The Visitor - New York 1871-1873

by Barbara Svetlick

  Jasmine came running into the room followed by Matthew. “Who was that?”

  “It’s not important.” She got out of bed and put her gun back in the drawer then picked up her daughter and walked Matthew back to bed. Mirisa checked all the locks. She decided to sleep in the nursery with the children.

  Mirisa looked at the bullet hole the next morning and couldn’t figure out how to cover it up. She would just have to think about how to handle this with the least amount of problems. Mirisa sent for a locksmith and had all the locks changed except the back doors and put the new keys in the desk drawer. She continued to sleep in the nursery for the next two nights and kept the nursery door locked.

  They got back to the house late on the fourth night and immediately went into the library for fresh cigars and whisky. Meeks went upstairs but she wasn’t in bed. He went up to the top floor but she wasn’t there so he checked the nursery which was locked. He knocked on the door and Jasmine opened it before heading back to her room. Meeks found Mirisa curled up next to her daughter. It was a tossup which one had the more angelic face. Maggie had gone from looking like her mother to favoring her father’s looks. He squatted down next to the bed and kissed Mirisa.

  Mirisa opened her eyes. “What are you doing locked in the nursery with the children?”

  “Waiting for you to come home.”

  “Sweetheart, I love you so much.”

  “Then don’t leave me again. I was so heartsick waiting for your kisses, the hours were endless and empty, time stopped and no matter how much I begged time wouldn’t move again, my body ached constantly for your touch and I cried myself to sleep every night.”

  Meeks laughed. “What would happen if I was gone more than four days?”

  “I would pine away with such great melodrama that Garnett would have to write a tragic story about it.” Mirisa kissed him and Meeks pulled her out of Maggie's bed and into his arms. “I don’t ever want to sleep unless I am in your arms.” She kissed him deeper and Meeks decided he needed her attention.

  Meeks took her into their room slamming the door with his foot while taking off his gun and then his clothes as she laid on the bed waiting. It had been a long, long time since his passion was combined with his ruthlessness and she forgot how much she loved him when he was totally out of control. Meeks took her with such energy that she felt like someone threw her in a raging river without the hope of ever being saved. Meeks finally rolled over and held Mirisa for a while before telling her James was cooking if she wanted to get up and have a late night dinner with them. Mirisa ran her hand down the side of his face before kissing him lightly. “Thank you for coming home.”

  Meeks slipped on his jeans as she headed into the bathroom. He was sitting on the bed buttoning up his shirt when he saw the mark above the fireplace. He walked over and touched it. Meeks reached in his jeans, took out his knife and dug the bullet out. He walked over to the dresser and pulled out her gun checking the cylinder to find one cartridge empty. He put the gun back and pocketed the bullet before heading downstairs. He was tucking in his shirt as he entered the kitchen.

  “Well, it must be nice to unwind properly.” James poured a cup of coffee and handed it to him.

  “Something happened while we were gone.”

  “How do you know?” He stirred the gravy as he waited for the answer.

  Meeks took out the bullet and handed it to him. “I just dug it out of the wall above the fireplace.”

  “Which room?”

  “Ours.”

  “She’s never been careless with her gun.” James turned it in his fingers. “There’s blood down the length.”

  “Nope, which means something happened. I also found her locked in the nursery with the children.”

  “But did you get sex?” Meeks hit him upside the head and told him he hoped he was making eggs since they were the ones hungry not her.

  Mirisa put on her jeans, a loose shirt and braided her hair. Garnett was coming out of the library as she hit the bottom step and she was in his arms so fast that he had to put his hand on the doorframe to stop from falling over. She kissed him as he lifted her up and told her that he was way too on edge for her to be in his arms unless of course she wanted sex in the library then he would happily accommodate himself. Mirisa smiled and kissed Garnett again ignoring his warning.

  Garnett closed his eyes and decided that Dominic was right to head straight to the club and he needed to join him after they ate and definitely drag James with him. Garnett put her down and they went into the dining room as James was putting the food on the table. James took Mirisa in his arms and slid his hand across her ass and brought her in very close. “You smell great!”

  “Garnett’s already propositioned me with the library so you need to make it more enticing than his.”

  “You know that there is nothing I need to say to steal you away.” Mirisa smiled and kissed James. Then she looked around and asked where Dominic was and they told her that her memory must be short because she knew Dominic always went for hard sex after an assignment. Mirisa blushed and sat down next to her husband.

  They were all hungry and the conversation was light. Mirisa avoided asking any questions and Meeks was mulling over whether to talk to her in private or right there. He took the bullet out of his pocket and put it on the table. Mirisa looked at it then at her husband. James watched and Garnett reached over and picked it up.

  “Isn’t this from Mirisa’s gun?” Garnett looked up at Mirisa and he knew she was trying to decide how to explain whatever it was that Meeks wanted to know by putting the spent bullet on the table. It was such a classic look when you ask your client a question that they don’t want to give you a straight answer. He raised his eyebrows. They all sat and waited.

  She reached into her pocket and put a key down next to the bullet. “Your brother in law came by to return the key to the house.” The impact of her statement took about thirty seconds to sink in and the silence was deafening.

  Meeks picked up the key and turned it over in his fingers. “When?”

  “The second night.”

  James looked at her surprised. “I thought you were a better shot than that.”

  “Well, I thought taking off part of his ear was a lot nicer than trying to explain a dead man in my bedroom.”

  Garnett looked at her. “Why did you have the gun near you?”

  “Because his lawyer approached Matthew and I in the park and it spooked me. I locked up the house but I woke up to find him sitting in the room watching me.” Meeks by this time was extremely angry but just kept turning the key over and over in his fingers. She reached over and took the key away from him. “You can’t be mad when you have provocatively put me on display for every man in New York knowing that your reputation for being bad is heralded as the standard for a perfect life. I don’t think Jack will ever assume anything again and he definitely will not ever walk into a woman’s bedroom without a written invitation. Plus I believe the wager on who will be successful in bedding me under your nose went up ten points.”

  James was laughing so hard because he realized that there was no longer any separation between them. She more than accepted her life with them including the downside to loving them.

  “James, I really don’t think this is funny.”

  “Meeks, it is more than funny. We all know that Jack wouldn’t have hurt her, he doesn’t have the ability to actually force himself on a woman, he’s scared to death of your sister and he doesn’t have the prowess to merely talk to them to get what he wants.” James winked at Mirisa and she realized that both of them would join Dominic tonight. Mirisa turned to her husband. “I changed all the locks except the back door which will be changed tomorrow and the new keys are in your desk.”

  Meeks picked up the bullet and handed it to James. “Next time you see Jack give this to him and tell him I’ll talk to him later.” Garnett smiled because they all knew he would be at the club throwing his money around.

  “That w
ill be my pleasure. Mirisa, thank you for joining us but I think I need something a little more filling.” James stood and left with Garnett.

  Meeks helped her clear the table and wash the dishes. When he dried the last one he put his arms around her and kissed her neck. “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine.” She turned in his arms and pulled his shirt tail out as she ran her hands up his back. “I love you when you are demanding. I forgot how good it feels when you are so out of control that you can’t think of anything except your own selfish pleasure.” She reached up and kissed him as he undid her jeans and pulled them down. He didn’t care where they were or what she wanted because he wanted her more in that moment than he had earlier.

  James and Garnett entered the club through the side entrance. Dominic was sitting at a card table with Jack and a few other men in what appeared to be a high stakes game. James grabbed a chair and turned it backwards and sat down between the two of them. Garnett went over to the bar asked for a bottle of whisky and two glasses. He poured a shot and handed it to James before Garnett moved to the other side of the table facing Dominic. Jack looked up at both of them then turned his attention back to the game. A small redhead was hanging off the back of his chair rubbing her breast against his neck as she massaged his shoulder with one hand. Dominic looked at both James and Garnett knowing what they wanted was upstairs so something must be up just by the way they had positioned themselves. He sat back chewing on his cigar and waited.

  “So, Jack you seem to be winning tonight.”

  “It appears that way James. Are you in or did you come for other entertainment tonight?”

  “Oh, I am definitely here for other entertainment. But before I head upstairs, Meeks asked me to give this to you.” He took the bullet out of his pocket and put it on top of the money in the center of the table.

  Dominic reached over and picked it up. He knew whose gun it came from without asking and he knew that the graze on Jack’s bandaged ear wasn’t from an accident at the wharf like he had said earlier in some over bloated tale of drunken foulmouthed Irish dockworkers but from this sweet little bullet. Dominic looked at Garnett while James leaned back slightly at the same instance that Dominic stood hitting Jack with a right cut that knocked him clear out of his chair and across the room. Everyone at the table stood up and backed away because all three were wearing their guns. Dominic shook out his fist to make sure nothing was broken, reached over and helped Jack up.

  “The next time you even think of going near her I will kill you.” Dominic put the bullet in Jack’s top pocket, picked up his money, grabbed the redhead and went upstairs. James and Garnett just smiled, picked up the bottle of whisky and followed Dominic upstairs. The manager came over apologizing but Jack just brushed him off and left the club. This would be all over town before breakfast and Jack’s jaw would be swollen before he got home. Thank God he could blame the injuries on the wharf wars when his wife inquired.

  They finally threw the redhead out and James brought up their favorite blonde. It was a great night. Hell, it was an absolutely fantastic week and tomorrow night was New Year’s Eve. They left the club as the sun was rising and felt more alive than they had in a long time. As they cut through the park, James kicked his horse into a full gallop and the other two took the challenge without even thinking about it.

  They found Meeks and Mirisa curled up on the library couch covered in nothing but a blanket and that was just barely covering them. James sat on the end of the couch. “You know this will be hard to explain if they children come down while you are still sleeping.” Meeks opened his eyes. He couldn’t roll out from under her because the blanket would fall off.

  “Mirisa?”

  She merely burrowed further into his arms as the blanket started to slip. Garnett walked over and lifted the blanket off of her, folded it and put it on the back of the chair. She lifted her head and looked up at her husband who smiled.

  “Good morning sunshine.” Mirisa looked up at James remembering where she was and that there was a cool draft running across her that should not be there. She reached down on the floor and picked up Meeks’ shirt and slipped it on as she sat up.

  “Good morning.” She stood up and went upstairs. They all watched her leave while Meeks stood and put on his jeans.

  “Must have been a good night at the club.”

  “It was a great night. Jack has your message and Dominic pulled back at the last minute so his jaw isn’t broken but pretty close.”

  Mirisa came back downstairs dressed and handed her husband a clean shirt. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her before he took the shirt. She buttoned it for him slowly and with each button she propositioned him until he took his hands off the desk and wrapped them around her.

  Garnett lit his cigar and put one leg over the chair. “Mirisa it’s bad enough I have trouble eating because of you but now I am going to feel neglected when I have to button my own shirts.”

  She turned and batted her eyes at him and he laughed. “Anyone interested in going to Washington. I have to be down there the end of January because there will be a lot of issues in session that will require heavy lobbying to get Congress closer to making Colorado Territory a state.”

  They carried the conversation to the table where it turned to heavy politics or for simpler terms into discussions of money.

  “Can we go riding in the park?”

  Meeks broke away from the conversation and told her he’d have the carriage brought around after lunch. He turned back to the argument and Mirisa reached over and took Garnett’s biscuit, sat back and ate it. They must have all been totally satisfied this morning because money was more important than her. After an hour, they stopped debating and started talking about other things.

  “I don’t want to ride in the carriage.”

  “Darling, what are you talking about?”

  “I asked if we could go riding and you said you would get the carriage. I want to ride my horse.”

  Meeks sat back and lit his cigar. Fair enough. It had been all about him since he walked back in the house last night and she was pouting. “It’s snowing.”

  “Does my horse care if it’s snowing?”

  “No, your horse doesn’t care.”

  “Then can we go riding in the park after lunch?”

  “I’ll take you to lunch in the park then we’ll go riding.” Meeks realized that she had been trying to get his attention all morning and he had basically ignored her instead of comforting her after the incident with Jack. “Do you want to go alone with me?”

  “Well, I’m not sure anyone else wants to indulge me enough to go out in the snow except Matthew.”

  “How do you know that Matt wants to go riding in the snow?”

  “Because he’s just like me.”

  Dominic laughed. “Truer words have never been spoken. The only thing he doesn’t do is pout like you’re doing right now.”

  “I don’t pout.” She made a face at him.

  “Mirisa, please. The only thing that is not predicable about you is what sets you off.”

  James smiled at her. “You do pout though I really like it when you do because it’s the only time you are asking for something you’re not getting.” If anyone had any idea what he did to her when they were alone they would understand why his words had such an immediate effect on her. The fact that women loved him had as much to do with his physical attributes as well as the mental images that he instilled so perfectly.

  “I’m going to go upstairs for a while.” She filled up her coffee cup and took Dominic’s biscuit before leaving the room. Garnett got up and refilled his cup.

  “You know Garnett she intentionally lures you upstairs with those piano keys.”

  “I know.” He left the room and Meeks just kicked back.

  They played the piano for several hours before changing clothes to ride. Matthew was downstairs with his father ready to go. Mirisa bent down and kissed his handsome little face before she put on h
er jacket. She took out a knitted cap and put it on tying it under her chin before she handed Matthew one for under his hat.

  “What is that?”

  “What I do when you are all ignoring me.”

  “How come none of us got one?”

  “Because you are mean men who are used to suffering in the elements and my son never ignores me.”

  The restaurant was full so they requested the first table overlooking the lake. The men went into the bar and ordered a shot while Mirisa and Matt waited by the door. The proprietor came out of his office noticing Mirisa’s attire before he stopped to speak to her.

  “Is there something I may do for you?”

  “We’re waiting for a table but thank you.”

  He walked over to the maitre d’ and inquired into her name before he turned back to her. “They will have your table ready in just a moment. I apologize for the wait.”

  The men were all at the bar watching the exchange. Mirisa continued to converse with him but never once did he mention the dress code and the fact that she was in jeans, knee high boots and a long leather jacket. Matthew stood by quietly listening to his mother who was always so personable when she was talking to someone. The Maitre d’ came into the bar and told them their table was ready. When Meeks walked up, Mirisa took his hand and thanked the proprietor for his hospitality while she was waiting.

  Mirisa took off her coat revealing a low cut silk blouse in dark blue that made her stand out from across the room. She could take any room when she wanted to and it was obvious she not only wanted to take this room but she wanted to punish all four of them for making her pout.

  “Mirisa.”

  “Yes James.”

  “I love when you go from pouting to punishing.”