Lily (14 page)

‘Madam!’

Georgie had her hand on the door, and she cast a desperate glance at Lily, clearly wondering if they should simply run.

Lily glared at her, and turned with a sweet smile to the approaching guard.

‘Was there something?’

The man took off his hat, and Lily’s smile deepened. She had been modelling her tone on Mama. ‘Only that we didn’t see you come in, ma’am…’

‘But clearly we did…’ Lily raised her eyebrows at him.

‘We’ve only been open these last ten minutes…’

Lily glanced accusingly at Henrietta, and then nodded at the guard. ‘Indeed. My sister and I came to see the – er –’

‘Beetles!’ Georgie put in hurriedly, and then went pink. ‘Yes. We are most interested in beetles…’ she added, her voice failing as she saw Lily rolling her eyes.

‘But we couldn’t find any, and so we are leaving.’ Lily was poised to make a run for it, but the guard was nodding helpfully. ‘Oh, yes indeed, ma’am. The beetles is all gone now, over to the new Natural History Museum, these last nine years.’

‘Are they? Are they indeed?’ Lily said gratefully. ‘Well, it is some time since we have visited London. We’re most grateful for your assistance. Come, Georgiana.’ And she hurried Georgie and Henrietta out, before Georgie gave way to giggles entirely.

‘Beetles! What were you thinking?’ she hissed, as they pattered down the steps.

‘I wasn’t!’ Georgie gasped, still laughing. ‘I knew we had to say something, and I couldn’t think of anything. Beetles just came into my head. And I was right, anyway!’

‘We were lucky, you mean,’ Lily said severely. ‘Come on. Let’s find something to eat.’

They were hurrying out along the street now, unsure which way to go, but simply eager to be away from the museum. At last they emerged from the warren of little streets onto a main road, already busy with carriages, and full of people.

‘It’s all very well, all these shops,’ Lily murmured, licking her lips in front of the window of a baker’s. ‘But we can hardly buy a cake and eat it in the street.’

‘Oh, Lily, look! Over there. Little tables, and there are other ladies sitting at them. Can’t we go there?’

At the corner of the road was a smartly painted shop, with large plate-glass windows, and
Aerated Bread Co
. in large letters above them. Neat white-clothed tables filled the inside, and a girl about Georgie’s age was pouring tea for a pair of middle-aged ladies.

Most unfortunately, in the window was a small notice, reading
NO DOGS
.

Henrietta’s jowls drooped. ‘Oh, and a cup of tea was exactly what I wanted,’ she whispered in Lily’s ear. ‘What? Am I not allowed to like tea? Arabel used to put it in a saucer for me.’

‘Could you hide in one of the bags, and we could feed you under the table?’ Lily suggested tentatively, not sure if this undignified suggestion would get her bitten.

‘Oh, very well,’ Henrietta muttered ungraciously. ‘But don’t make a habit of it.’ Lily quickly undid her bag, and Henrietta burrowed her way in. ‘Don’t do it up too tightly!’ a small voice murmured from inside, as they pushed the door open.

There was a buzz of polite chatter, and a clinking of teacups, and Lily sighed happily at the delicious smells coming from the back of the teashop. Suddenly she was so hungry it was almost painful.

‘We didn’t make our hats big enough,’ Georgie muttered, as they sat down at a little round table in the window, and a girl bustled over to serve them. ‘Look at that one!’

Lily wrinkled her nose. ‘It’s got a bird in it, Georgie. That’s just silly. Er, tea, please. And toast,’ she added to the waitress. She wasn’t sure what else to ask for – her breakfast was almost always bread and cheese, or a bowl of porridge eaten in the kitchen, while Mrs Porter glared at her, and arranged a delicate tray for Violet to carry up to Mama.

The carpet bag at her feet wriggled furiously, and whined. The waitress looked around in confusion, and Lily had to fake a coughing fit. The waitress hurried off to fetch a glass of water, and Lily kicked the bag – very gently.

‘Shh!’ Georgie hissed, leaning down as if she was fussing with her umbrella.

‘Bacon…’ the bag moaned. ‘Toast, honestly!’

‘Thank you,’ Lily took the glass of water, and sipped it, trying to look ladylike. Several of the other customers had turned to stare. ‘Would you have any bacon?’

The bag sighed happily, and Lily tried not to snigger.

‘I feel much, much better now,’ Henrietta practically purred in Lily’s ear. They had decided that in the busy streets it was best for Lily to carry her, after she had quite audibly told one hurrying gentleman that he was an idiot and a clodpole when he stepped on her paw. Luckily he had thought it was Georgie speaking, and had apologised quite profusely.

‘So do I!’ Lily agreed. ‘Although you nearly gave us away.’

‘It isn’t breakfast without bacon,’ Henrietta muttered. ‘Fancy thinking I only wanted toast! Anyway. Now we need to find somewhere to stay. I suggest that after our dismal failure yesterday, you allow me to sniff out somewhere respectable.’

‘Can you do that?’ Georgie whispered doubtfully.

‘Of course I can!’ the pug snapped back. ‘It’s easy. Lily, put me down. Oh, don’t worry! I promise not to talk. Although if any more idiots step on me, I might bite.’

So the two old ladies followed the little black pug dog on a roundabout route through London, pausing occasionally for Henrietta to sniff her way thoroughly around a building, before she changed her mind.

‘Haven’t you found anywhere yet?’ Georgie hissed some time later, pretending to poke at a leaf with the point of her umbrella, so she could talk to Henrietta. ‘I’m sure we’ve been down this street twice!’

‘I know. We came back, because I wasn’t sure, but now I am. Yes, this smells very good,’ Henrietta looked up at the tall sugar-white building they were walking past.

‘But this is a theatre, not a lodging house!’ Lily drew into the shadows of an archway and pretended to examine a poster for a variety show. ‘We can’t live here!’

‘It smells right,’ Henrietta insisted stubbornly.

‘Shh!’ Lily hissed. Two men were coming out of the main door of the theatre, clearly in the middle of an argument. One of them had a bunch of keys in his hand, and a rolled-up poster under his arm, and he unlocked the poster frame in the niche on the other side of the door to theirs, while the other man went on shouting at him.

‘We can’t do it, Daniel! We’ll all be arrested.’

‘And think what wonderful publicity that would be,’ the man with the poster pointed out. He was much younger than the other one, and extremely tall and thin. He was able to pin the poster into the top of the frame only by standing on tiptoe. He smoothed it out admiringly, and smiled, while his plump companion seethed next to him.

‘Look! It practically says that it’s real magic!’ the little fat man wailed. ‘The Queen’s Men will be round by the end of the day.’

‘It very carefully
doesn’t
say that.’ Daniel locked the frame again. ‘It only hints. Broadly. It’ll make us a fortune, Neffsky! Stop fussing. Besides, it’s my act, if anything goes wrong, the rest of you can deny all knowledge, and see me led off to the magicians’ cells.’

Lily peered out of her alcove, trying to read the poster. But all she could see was a black and white drawing of a man in evening dress, surrounded by what looked like rabbits, which she was sure couldn’t be right. Rabbits had nothing to do with magic. She craned her neck further, and managed to read the curly black lettering. ‘
The Amazing Danieli will amaze you with his fantastical illusions
…’ she whispered.

Neffsky turned round, and stomped back inside the theatre, still muttering angrily. Daniel waited until he’d gone inside, glanced around quickly, and then took two enormous strides and caught Lily’s arm, making her squeak in horrified surprise.

‘Off to fetch the Queen’s Men, were we? Well, you can give them a message from me.’ His voice was gruff, but Lily felt certain that was half put on. Close up, he looked even younger than she’d thought, only three or four years older than Georgie, she was sure. ‘Tell them—’

‘Lily!’ Georgie dashed after her, and Henrietta barked furiously, harrying Daniel’s ankles. ‘Leave her alone, let go of her, you beast!’

In her fright, Georgie had let go of the glamour spell, and her face was changing even as she spoke. Lily felt her skin tighten over her bones, and glanced down to see her dress changing back to the pink muslin she had been wearing before the glamour took effect.

‘What the…’ Daniel was staring at them, his mouth half-open, then he suddenly glanced around the street, grabbed hold of Georgie too, and dragged them both inside the theatre.

L
ily struggled violently as the tall boy, Daniel, hauled them along. She had a vague picture of gilt, and red velvet, and double doors under a sweeping staircase, leading into a hall full of delicate gilt-and-red chairs. It was all seen in flashes, as she pulled and wriggled, and tried to free herself.

‘Stop it,’ Daniel snapped, as she tried to bite his wrist. ‘You little hell-cat!’

‘Let go of me then! And stop hurting my sister. Look at her, she’s fainting! Georgie, Georgie, what is it? Get off me, you!’ Lily pulled, and then flung herself at Daniel’s legs, and at last he let go of her with a grunt, clearly worried he was going to drop her sister. Lily found herself thankful for his manners. One did not drop young ladies.

Georgie was lying collapsed against Daniel’s arm. Her eyes had rolled up in her head, so that only the whites were showing, and her skin had paled to about the same colour.

The boy looked down at her in horror. ‘What’s the matter with her?’ He was holding Georgie with both hands now, and he carried her over to another little velvet chair, and laid her down in it, fanning her face with one hand.

Lily pushed him out of the way and seized Georgie’s hands, chafing them anxiously, and calling to her, but there was no response.

Henrietta jumped up onto the next chair, and sniffed Georgie crossly. ‘She’ll be perfectly all right. It’s all nerves. You, pick me up.’ This was addressed to Daniel, who obeyed her, looking as though his morning had gone very, very wrong.

‘Hen-ri-etta!’ Lily hissed. ‘What are you doing? You’re talking!’

‘Oh for heaven’s sake, Lily! The man has seen
you
transform from an old lady into a ten-year-old. He’s hardly going to balk at a talking dog.’

‘It is a little surprising still,’ Daniel said meekly.

‘Really?’ Henrietta put her paws on his shoulder, and examined his face closely, sniffing his ears with careful attention. ‘Clean linen,’ she noted approvingly. ‘And nicely trimmed ear hair. You can trust him, Lily. Though you missed a spot shaving this morning, just here, did you know?’

‘Sorry, I haven’t been doing it that long…’

‘Hmm. Anyway, Lily, he’s certainly trustworthy. Besides, he’s a magician too, we saw the poster.’

‘Oh, no, I’m not. My magic is all tricks,’ Daniel explained, and Lily thought there was a wistful note in his voice. ‘Designed to deceive an audience from a distance. You – you’re real magicians? Aren’t you?’ His voice was desperately hopeful. ‘Are you a girl in disguise too?’ he added, staring at Henrietta.

‘I most certainly am not!’ Henrietta snapped. ‘Why does everyone assume I’m something other than a dog?’

‘So you do tricks with all those rabbits?’ Lily asked. The rabbits had intrigued her.

Daniel blinked. ‘Artistic licence. There are actually only two rabbits. But they are white ones, and very well trained.’

‘What have rabbits got to do with magic?’ Lily frowned, but Daniel was no longer looking at her.

‘Hey! I don’t think you should be waving that around! Miss, please!’

Georgie had come out of her trance, and was sitting up straight on her chair. But she was as white-faced as ever, and her eyes were blazing an unnatural jewel-like blue. The fire in them was made even brighter by the reflection of the white fireball she was nursing between her hands. She seemed to be poised to hurl it at Daniel.

‘Georgie, don’t! Henrietta says we can trust him!’ Lily cried.

But Georgie didn’t even seem to hear her. She stood up jerkily, turning the ball of flame over in her hands. Despite their brightness, her eyes seemed blank, as though there was no Georgie behind them. She cupped the ball of fire closer, and seemed to smile as its heat flushed her cheeks a little. And then she threw it, straight at Daniel.

He stood there, aghast, as Georgie crumpled slowly to the ground, and Lily and Henrietta raced to save him. The fireball flew through the air, and Henrietta leaped after it, batting at it with just the tip of one outstretched paw, and howling.

The flames seemed to stall in midair for just a second, long enough for Lily to seize it, scream as the white flames blistered her fingers, and hurl it through the double doors into the theatre, where it collided with one of the little velvet chairs and exploded.

‘Did it burn you? Lily, show me! It singed my claws, it must have burnt you.’ Henrietta tugged Lily’s skirt angrily with her teeth. ‘Show me!’ Her voice was rising to a howl.

‘It’s all right,’ Lily said weakly, crouching down and opening her hands to show the little dog. ‘I thought it had too – it felt as though it had. But there aren’t any marks. It’s Georgie’s magic – maybe it doesn’t hurt me in the same way it would someone else. It probably would have crisped you,’ she added wearily to Daniel, who was stooping over Georgie, looking anxious.