Josef invited Kid to his club as Elizabeth was having a get-together with some of her lady friends, and he figured he'd get out of her hair for awhile. Kid saw at once that it was nothing more than a rich man's saloon, a place to drink and smoke and gamble away from the wife.

"This is Dr. Thomas Smith, Dr. Jack Green, and Dr. Alexander O'Neil," Josef introduced the men he normally joined there, "Colleagues of mine. This is Mr. Kid Cole, Sister Ruth's husband."

Kid winced a little but shook all their hands. Was this all that he was in Boston? Sister Ruth's husband?

They sat down in a circle of overstuffed, leather chairs. Josef's colleagues didn't share cases with each other as one might expect but instead told lewd stories of their sexual exploits and conquests. Kid was sure that some of these were fictional intended to impress the other men, but no doubt some of them if not all of them visited prostitutes; it was a common enough vice in their circle.

"But listen to us. You're from out west, right?" Thomas said. "You must have a few interesting stories to tell. I hear the women are looser out there, especially the squaws."

Kid had been silent up until this point, Josef too for that matter. "You're misinformed about that. Women are women, east or west. And no, I don't have any stories to share. I only sleep with my wife. It's a weak, unhappy man who spends time with a strange woman. There's no contentment for him in what he does and I've got no use for such behavior myself."

"You say that," Jack said, the only unmarried one in the group; he looked fresh out of medical school, "but I don't think you know the way they can meet your needs."

Thomas agreed, "It's a lot more fun when the lady knows what she's doing."

"You'd be surprised what I know," Kid said to Jack. Ruth would probably have his head if she knew what he was discussing, but he continued anyway, "And as for fun, we have loads of it and I find it only gets better with time."

"Are we talking about the same woman?" Alexander questioned. "I met your wife at the hospital. She seemed to be nothing more than a nun without a habit to me. You telling me a starchy, pious woman like that is free and easy in the bedroom, looks at copulation as more than fulfilling her wifely duties?"

"Yep, she gets things moving as often as I do and she's as capable as any woman can be."

"Then she's corrupted. Believe me, it's not that I don't love my wife," Thomas said. "She is the mother of my children after all, but she is a delicate flower to be protected from man's baser nature."

Kid looked as if he wanted to punch Thomas for the comment about Ruth, but he forced himself to remain calm. "Coming together with one's spouse is far from being corrupt; it's a loving act designed by God to bring a man and woman together as one body. Most likely your problem is because you don't tell her what you need. Communication in the bedroom is as important as it is anywhere else and I understand that it may seem a little embarrassing at first to her and to you, but if you can't talk with your wife about it, who can you talk to about it?"

"His lady friends for one," Alexander commented.

Kid ignored that. "And not only are you hurting your wife, you're hurting them girls you mess with."

Jack scoffed. "It doesn't hurt them. It's what they do."

"Because they have to most times. It's not who they are," Kid argued. "You're not only sinning against your own body, you're causing those women to sin. They're human beings same as anybody else."

"You just don't know what good, fulfilling sex is because you're faithful," Thomas said dismissively.

"Not true. No person knows me better than Ruth and I've learned what she needs too. The love we share sweetens it. 'Let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.'"

"What erotic poetry is that?" Jack asked with a perk of interest.

"The Bible, a command from the Lord to let one woman, your wife, be all that you need physically and romantically," Kid answered.

Jack blanched. "Oh."

Kid almost wished he'd gotten his gun out of the safe with the kind of mood he was in just for the joy of threatening and intimidating them a little. "Pardon me, gentleman," Kid said, "but I've had enough of this discussion." He'd walk back to Beacon Hill rather than spend another moment listening to another story of some filthy, phony sexual encounter. He could still hear them talking as he walked toward the exit.

"They're a matched pair if ever I've seen one," Alexander said with a snort, "quoting Bible verses left and right. Either that or she has him whipped. And he looked so rough and tumble."

Josef caught up with Kid. "Thank you for speaking up. I'm true to my wife as well, but I've never taken a stand. I should have."

"Understandable though when you have to work with them."

"How about I treat you to some ice cream? There's a delightful confectionary around the corner that sells the iced dessert. Have you had any before?"

"Can't say that I have." Ice cream was a dessert for the elite.

"Then you are in for a real treat," Josef told him.

sss

Elizabeth was preparing to host a light luncheon, but at this moment, she was standing in the guestroom, holding a dress up in front of Sister Ruth and frowning. "You're not my size. The hem would drag the floor and it needs to be taken in some. Can be done but not in time for the luncheon. I'll have Martha fix a dress or 2 up for you for the future. There'll be other occasions."

It seemed like a lot of trouble to go to for no longer than they were staying. "Why don't I just hide up here?" Ruth offered. "Nobody'll miss me and there's a particular passage in John I want to take a closer at."

"No, that wouldn't work. Two of the women's husbands work at the hospital. I'm sure they know of you already and that you're staying here. Just wear your Sunday best. It will have to do."

Her Sunday best didn't even match their most informal dress. She didn't care herself, but she knew Elizabeth did.

The ladies began arriving a few minutes after Ruth came downstairs. The women all gave Ruth cool looks as they were introduced but were the epitome of politeness as per their upbringing.

The first odd looks she received was when she said prayer over the simple fare, but she was used to that. The second was when she told the girl serving thank you. Then she apparently drank too deeply from her tea instead of taking tiny, little sips like the rest of them. But the unforgivable sin in their eyes was when she scratched where the cuff of her sleeve hit her wrist. Ruth made no apologies. If a person couldn't act natural and scratch when they itched, she wanted no part of it; there was politeness and then there was ridiculousness.

"She's a faith healer," Elizabeth said.; something she had neglected to tell them earlier. The way she said it, it was more an apology for her behavior then a statement of fact.

"Joshua went to one of those but to a man of course," said the blonde in the group. "He wanted a donation before he prayed for him and then the healing didn't even work. Of course, he was gone before he could have him arrested or taken to court. It's probably perfectly legal what he did though. However if you ask me, the whole practice is legal thievery."

"There are some like that, sure enough," Ruth said, replying to the rude story. "There's good and bad men in any profession, I'd say. No healer can promise you that your health's going to be restored. That's up to God."

"You're from the south, aren't you, dear?" said the older lady across from Ruth rather condescendingly.

If her clothes hadn't marked her as an outsider, her accent would have. "You got a good ear."

"I'm on the Ladies of Boston's Abolitionist Society. We believe slavery is a great evil and that the negroes should be freed. We raise money to purchase them and bring them up north."

Ruth didn't know why she chose to bring that up unless she operated under the belief that all southerners were slave owners. "Good for you. I've seen some masters treat their slaves well enough, but I've seen too many sad stories to think it right on any level. The only master anyone should have is God and even He doesn't bondage His people; they serve Him out of love and choice."

Another lady, the heavyset one, asked her a question. It seemed she was the topic of interest to them rather than whatever the original purpose of this gathering had been. "Do you have any children?"

"No, I've not been so blessed. The Lord had other things in mind for my life, I guess."

"Ah, that explains a lot," she said with a patronizing smile before taking a sip of her tea.

Ruth colored with anger. "That explains nothing. I would embrace motherhood, but I wouldn't stop my work for the Lord." Why did so many women judge other women by their husband or lack thereof and whether they had children or not. It was like they thought a person wasn't quite complete without them. "A person is made complete in the Lord and the Lord alone."

"Of course," the lady replied going wide-eyed innocent as if that's not what she had meant at all.

It went back to lighter topics. Ruth had put a number of the dainty little sandwiches and sides on her plate. That too caused stares from the ladies, but lunch had always been the heaviest meal at her house. Supper just being lunch's leftovers mostly. And besides that, these women ate like birds. "No wonder you city ladies are always swooning. You got to pack a little meat on your bones. You can afford to eat, so eat."

They met that comment with silence.

Elizabeth and Ruth walked with the ladies to the door when the luncheon was over.

"I feel so sorry for you," murmured one lady as she told Elizabeth goodbye.

"Watch your valuable things. People like her will rob you blind," said the one who had told the story of the thieving faith healer.

Though they thought they were keeping their voices low to keep Ruth from hearing, she heard them plain enough. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised at all if they'd meant for her to hear. She just shook her head. She'd have sermonized to them if she thought it would do any good. The ladies acted as if she'd wormed her way into the Quinn home instead of being invited.

Elizabeth gave a heavy sigh of relief when all the women were gone. Ruth didn't know who'd had a more miserable time at the luncheon her or Elizabeth.