the bureau drawers. She held the garment against her
and studied it in the mirror’s reflection. “I can’t wear this. It looks
expensive.”

“I no longer want
it. Please. Indulge me.” Elena came back with white, knee high stockings.
“These go with it. The gown is open in the front to the knee — enough to reveal
your calves. You will wear no corset, chemise or drawers.”

Halle blinked.
“Um…’scuse me but did you say no underwear?”

         
 “My ladies dress much differently at parties held in the private suite. I
want the bodice sheer and enticing, revealing a hint of your attributes. Try
everything.”

Halle swallowed
hard. She’d heard rumors about what went on in the suite—the orgies, in
particular—and had no desire to witness any of it. Why did Elena want her working
that room? “Could you reassign me to the front parlor floor instead?”

  Elena made
a tsk-ing sound. “There is nothing to fear. You will do fine. Take these, too.”
Elena slid off her gold-toed slides. “They are too large for me, but will fit
your
feet. Undress.”

Halle didn’t miss
Elena’s jab about her large foot size. While Elena fiddled nearby with a box of
jewelry, Halle slipped out of her clothes, uncomfortably aware the madam was
watching her peripherally.

“Halle.”

Halle quickly
pulled on the gown with décolletage and mid-length, sheer lace sleeves. “Yes,
Miss Costanza?”

“I have wondered
something since you were brought here.”

She turned to face
the madam.

“Were you a
slave?”

 Halle froze,
unprepared to answer. Although the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed
earlier that year, former slaves were still subject to brutality and
discrimination. Dare she admit the truth?

Elena returned
with a pearl necklace, then moved behind her to clasp it. “Your coloring is
dark,
querida
. It is obvious to me you are not fully white—and you do
not look Spanish or Indian. Some of my other ladies have inquired of this as
well. That is the only reason I ask.”

Could she trust
Elena?  Nervous, she nibbled her lower lip, but said nothing. Her
expression must have answered for her because the madam nodded in awareness.

“Do not worry.”
She kissed her cheek lightly. “You are safe in my house.”

Before Halle
realized what was happening, Elena lifted the back of the gown. “And of course,
there is
this.
You have a marking on your hip. What do these letters
mean?”

Embarrassed, Halle
snatched the back of the dress down and wheeled to face Elena. “Those are the
initials of my favorite song.”

Elena blinked.
“What does it say?”

“R.T.W.W. stands
for Ride the Wild Wind.”

Elena made tsk-ing
sound and thrust a pot of lip rouge into one hand, a tin talcum powder in
another. “I have no time for foolishness. Apply this to your nipples—first the
white powder, then the rouge.”

Once Elena walked
away, Halle slid the powder and rouge into the dressing table’s drawer,
ignoring the request.

While the madam
busied herself again with the jewelry, Halle fumbled with the annoying row of
tiny buttons on the front of the gown. Momentarily, Elena brought over an icy
blue topaz ring and placed it on her middle finger, then adjusted the bodice of
her dress. Looking down at herself, Halle noted her dark areolas showing
through the sheer fabric even without the benefit of enhancement. And she
didn’t look pretty, or sexy, but more like a cheap hooker.

“Couldn’t I at
least wear underclothes?” Halle asked. “I feel naked.”

Elena shook her
head. “It will ruin the effect of the gown. Besides…my ladies will be similarly
attired. You are to wear nothing beneath. Oh, but that appalling red hair! We
must do something about it.”

Okay. That did
it.
Yeah, her hair was
pretty shabby looking with three months of
dark growth and red tips but she wouldn’t term it
appalling.

At the dressing
table, Halle combed the hair upward and Elena pinned the red ends in place,
adding a robin’s egg blue satin bow at the back.

“There. The bow
will hide your flaw.”

Oh, so now it
was a flaw, too?
Halle pursed her lips together to keep from saying
something regrettable. Elena spritzed her with lilac scented cologne. At
Elena’s direction, Halle stood and whirled around, the wide hem of the skirt
billowing like a wisp of fog. Elena stepped forward and eased the sleeves
slightly off the shoulder. Apparently still not satisfied, the madam tugged the
gown down a bit in front. She fussed with her hair again. Halle felt like a
floral arrangement that Elena couldn’t get quite right.