Empire Girls by Suzanne Hayes

such love, I got up, as well. I took her hands and we started spinning around. Our hair spreading every which way. When we stopped, we fell to the ground in a dizzy, laughing heap.
    “That was fun!” she’d said.
    “Let’s do another spin,” I’d said.
    We were out of breath, but danced on, the two of us, still so small. Our hair down, flying around us, mingling light strands with dark. Our fingers still laced together. Smiling.
    “What happened to us?” I asked.
    “What do you mean?” asked a grown-up Ivy. That’s when I realized I’d said it out loud.
    “Nothing,” I said, not knowing how to explain the feelings welling up inside of me. “I’m just deeply ashamed that we look like loose women.”
    “Oh, let’s just go. We’re going to be late,” she said.
    “Late for what?” I asked.
    “Late for our job interview!”
    “You’ve found us work, Ivy?”
    “Well, not really. Just an idea.”
    “If it’s an idea, how can we be late? You can’t be late for an idea.”
    “You can be so difficult,” she said, pulling me out of our room and down the narrow stairway so quickly that I had to yank her back so I wouldn’t fall down and twist my ankle again on unfamiliar shoes.
    “Have a great day, ladies,” said Maude as we left.
    “Be safe out there...” said Viv, and the two fell into waves of laughter. It was a quiet comfort, having someone noticing that we were leaving. I couldn’t remember when anyone—joking or not—had thought twice about where I was or what I was doing. That’s what happens when you are the one in charge. Everyone always assumes there is a reason why you do the things you do. It felt good to not be in charge.
    “So, where are we going?” I asked as we rounded the landing on the fourth floor.
    “To Cat LeGrand’s dress shop. She’s the bee’s knees, Rose. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like her!” she said, as we made our way down two more flights.
    “What kind of woman is she? If I read a story where there was someone named Cat LeGrand, I’d think she was a terrible villain.”
    Reaching the foyer first, Ivy stopped, placed her hands on the newel post and spun on her heels, the fringe of her dress reaching out around her like tendrils of smoke.
    “Stop it now. Don’t you dare, Rose. I mean it. Don’t judge her before you meet her. This is our opportunity. As soon as we get on our feet financially, we can start a proper search for Asher.”
    “For who?” asked Nell, who rounded the doorway of the dining room at that same moment.
    “For our brother, Asher,” repeated Ivy.
    “Ah, the elusive brother. Don’t bother yourselves with that task, girls. People come to this city to get lost, not be found.”
    I walked to the entry table where there was a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers in a crystal vase. Out of habit, or perhaps nervousness, I began rearranging them as I spoke. “Well, we don’t think he came to the city as a visitor. We think he was born here. That would make it an entirely different scenario, wouldn’t it?”
    “Is there something wrong with that arrangement, Ms. Adams? Perhaps you think you could have done a better job?”
    “Well, actually, Mrs. Neville...the fern would look better dispersed. Sometimes an arrangement looks more creative when you let the flowers mimic the way they look outside.”
    “It’s Miss, and you know a lot about things like that, I assume,” said Nell, looking amused.
    “My sister knows a lot about everything domestic. It’s rather boring. She took over our entire household after our mother died,” said Ivy.
    “Is that so? In that case, seeing as I just let another useless woman go, I could use a new housekeeper. Santino, Claudia and I can’t run this entire building ourselves. How would you like to work here, Rose?”
    I turned around to face Nell. Ivy was behind her mouthing the word NO.
    “What is the pay?”
    “I could offer a barter. You work in exchange for your board.”
    “For both of