The Dark Between Part 32

Asher put that one down and opened the next several, quickly scanning each short message.

I WORRY ABOUT YOU. MOTHER MISSES YOU.

THOMPSON WIRES TO SAY YOU HAVE BECOME PART OF THE FAMILY. THIS INTELLIGENCE RECEIVED WITH MIXED FEELINGS. YOUR TRUE FAMILY LONGS TO HEAR FROM YOU.

ASHER, WITH ALL MY HEART I WISH TO CLOSE THIS RIFT BETWEEN US. I CANNOT IF I DON'T HEAR FROM YOU. CAN WE FORGET WHAT HAS Pa.s.sED BETWEEN US AND BE FATHER AND SON AGAIN?

He set the messages down and went to the window, thinking of his father before Letty had come between them. They had been friends once, hadn't they? He'd thought Harold Beale the best of men and had been proud to call him Father.

When the sun began to s.h.i.+ne in his eyes, he closed the curtains and returned to his desk. Retrieving a blank sheet of Summerfield stationery, thoughtfully provided by Mrs. Thompson days ago, he tested his pen on the blotting pad and began to write.

Chapter 41.

Elsie woke late the next morning with the feel of Simon Wakeham's arms around her. Had she dreamed of him? She kept her eyes closed, still feeling his warmth. It was uncanny how close he felt-as though she might reach out and touch him, if she only knew how.

Simon, are you there?

As if in answer, the warmth intensified.

What was she doing? Simon had killed Billy and made a monster of Tec. He may have done it all out of a desperate love; nevertheless, it was madness to allow his spirit to roam through her mind. She betrayed Kate and Asher by even thinking of him.

She tried to blank her thoughts of him, imagining her mind as an unblemished piece of paper. Smooth, white paper-pristine as a meadow blanketed with snow.

The warmth receded ... leaving her empty and s.h.i.+vering.

She was alone. And quite possibly insane.

Elsie opened her eyes and glanced about the room. She could bear this unvarying landscape no longer. Surely Aunt Helena was taking caution to an extreme by insisting upon three days of uninterrupted rest. Since those uncomfortable conversations with Kate and Asher, each had avoided her. Time had slowed to a glacial pace, and the long silences roared in her ears. All this soothing repose had left her irritable and more than a little unhinged.

She must tell Asher and Kate the whole truth. Perhaps that was the only thing that would free her of Simon's spirit. Kate should know that Tec was in the old lab that night. What if he had escaped and was wandering the streets of Cambridge, bloodied and racked with pain, and Elsie did nothing to help him? Kate might know where to find the boy-somewhere along Castle Street, no doubt-and surely if the three of them worked together they might devise some way to heal him. She'd promised to help him, hadn't she?

She promised him in return for his help in stopping Simon.

Elsie threw back the bedcovers and chose a day dress from her wardrobe. She would leave her room today. Somehow she would fix everything. But first she would pay a visit to her uncle's study. Something in her possession needed to be returned to its rightful place.

Part of her hoped he wouldn't be there, that she might slip the key back into the handkerchief and close the specimen cabinet, her uncle never the wiser. But when she saw him at his desk, distractedly chewing his beard as he paged through a textbook, she knew a confession was in order.

He was a dear and patient man, and it pained her that she'd thought ill of him.

At that moment he looked up, his beard falling from his mouth as he smiled. "Elsie? It's wonderful to see you up and about."

"May I come in, Uncle?"

He stood quickly, upsetting a stack of books that had perched precariously on the edge of his desk. "Oh dear, I'm afraid it's the usual chaos in here. Come sit down." He fluttered his hand toward the chair. "Just push those papers aside. I'll get it all sorted eventually."

"First I must return something to you." Elsie carefully navigated her way toward the desk and withdrew the key from her pocket. "I took this from your specimen cabinet."

He frowned. After an awkward pause, he reached for the key. "But why?"

"You seemed so angry that day Kate and I were poking about the old lab, almost as though you kept something secret in there. My curiosity got the better of me."

"How very Gothic of you." He studied the key thoughtfully. "Is that why you were in the old lab? You were investigating?"

"I suppose you could say that," Elsie said, her voice cracking slightly. "I've no right to ask you this, but please don't tell Aunt Helena. It was wrong of me, and I'm sorry."

He held her gaze. "Well, what did you find? Is there something you haven't told me, Elsie?"

His eyes were kind. So kind that she wished she could tell him everything. What a relief it would be to lift this burden from her own shoulders and pa.s.s it to someone wiser and more capable.

But she couldn't bring herself to do it.

"I'm afraid I still don't remember."

He smiled. "Your injury. Of course. It may take a while to recover those memories, if you recover them at all." He looked away. "I don't know what to tell you about the lab. This key is the gardener's, as I said before. I can't think what happened to mine. I may be untidy, but I never lose things."

"Do you think it was stolen?"

"I've wondered that." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "But the simple truth behind my anger that day outside the lab was that you and Kate were behaving in an alarming manner. How would you expect me to react when I saw the two of you? Not only was she breaking a windowpane, but you had propped her up in the most precarious way. And what happened? You both fell, of course. I wasn't just angry-I was afraid!"

Elsie blushed to remember it. "Of course, Uncle. I understand."

"I've been distressed since that first body was found on the Corpus College cricket grounds. The poor boy was found shortly thereafter. Did you know that the police came to Summerfield to question me about it?" He stood and moved to the specimen box, retrieving a familiar handkerchief-wrapped item. "They came because of this. You must have seen it, too, since this was the drawer that held the key. The police found my name inscribed inside, and they thought I might have some connection to the boy." He pulled the watch from the handkerchief and clicked it open. "Has Kate told you she is the daughter of Frederic Stanton?"

Elsie nodded.

"I couldn't imagine why a child of the streets would have the watch I gave him so long ago. Stanton was a dear friend of mine. A pupil first, and then a colleague."

"Was he a good man?"

Her uncle raised an eyebrow. "That's a curious question."

"It's just ... Kate has become a friend, and I know she wonders about him. She didn't even know he'd died until recently."

His face softened. "I'm afraid I was very vague about him the first day I met her. Frederic was always a moody sort, never satisfied. He had many gifts, and he could have done so much good in this world, but he always grasped for things just out of his reach. Apparently he kept many secrets-having an illegitimate daughter was just the tip of the iceberg, I fear. Still, he would have been devastated to learn how she's survived the years since his death."

"I think she's lost everyone she ever loved." Tears stung Elsie's eyes as she stared at the watch. "I must remember that when she's being tiresome."

"She's certainly dealt with more than her fair share of misfortune."

Elsie wiped at her eyes. "What will you do? I mean, about the lab."

He shrugged. "I've told the police all I know, but I'm certain it won't help them any. They showed little interest in the stolen key, and they've devoted little time to searching the remains of the building. Clearly someone has been making use of it, but I can't imagine for what. Shelter, perhaps?" He tugged at his beard in obvious irritation. "Was there an accident with the equipment, then? Or was this arson?"

Poor man, thought Elsie. But she couldn't tell him. Not until she'd spoken with Kate and Asher.

"I don't remember ... not yet, anyway," she said aloud.

"Of course. I do apologize." Her uncle shut the watch with a sigh. "Would you do something for me, Elsie? Would you give this to Kate? It will mean a great deal more to her than to me." He placed the watch in her outstretched hand.

She slid the watch in her pocket and smoothed her skirt. "I'm wondering whether you will send me back to Peverel Place now."

Her uncle frowned again. "Why would you ask that?"

"I fear I'm a burden to you-there's been no end of trouble since I arrived."

He waved a hand. "On the contrary, Helena and I welcome you to stay here for as long as you like. You know it is our wish that you might one day study here at Summerfield."

"Oh dear," Elsie gasped. "I'm not nearly clever enough for that."

"You are clever, Elsie. The Chlorodyne may have dulled your senses, and it most certainly has compromised your confidence." His eyes softened. "But you have a fine brain, my dear. Any brain needs using, however-the more you exercise it, the stronger it grows. How fortuitous that we live in a city teeming with excellent tutors!"

Elsie opened her mouth to protest, but her uncle held up a hand.

"Perhaps we might prevail upon Kate to join you in this tutoring. What do you think? I've racked my brain trying to think of ways to keep her at Summerfield without injuring her pride."

Elsie considered the notion and found herself warming to it. She and Kate facing this tutor together? It sounded almost companionable. "But how would we convince her?"

"I'll leave that up to you, my dear. Consider it your first a.s.signment."

Elsie found Kate in the library, moving books from a wooden cart to a high shelf. For such a small creature, she heaved each book with great determination.

"Kate?"

The girl whirled around. "You startled me. Everything echoes in this building."

"I've just been with my uncle. He asked me to give you this." She held out the gold watch.

Kate's eyes widened. After a moment she extended a hand and took it. "My father's watch."

"The one you gave Billy. The police must have found it on the boy's body, and they brought it to Uncle when they discovered his name inside."

Kate opened the watch and traced the inscription with her finger. Then she snapped it shut and slipped it into her pocket, raising her chin to meet Elsie's gaze. "Did you tell him everything?"

"It seemed safest to pretend I didn't remember. When, or if, we tell him, we must do it together, don't you think?"

Kate nodded.

Elsie picked at the ruffle on her sleeve as she struggled for the right words. Kate needed to know the truth about Tec, and there was little time for dawdling. But how best to go about it? She would have to revisit that night when she'd seen Tec's spirit in the old lab in order to explain his strange alteration. A spirit divided from a living body-it sounded quite preposterous even now. Would Kate merely stiffen and walk away, thinking her mad? They hadn't spoken intimately since Kate had lectured her. Before Elsie could confide something so bizarre and terrible, she must first break through this wall of politeness that had risen between them.

"I do appreciate what you said to me earlier," she said softly. "I've come to like having you around, even when you're criticizing my faults."

The girl snorted. "Not sure what you'll do without me, then."

"I don't want to do without you!"

"The work here is nearly finished," Kate said with a shrug. "I'll be moving on before long."

"Not if I have something to say about it."

"I can't fix things for you any more than your young men could."

"I don't want you to fix things. I know I must do that myself. But is it wrong to need your friends.h.i.+p? I need both you and Asher, but he can't stay in a ladies' college. The students will return soon enough."

"You should join the college," said Kate. "Then you'll have heaps of friends. Perhaps that's even better than family, at least in your situation."

"I'm considering it. And you could join with me."

Kate dismissed the notion with a wave of her hand. "That's not my sort of thing at all. I'm too young, anyway, and haven't had any schooling for years."

Elsie laughed. "Neither have I, for all practical purposes. We shall need a tutor. By the time you're old enough to enroll, we'll both be ready."

"I can't afford a tutor. I must find a new scheme, and then I won't have time for schooling."

"Let me help."

Kate shook her head. "I appreciate what you're trying to do. I really do. But I refuse to be beholden to you."

"Why? I owe you my life," Elsie cried. "How do you think that makes me feel? That debt may never be settled."

Kate opened her mouth ... and then closed it again.

"Listen," Elsie said breathlessly. "If it's a new scheme you want, I have the perfect one. My parents are always trying to force some sour old spinster on me as a paid companion. You can be that companion."

Kate's only reply was another snort.

"No really, Kate, think of the freedom we'll have. We'll serve as each other's chaperone. We've made a good team so far, don't you think?"

Kate held her gaze but did not speak.

"I wouldn't think of you as my servant, if that's what you're afraid of," Elsie said quickly. "I just meant to arrange a salary for you, so you wouldn't feel like you were taking my money. When I tell my parents I've arranged for a companion and a tutor, they'll be grateful to have me out of the way and doing something meaningful."

The girl still did not speak.

"Kate?"

"It's very decent of you to make the offer," Kate finally said, her tone severe. "I'm inclined to take it, but only if you agree to one condition."

"What is it?"

"Starting tomorrow, we decrease your Chlorodyne dose a little each day until you don't crave it anymore. And together we will work on controlling your episodes so you have some choice whether or not to go to ... that place. And you will not run off in the middle of the night with the next handsome man who smiles at you."