[This is a work of fiction. The story is an unadulterated and unabashed attempt to tickle male fantasies and perhaps some female fantasies as well. As such, the story may or may not totally conform to reality. With some occasional historical exceptions, all other locations, events, and characters are entirely fictitious and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.]
NOTE: This is a continuation of CLARA: SUMMER ROSE. It can be read as a stand alone story, but fuller enjoyment may be achieved by reading the other story first.
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The midnight chiming, actually near booming, of the grandfather clock at the top landing of the stairway, in concert with the one in the fancy parlor downstairs, awakened me. I was very groggy and, at first, completely lost as to my whereabouts.
Then it all came back in a flash. I was in "my" room in Suzzette's Gentleman's Palace, otherwise known as a whorehouse. Actually, bordello would be a better term for that period of time. I would learn the difference before the night was through. I was sprawled on my back, bare ass naked, across a bed of white satin.
I sat up, turned up the low burning lamp on the bedside table, and took stock of my surroundings. My carpetbag, my only piece of luggage, sat on the floor beside the vanity. Igor had followed his mistress' bidding and brought it to my room while I slept. He must of gotten a real eyeful of me, out cold and stretched out the way I had been.
The room was a mirror image of Suzzette's, but opposite in colors. Where hers was all white trimmed in red and gold, my room was all red, trimmed in white and gold. The difference in the decor and level of luxury between this room and the tiny, dingy three rooms back home in Peoria was like the difference between night and day.
I wasn't sleepy anymore, so I found the back stairway Suzzette had mentioned and descended to the kitchen. A giant of a man, who had to be Igor, sat at the big table, drinking coffee. With a slight smile, he looked up as I entered.
"Would you like some coffee?"
"Yes, that would be great, ah, Igor?"
"Yes, I'm Igor and you are the new girl, Clara."
"Yes, glad to meet you, Igor. Suzzette said you're our bouncer?"
"That's right, bouncer to keep the ruffians in line and general gofer for the house. Not that we get many ruffians in this house, but some of the clients can get drunk and then unruly."
"I didn't hear too much going on tonight."
"No, Clara, it's Wednesday night and business is slow tonight. Not many appointments. The girls on duty are required to be in the front parlor anyway during business hours. They may drift back here from time to time for a cup of coffee or just to break the boredom of a slow night. If any do, I'll introduce you."
"Suzzette said you might have time to tell me some about a whore house and what goes on behind the scenes. I mean I do know that the main thing is fucking customers, but that's about all I know about the business."
"Yes, I can do that. And, I see you need to know a few things. For one, this is a bordello, not a common whore house."
"I didn't know there was a difference."
"Yes, indeed there is. You see..."
Igor went on to tell me quite a story over the course of the next six hours or so. There were some interruptions for one reason or another, but with the slow night, we had a long time to talk.
Igor had been around a long time and worked in one type of whore house or another since the age of six or seven. He lived with his mother who was, "one of the girls." He was also an astute observer of human behavior. Despite his looks, his demeanor, and his job, he was an extremely intelligent man. I liked him from first sight.
From Igor that night and from my own long working experience that would follow, I learned a number of "truisms" about society and the relationship between men and women. All of them contributed to my understanding and thus to improving my work performance. In other words, it all made me a better whore.
I could write a book or two about what I learned, but in short version, this is some of what enlightened me. One of the things I learned was, in this age of Victoria, there were only two kinds of women--so called "good women," and so called "bad women." There were, however, several kinds of "bad women."
There was, for example, the "Painted Lady." Every Midwestern town of the day had one or two of these ladies. who were the source of much gossip and apparently an available source of sex for men who dared risk being seen entering or leaving her premises. Sometimes she was a lusty, somewhat slatternly widow who ostensibly supported herself by taking in laundry. Then again, she might be the daughter of a third-class hotel keeper.
Railroad towns, mining towns, cattle towns, and towns near military installations--all were notable for the presence of plenty of loose cash and a floating male population. Invariably such towns also had a sufficient number of girls to warrant a "line," a "maiden lane," a "boarding house" or two, or a local hotel in a declining section of the business district that was known all around as the local whorehouse. Frequently, such a building might contain some combination thereof.
What made the Western towns like Cheyenne different from their Eastern counterparts was the presence of girls in the saloons. That was a phenomena unknown east of the Mississippi River except in German beer halls.
About an hour into our little "talk," a commotion arose in the front parlor that got quickly louder. For a really big man, Igor moved very fast and silently as he excused himself and stepped into the hall. At that point, a loud crash echoed from the parlor. The sound of a short scuffle ended quickly and in the silence that ensued, only a quiet sobbing could be heard.
The sobbing drew nearer. I looked expectantly at the door as Texas Jane brought Squirrel Alice into the kitchen, blood dripping from the side of her face. I didn't hesitate.
"Sit her down here at the table and get me hot water, rags, needle, and thread, silk thread if possible."
A moment later, Suzzette came in as I was using the water and a rag to wash Squirrel Alice's face. She had a long, but shallow cut from her ear on down the side of her cheek. I got it clean and held a compress on it while I waited for the needle and thread.
"What happened?" I asked while I waited.
Suzzette answered, "A young regular here came in already heavily drunk. When the girls tried to politely dissuade him from drinking more, he grew belligerent and pushed Alice here. When she stepped back in his face, he flashed a small stiletto. She almost got clear, that's why the cut's so shallow. He all but missed her."
By that time, needle and thread appeared on the table. I motioned to the girl who brought Alice into the kitchen, "You, help me."
"The name's Texas Jane, Clara. What can I do to help?"
"Keep the wound cleaned as I stitch it up, please."
I deftly threaded the needle with the fine silk thread and just as deftly, sewed in fifteen stitches without blinking an eye. As I was carrying out the stitching, I asked, "What happened to the young man?"
Suzzette again, answered, "He was given enough laudanum to keep him sleeping the rest of the night. I've several rooms in the basement for just that purpose. He meant no real harm and we don't want to embarrass him or his family any more than is necessary. He'll be sent home to his wife in the morning when he wakes up. We don't involve the police unless absolutely necessary."
I finished the stitching and sat back to examine my work. I didn't think there would be more than the finest hairline of a scar.
Hi Tan Szu, known as "Tan Sue" for obvious reasons, introduced herself and asked in her cute, accented voice, "Where ever did you learn to do that?"
"I had lots of practice stitching up my father after he'd come home from a bar fight after work. He'd get cut up pretty bad sometimes and we'd no money for doctors."