The Langley Sisters Trilogy Boxed Set (83 page)

“Perhaps that’s why we’re friends because we complement each other.”

“You could be right, and I will give the matter of how to dissuade Lord Anthony some thought, because as you know, I cannot like the man. But for now, get your bonnet as we are going out.”

“Yes, Livvy said you were dragging me somewhere. Care to tell me where?”
 

“Ask no more questions and then you won’t have to tell anyone lies when they ask you for details, because you have not been furnished with them,” Thea stated in a whisper.

“I’m not sure whether to be worried or excited.”

“Go.” Thea shooed her from the room.

They were soon in the carriage with Sally and Thea’s maid, Hester.

“Livvy said we are going to an exhibition?”
“It’s kind of an exhibition, but a bit different.” Thea was being evasive, which was always a terrifying thing. Many times, she had lured Bella into an adventure by avoiding an explanation of just what it was they were about to do.

“What kind of an exhibition?”

“The fun kind.”

“Yes, and what kind of fun will I be partaking in?”

“The enjoyable, if slightly scary kind.”

“Oh, God,” Bella moaned at the wicked look on her friend’s face. Looking from Sally to Hester yielded her nothing, as both looked as clueless as she.

“Is it dangerous?”

“Of course not. When have I ever put you in danger?” Thea looked affronted at the very thought.

“You made me hold your boxing bag and then missed and hit me in the cheek. It was a damn near thing that I wasn’t knocked out.”

“Pffffft, you were fine.”

“I had a bruised cheek for days and had to lie to my family that I had walked into the door.”

“This will be fun, not painful.”

And that, Bella thought, was all she was going to get until the carriage stopped.
 

“Now, ladies, over there is a tea shop. You may go there and we shall collect you when we have finished,” Thea said when they were standing on the street.
 

Sally and Hester, who knew each other well, were more than happy to comply with her wishes.

“Come along, Bella,” Thea urged as she began striding along the footpath.

“My leg may be better but I still cannot run on it, you know. So if your plan involves exercise in some way, then I shall probably sit and watch.”

Ignoring this, Thea simply led her to a set of stairs that would take them down below the street towards the basement of a large building.
 

“Where are we?” Bella looked around her to see if she recognized anything. “And why do we not need our maids with us?”

“Jones Street,” Thea said. “And you have me. Why do you need a maid?”
“Why indeed,” Bella muttered as she followed Thea down.

At the bottom the black, polished front door stood open and they walked into a small dimly lit reception area.

“Good morning.” The clerk behind the desk said. “How may I help you?”

“We wish to purchase two tickets to view your exhibition, please.”

“And are you aware of what the exhibition is, madam?”
 

These words did not inspire Bella with confidence.

“Of course. We are most excited to see it.”

“Thea—”

“Hush now, and trust me,” she whispered to Bella.

“As if I have a choice,” Bella muttered. Looking around the small space
 

yielded her little. It was a room, tastefully decorated if a little sparse, but offered no clues as to why she was there.

“If you’ll go through the door, the first session will start shortly.”

“Thank you.” Taking the tickets, Thea once again took Bella’s hand and led her through the door the man had indicated.

“Good lord, it’s quiet dark in here, Thea. What on earth have you lured me into?”
 
The room was large and Bella could see many seats, most of which were occupied, then at the front was what appeared to be a sheet hanging from the ceiling.

“Come, I see two free seats.” Bella wasn’t sure how Thea had seen them as she could see nothing. “You go first.” She then urged Bella into the row.
 

She was making her way without standing on anyone when she encountered a large gentleman. “Excuse me. Oh, do forgive me. Was that your foot?” Bella apologized, but really he was quite big and maneuvering around him was not a simple task.

“It’s quite all right, Miss Langley. Nothing broken, I assure you,” a gravelly voice said which made her look closer.
 

“Mr. Dillinger?” She peered down at him, noting the flash of white teeth as he smiled at her.

“Indeed it is, and I must say I’m surprised to see you here. Then again, maybe not,” he added when Thea arrived behind her.

“Bella?”

“Luke?” Bella looked down into the eyes of the man she loved.

“Move over next to Mr. Fletcher, if you please, Mr. Dillinger,” Thea said, looking at the two seats between him and Luke. “Why have you kept that space free? Are you expecting others?”

“No, but we’re both big men, and I wanted the space to turn and stretch out my legs, Lady Althea. I assure you I would have moved had someone wished to sit there.”

Thea mumbled something unflattering and then said they would look for other seats.

“You will not sit next to a strange person in a darkened room.” The words were rasped into her ear as she was pulled down into a seat, beside her Thea landed in the other, courtesy of the hand Mr. Dillinger had on her arm.

“Unhand me at once!” Thea cried.

“Sssh!” The noise came from behind them, so Bella turned to glare in that direction. “The show has not started yet, sir, so there is no need to shush my friend.”

“Yes, how dare you shush me!” Thea said.
 

“For the love of God, woman, just sit still and be quiet.”

Bella saw the surprised look on her friend’s face after Mr. Dillinger had said these words. However, even more surprising was the fact that Thea subsided, although she did send a fuming glare his way which he ignored.

She felt Luke’s shoulders begin to shake as she settled back in her seat.

“Care to enlighten me as to what you are laughing at?” She was close enough to see his face, even though the lamp light was weak.

“You telling that man to be quiet, and then Thea doing the same. She I expect it from, but you—I have not heard you take someone to task for quite some time.”

Bella rather liked the idea that she had taken someone to task. It made her feel strong.

“I did not know you were coming here, or I would have escorted you, Bella.”

“Can you tell me where here is?”
 

She heard Luke exhale and then look around her to Thea, who was attempting to ignore the giant on her right.

“I should have known it wouldn’t have been you.”

“I am capable of doing exciting things,” Bella said, “and now I’m able to walk without a cane, I plan to do many more.”

“And I shall be happy to escort you anywhere you wish, my sweet.” The words were whispered in her ear and the endearment made her knees go weak.

“Phoebe mentioned that she had not seen a lot of you lately, what have you been busy doing, Luke?” Bella did not add the fact that it was she who broached the subject of his absence and that her sister had merely confirmed it.

His face lost all expression and became blank.
 

“Will has kept me busy.”

He was lying to her; she knew it, because she had spent years watching him. Bella felt her heart sink. She could never remember him lying to her before. Even her father’s letter had not been a lie, as she had not asked him about it before that day in the cemetery.
 

She fell quiet then, her eyes looking towards the screen at the front of the room, very aware of the man seated beside her. She could smell him, feel the heat from his body, the brush of his arm when he moved, and it was hell.
Why was he lying to her?

“Brace yourself, Bella,” Thea whispered, thankfully interrupting her thoughts. Looking to the stage, she watched two men blow out the lamps that had provided only a small amount of light for the guests, and then suddenly it was dark. She heard a voice talking about horrors and ghostly apparitions and suddenly every hair on her body stood.
 

Bella wasn’t particularly fond of the dark, but she didn’t let anyone else know that. She wasn’t the type to get upset easily. She didn’t squeal at mice, nor run from the room if a spider crawled up the wall; however, what did disturb her was being in the dark and wondering if there may be other things existing in it. When she had first injured her leg, Bella had taken so much laudanum to ease the pain that she had seen visions in her room most nights, scary, evil things intent on hurting her. And while in the light of day she could tell herself they were not real, at night when she was tossing and turning in a fevered sleep, they had become very real.
 

“Dear Lord,” she whispered as the first ghostly apparition appeared.
 

CHAPTER TWELVE

Luke hadn’t wanted to come to the magic lantern show, but Ace had insisted, and after what they had just found out, he was happy to sit in the darkness and think.

Someone was attempting to discredit him. Every financial move he had made so far, someone was there to shut the door in his face. He was told that they needed no more partners, told that his money was not welcome, and every time he asked why, the person being questioned would say nothing further.

He’d started this journey alone for a reason; he wanted to prove to himself and that he could do this, become the man others believed he could be. But each step he took was met with failure.

Luke had known he would be rejected, but not at every turn, and that had lead him to believe he was being discredited deliberately…but by whom?

He’d been seated about five minutes before he saw Bella and Thea coming into the room and suddenly he felt the pressure in his chest ease. Just one look at her had made him feel better, and a smile had tugged at his lips as she moved closer, his chest filling with warmth.
 

He had lowered her into the seat beside him and then he had proceeded to lie to her when she had questioned him about his absence from Will’s house, not wanting her involved in whatever was happening to him.
 

Pulling his eyes from the foolish ghost, he looked down at her again. She was so still, her eyes wide as she watched the show. Leaning closer, he noted her breath was uneven, as if she was panting and her fists were clenched.
 

“Bella?” She didn’t respond, so he leaned closer and said her name again. This time she pulled her eyes from the ghost and found his. She was terrified. “It’s all right, sweetheart, it’s not real.”
 

She dragged in a shaky breath and gave him a jerky nod. “I-I should know that, truly I should, and part of me does, but they are so similar.” Her eyes went back to the stage as if drawn there, and this time more ghoulish apparitions had formed on the side screens and she flinched.

“Similar to what?” He took one of her hands in his, lacing their fingers together.

“It matters not.”

“Similar to what, Bella? Tell me.”

“The ones I saw when I took laudanum.”

His heart hurt as he thought of how much pain she had suffered, how she must have struggled to sleep while those images filled her head in feverish dreams. He wished again that he’d been here to comfort her when the accident happened.

“I know I’m being silly, Luke, and I know they cannot be real, but the fear was once so strong that it is difficult to dislodge, even with reason.”

“Take a deep breath,” Luke urged her, watching as she did as he asked. “Now look closer, love. Look for the things that tell you they are not real. See the edge of the screen there?” He pointed and her eyes followed. “Behind the screen there is a man with a lantern, and it is that which is projecting the images, sweetheart. Nothing sinister, I promise you.”

He felt her fingers ease their fierce grip as she listened to him talk, until finally she began to relax. She still held his hand, but was no longer gripping it hard.
 

“It was called Phantasmagoria. A man named Etienne Gaspard Robertson was one of the most famous showmen to do it.”

She looked at him again, her face inches from his and the words suddenly died in his throat. He watched her blink, the sweep of her lashes covering her eyes briefly. He saw her swallow and then her teeth nibbled her bottom lip. Closing the distance he kissed her.
 

“I’ve missed you.”

“And I you, Bella. But there are some things I must do that will take me away from you for a while.”

She nodded. “I understand.”

She didn’t, and right at that moment he could not enlighten her, because he had no understanding of what was happening to himself, either.