All is Fair (33 page)

She shut her eyes, letting her head droop between her arms, thinking of the people she’d left at the asylum, the truths the gargoyle told and Max talking about the Fae and the Agency matching people for goodness knows what. She thought of Miss Rainer scrubbing pans, a shadow of herself, and Charlotte, trapped in her own body and living in a gilded prison. And what had she done since she’d made the decision to stay instead of run away? Looked for someone else to help her, looked for a group of people to get behind, looked to Will to stand up and fight the system so she could stand beside him.

“I’m still a coward,” she whispered. She wasn’t going to find someone to show her the way to change things because that person didn’t exist. She had to do it herself. She would find a way to free all of the people held by the Agency, and she’d find a way to give women a voice and recognition and rights in Society even if it meant destroying her own life in the process.

A pulse of magic rippled out from her, making her fingertips tingle as it left her body. The third wish! She’d felt something similar for the first and second when they were cast, but when she told Lord Poppy her last wish she’d felt nothing. Until now. She knew what her true potential was: it was to change Society by becoming the force of change herself.

The place to start was the asylum and the main obstacle was Bennet. She needed to distract him long enough to go there herself and lead those people out. Out where? The flat in Manchester was too small and there would be no way to protect them there anyway. She thought of the empty rooms in the house and imagined them filled with illegal guests. The thought made her smile but the staff would report back to Bennet and she couldn’t keep him distracted for that long. She needed to change the household into a safe haven by the time he realised what she’d done.

She straightened, took a deep breath and then called for Carter. He entered and stood to attention. “Yes, your Grace?”

“Carter… shut the door. The Arbiter wasn’t here about the attack. He took me to a place in Mundanus where people are being kept prisoner even though they’ve done nothing wrong. People who used to live in Society. They’re being left there to get old and die.”

He looked appalled. “Why would the Arbiter do such a thing? And why did you go, your Grace? You could have been at risk.”

She realised he was more upset about that than about the news of the place itself. “Because I asked him to find some people who disappeared. And we didn’t tell you because I know that you report to Bennet.” She paused, expecting the usual tightness in her chest that always came when she thought about Bennet and what he held over her. But there was no change. “He’s been…” she took a breath, ready for the coughing fit to start any second. “Bennet has blackmailed and threatened me.”

The curse had been broken! Of course, how could she reach her potential with that constraining her? Poppy’s magic had actually done something useful!

Carter was gawping at her. “I had no idea, your Grace.”

“He cursed me so I couldn’t tell anyone.”

“Mr Bennet said I had to report all your movements to him as well as the Duke to ensure your safety. He said all personal guards of people of your status have that duty.” He looked down at the carpet. “I should tender my resignation. I failed in my–”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” Cathy said. “You couldn’t possibly have known.”

“I can only offer you my word that I will not make any more reports on your actions to Mr Bennet. I trust you’ll tell the Duke upon his return?”

“Yes, I will. But quite frankly there are much more important things to worry about now. I can’t just carry on with my life knowing about that asylum. I have to do something and I want to free those people and bring them here, to stay, until they get back on their feet and work out what they want to do for themselves.”

“I see, your Grace. This sounds like a noble thing to do.”

“It’s run by the Agency and Bennet is in charge of it.”

His expression darkened. “But if the Agency are–”

“Listen, I need your help to get them out. The Agency don’t have the right to keep them there, and it’s only one of a long list of terrible things they’re doing. They’ve been keeping all kinds of people silenced for the Patroons for far too long now and it has to stop. Now, I understand if you don’t want any part of it, but I want to offer you a choice. If you want to help me do the right thing, I’ll support your resignation from the Agency and I’ll pay your wages myself. You’ll have the same job security and–”

“I’m sorry, your Grace, I don’t understand what you mean. I don’t receive wages.”

“But I’ve been paying the Agency thousands of pounds for everyone’s…” Cathy shook her head. None of that money had been passed on to the staff and they had no idea the Agency were charging money supposedly for them. Of course not. Why in the Worlds would the Agency teach their indoctrinated slaves about the right to earn a living? “All right. You have the choice to come with me and free those people – if you do, I’ll make sure the Agency don’t take you away and you’ll be my personal employee. That means I’ll give you money for you to spend on whatever you like, and time off when you want it. Or you can let me go by myself.”

“I should, in fact, stop you from going at all, with all respect, your Grace. The Duke gave me explicit orders.”

She folded her arms. “That may be so, but unless you want to lock me in a box, that isn’t going to happen. I know you’re a good person, Carter, you just didn’t know what the Agency is capable of. I need you. I need you to help me do the right thing.”

She didn’t take her eyes off him, hoping he would see her conviction. After what seemed like an age, he nodded. “I’ll help you, your Grace. I trust you know what’s best.” She thought it would be harder to convince him. Was it the wish magic? “But if we’re going to do something that might upset the Agency, we need to convince the rest of the staff it’s the right thing to do too. I know enough about them to be able to advise you on the best way to approach it.”

Cathy nodded. “You’re right. I’ll call a meeting. Everything’s going to change now, Carter.” When he frowned she smiled as confidently as she could. “But it’s all going to be for the better. I’m sure of it.”

It took only moments for Will to explore the boundaries of his prison, then he had no choice but to wait. He worried about the air running out, then decided Margritte wouldn’t have gone to all the trouble to engineer his kidnapping only to leave him to suffocate in a large box. Besides, the Sorcerer or the Arbiters could have killed him just as easily as imprisoning him.

There was total silence, not even the slightest vibration in the floor. Will suspected the prison was a Sorcerous construct in the Nether and that rescue was therefore probably impossible. He sat in the corner and the fingers on his left hand started to sting. He tried to feel for any splinters but in the total darkness it was only possible to pull out the largest slivers of wood. It didn’t feel like he was bleeding enough to be a concern. The fact that the Sorcerer wielded magic capable of shattering a ring made by the Fae King and Queen both impressed and frightened him.

Will stretched his legs out and felt his right ankle throb. It wasn’t painful enough to be broken, but was still uncomfortable.

He rested his head against the corner where the two walls met and took a few moments to breathe deeply and steady himself. He’d had a shock and it was natural to feel frightened in the circumstances, so he permitted himself a few moments of unbridled fear. He blinked a few times, disturbed by how hard it was to know whether his eyes were open or closed, and wondered what they were going to do to him.

How had Margritte secured the support of a Sorcerer? And why had they mentioned Ekstrand? Will had only seen him for as long as the other people at the party; he hadn’t even spoken to him. That night seemed like it was years ago but it was only a matter of months. He had the feeling there were other agendas playing out around him; the matter of the Londinium throne shouldn’t be of any interest to the Sorcerer of Mercia, nor any of the others for that matter.

He heard the sound of a key in a lock and the adrenalin surged again. He managed to get to his feet before a crack of light revealed the opening of a door on the opposite side of the box. Whatever was about to happen, he was ready.

23

Cathy couldn’t stop grinning as she penned the note to Bennet. She’d waited as long as she could bear for Will to return but was so afraid she’d lose her nerve she decided to press on with her plan regardless. What did she want from him anyway? Permission to save people? She knew she probably shouldn’t have done anything without considering it all more carefully over a cup of tea, but since the magic had zipped through her she couldn’t bear the thought of keeping still. There would never be a good time and the consequences of her actions would never be anything but frightening.

Mr Bennet,
 

It’s imperative we meet urgently to discuss a matter regarding the Agency. My carriage will be waiting for you in the reflection of Bathurst Stables to convey you to Somerset House where we will be able to talk without my husband’s knowledge. Please come as soon as you are able.
 

Catherine Reticulata-Iris
 

She folded the paper, sealed it with wax and pulled the bell cord beside the fire. When Morgan arrived she handed him the letter. “This needs to be sent by Letterboxer. Please inform the footman that Mr Bennet from the Agency will require transport in our carriage from the stables to Somerset House and that he should be conveyed via the longest route possible. I need to be told as soon as the carriage leaves the stables.”

Morgan nodded and bowed. “At once, your Grace.”

“Is everything in hand?”

“Yes, the bedrooms are being prepared for guests, and extra food and fuel is being fetched from Mundanus.”

“Any word from Will?”

“No, your Grace. I’ll inform you as soon as he arrives.”

“Thank you, Morgan.”

She paced as she tried to think of ways to tell Will what she’d done. “Darling,” she said as if he was there. “While you were visiting Margritte, I secretly convinced the staff to break away from the Agency and form an independent household. The Agency doesn’t know yet.”

Cathy shook her head. “Darling,” she started again, imagining Will standing in front of her, frowning like he had when he asked her why she’d animated Nelson’s statue. “The Agency – no – Mr Bennet, from the Agency, has been blackmailing me and I thought it best to take away his control over our household by employing the staff myself, including the bodyguard you’ve been using to spy on me.” No! Too confrontational.

She tried a few more permutations but none of them sounded any good. She just wanted to get moving. The waiting was the worst thing about it all.

A knock on the door made her jump and Morgan entered. “Mr Bennet has arrived at the stables.”

“God, that was quick.” She took a deep breath and smiled at him. “This is it then, Morgan. Are you sure you want to stay and be involved in all this?”

“I am, your Grace.” He returned the smile. “In fact, may I say how pleased I am to have the opportunity to do so.”

“You rock, Morgan. Could you bring my hat, gloves and cape? I’m going dressed as I am.” She’d changed back into an outfit appropriate for the Nether, knowing that the people at the asylum wouldn’t believe she was the Duchess if she was wearing mundane clothing like she had been before.

Whilst she waited for him to return she realised how nervous she was. She’d set things in motion and there was no turning back; the staff were depending on her now in a way they didn’t need to before. She had to see it through, no matter what Bennet did. She had no doubt he was going to reveal her secrets to Dame Iris, but the consequences of that seemed less important now than doing her best to free those people. She wondered how far Poppy’s magic would protect her.

The slam of the front door made her heart race for a different reason; Will would have to be told and she didn’t have time to explain it all to him.

“Get out of my way, fool!” The voice that penetrated the wood was not her husband’s – thankfully not Bennet’s either. She heard Carter’s low rumble and then “I’m the Duke’s brother, idiot, stand aside!”

The door banged open and Nathaniel barged in like a man about to leap into a brawl rather than enter his sister-in-law’s company.

“Would you like me to remain in the room with you, your Grace?” Carter asked at the door, his cheeks a deep red.

“This is private!” Nathaniel slammed the door in Carter’s face.

Cathy backed away from him until her skirts brushed one of the armchairs by the fire. She sat in it and tried to look as composed as possible. “Would you like to sit down and tell me what has upset you so?”

Nathaniel looked horrified. “Don’t pretend you’re ignorant of this!”

She sat. “Of what? Please, sit down and–”

He crossed the room and leaned over her chair, planting his hands on the arms and effectively caging her in. “Where is he?”

“Who?”

“William!” He glanced at her left hand and frowned at the wedding ring. “You really don’t know?”

“He went to meet Margritte.” Nathaniel didn’t move. “Margritte Semper-Augustus Tulipa. I don’t know where.”

“Why?”

“Because she wanted to speak to him. Will you please sit down?”

“William has disappeared and we think he’s been kidnapped.”

“What?”

“The Patroon has tasked me with finding him and bringing the kidnappers to justice.”

“Margritte wouldn’t do anything like that.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I spoke to her and–”

Nathaniel moved so swiftly she didn’t realise he had until his hand was gripping her jaw. The last of the bruising from the attack twinged as he made her look up at him. “Did you lead him into a trap?”

“Of course I didn’t, you prat, let go of me!”

He squeezed tighter, until tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. “I know you didn’t want to marry him. Did you and your friend come up with a plan to–”