The Spoils of Sin by Rebecca Tope Page A

nodded. ‘And you return me the tokens for re-use?’ He thought carefully. ‘I would be free to issue the same man with a second token, would I not?’
    â€˜I think not,’ said Fanny. ‘The introduction would have been made already. The fifty cents cannot be earned twice.’
    â€˜How many men would you estimate we would gain each week?’ asked Carola.
    The barber spread his hands. ‘Who can say? Some weeks there might be five, another week closer to a score. There are sometimes groups who travel together, more often just one or two riding southwards.’ He shrugged. ‘It seems they all head south these days.’
    â€˜And why would they take the trouble to keep the token safe and hand it over to us?’ wondered Carola. ‘There is no advantage to them in it. They might simply discard it in the gutter.’
    This was a new thought for Fanny. ‘True,’ she admitted. ‘We cannot give them a discount if we’re already to lose ten per cent of their money.’
    â€˜Indeed not,’ said Carola. ‘And we cannot make any distinction between them and others. That would cause dissension.’
    â€˜I might tell them that you only entertain men carrying the token,’ said the barber. ‘It is like a secret sign, and must be handed over in such a way that nobody can see what goes on. It is your way of maintaining security, and protecting yourselves against those who might bring disease or violence to you.’
    Carola snorted. ‘How very Italian,’ she said rudely. ‘So fond of your conspiracies and secret signs. Perhaps we should construct a hidden passage between your place and this, so the men can creep unseen from one to the other.’
    Fanny was torn between an amused delight at this image, and alarm at her friend’s impertinence. ‘Carrie!’ she protested.
    â€˜My apologies,’ said the older girl. ‘But I hold to my sense that this is becoming unduly complex. We certainly value your friendship, and your endorsement of our business. It is a relief and a pleasant surprise to find you so much in favour of our activities. Your loyalty to your wife is admirable. Your candles are quite splendid. We would be foolish to jeopardise your goodwill.’
    Fanny interrupted before this speech became any more mawkish. ‘We are essentially in the same line of work,’ she realised. ‘That is, helping men to feel comfortable, less travel-stained and lonesome. There is a direct connection, as we had already recognised. If you are right in thinking that a few words from you could overcome any hesitations about coming here, then that is something we should pay due recompense for. Perhaps we can simply take note of any increase in business, especially from fresh-washed and clean-shaven men, and calculate what we owe you, on that basis.’
    â€˜That demands a considerable degree of trust on my part,’ objected the man. ‘It leaves the calculations entirely to you.’
    â€˜Not entirely,’ said Fanny. ‘You will know how many men you referred to us. Assuming not every one finds the desire or the courage to follow your promptings, we might still arrive at a comparable figure each week. Forget my fanciful idea of the tokens. We must be ready to trust each other in friendship.’ She held out her hand. ‘Am I right?’
    He took her hand after a moment’s hesitation, and shook it gently. ‘Thank you, young miss,’ he said. ‘We must trust each other in friendship.’ He eyed Carola thoughtfully, before giving her a smile. ‘And if I might interest you in a regular supply of candles, they will come at a price of twenty cents apiece.’
    In the first week, there were eight customers identified as having come through Eli Canelli’s conduit. Fanny took him four dollars and a length of velvet ribbon she had cut from a large swatch used to cover one of the couches.