Quarantine: A Novel by John Smolens Page B

here in this house now, and their presence has had a detri-
    mental effect upon your brother’s demeanor. He and Samuel rarely get along, and this girl—well, you have eyes. She has become
    something of a distraction. Please, remain with her, if you wish, and see if you can at least bring her around.” His mother opened the door but paused again. “I keep a clean house. You know that.
    Such pestilences will find no safe haven under this roof. The filth of those people. . . .” She left the room, pulling the door shut behind her.
    Giles suddenly felt tired—it was the food, the Dog’s Nose, the
    warmth of the afternoon. There was a window seat with a fine
    embroidered cushion. Down on High Street, a wagon passed by,
    carrying two more people destined for the pest-house. He should
    return there, for there was much work to be done. Reluctantly,
    he turned toward the young woman, asleep in the canopy bed.
    R
    Leander had been given lamb stew and bread in the kitchen. Min-
    ions and scullions moved about, preparing dinner, ignoring him
    as he sat at the table. Their aprons were spattered with sauces and gravies, and they went about their tasks with a vengeance. One
    plump woman, her arms covered with flour, pounded and rolled
    dough; another basted several chickens; still another ground seasonings with mortar and pestle as though her life depended on it.
    “Fancy some more, love?” the woman in charge asked.
    Leander, his mouth full, nodded. She took his bowl away and
    at that moment a dark-skinned maid entered through the swinging
    door. He couldn’t help but stare, embarrassed, at the high fullness confined beneath her uniform. Yet she was slender, remarkably so in the midst of all these fleshy women with their quivering jowls 90
    q u a r a n t i n e
    and pink cheeks. She looked toward Leander for a moment, her
    oval eyes both alert and vulnerable, and then she picked up a
    silver tray with fine cut glasses and f led the kitchen. It was only after she’d left that he realized there was something peculiar
    about her face. There was a bruise on her forehead, which was
    only partially concealed by the black curls that escaped from
    her lace cap.
    The cook put the bowl in front of him, and he commenced
    to eat. He was unaccustomed to so much seasoning, and yet he
    couldn’t spoon the stew into his gullet fast enough. His mother’s fare had always been ample but plain, and seldom enhanced with
    anything but salt and pepper. As he was wiping his bowl clean
    with the last of the bread, the lady of the house came into the
    kitchen. The entire staff paused in their duties and curtsied. She ignored them and walked straight toward Leander, and, along
    with the others at the table, he hastily got to his feet.
    “You did well today, quite possibly saving that woman’s life.”
    She held out two coins and placed them in his hand. “You may
    finish eating and go.”
    “Thank you, Ma’am.”
    She swept out of the kitchen, seeming to take all the air with
    her. The staff appeared unable to move, unable to breathe as they stared at Leander. Some were aghast, while others looked suspicious. The maid was back—she must have slipped through the
    service door again without Leander noticing. She gazed at him a
    moment before raising her head abruptly, as though detecting a
    bad smell, and pushing out through the door.
    R
    The girl coughed, and Giles got up off the window seat and went
    to the canopy bed. Her eyes were open, her gaze startled and confused but defiant. There was a water pitcher on the nightstand,
    and he filled a glass. “Here,” he said, leaning over her. She shook 91
    j o h n s m o l e n s
    her head. “Just small sips.” He held the glass to her mouth and
    she drank a little.
    As he was putting the glass on the table, the door opened and
    Enoch stepped into the room. His shirttails hung below his gold
    waistcoat, and he was wearing only one silk stocking and no shoes.
    The crotch of his britches was wet and he