I stared up, just as the lamplighter started to light the street lamps molded into the shape of Hearts with a flame burning in the center.
The lamplighter moved onto the next lamp, tipping his hat to me as he hummed and moved along. The sound of his lonely tune echoed through the almost empty space. I turned back to the clock, starting to walk again, slowly making my way across the cobblestones towards the President’s Palace.
I was on the other side of the market when I glanced at the clock again. It was almost like a compulsion—I’d never been able to find out how the clock worked, and it was another unsolved puzzle in my life.
As I glanced up, I saw some of the gears exposed. I stared. There was something different about the clock. It wasn’t that the gears had been taken out of the clock. They had been covered. Some kind of sheeting now covered the inner workings of the giant clock.
It couldn’t have been the workers, though, because the scaffolding hadn’t been fixed. Unless, with everything else that had happened on the day of the Big Night Out, I hadn’t noticed the changes.
Was that it? I sighed, rubbing my forehead. I couldn’t be sure, but the thought gnawed at me. Why hadn’t I noticed the other night?
A hand clapped me on the shoulder, and I sucked in a breath as I whirled around.
Raven stood there, one hand in his pocket, his mouth curled up in a half-smile, and his eyes sparkling as he tipped his hat at me.
“My love,” he whispered. “I’ve missed you.”
Raven was still grinning when we approached the gates of the President’s Palace.
“It was a good day,” I murmured.
“I didn’t see you at the town hall,” Raven said.
“I was there.”
“I know.” Raven winked. “I caught a hint of your scent.”
I slapped him playfully on the arm. “I don’t smell.”
“I didn’t say you smell,” Raven replied, chuckling. “You do have a particular scent, though. It is very pleasant.”
“Thank you,” I blushed. “I think.”
“Things did go well today,” Raven agreed. “This marks the beginning of a new era for The Forge.”
“I hope so,” I said.
“Our president was great today—very convincing. Nobody spoke against her.”
“It won’t be smooth sailing,” I replied, thinking about the muttered comments I’d heard around me.
“No, but we have made progress, and far quicker than I ever imagined we would. I hope we’ll move everyone out of the tunnels by the end of the month.”
“So long?”
Raven looked sideways at me. “We have to find housing for everyone—affordable housing.”
“Mother said the city would help with that.”
Raven nodded. “She did. Still, it takes time.”
The guard at the gate recognized me and opened the gate without a word. Raven followed me to the door, then pulled on my hand to stop me.
“This is where I leave you tonight.”
“You don’t want to come in to see the others?”
Raven smiled. “I would, but I have things to do tonight.”
“Don’t you ever rest?”
Raven shook his head. “I don’t need much rest.”
“Is that how you make so many hats?”
He chuckled, brushing his thumb across my cheek as he inspected the hat I was wearing today. “Yes, although I haven’t much time for it at present. My shop is looking distinctly under-stocked.”
I snorted and rolled my eyes. “Your shop looked cluttered before. Now, it’ll be just right.”
“Speaking of hats,” Raven plucked at the ribbon on the headpiece I was wearing. “This isn’t one of mine.”
A faint blush spread across my cheeks, and I wondered whether Raven could see the color under the flickering lamplights along the drive. “Pearl bought it for me.”
Raven made a non-committal sound. “She surprised me today. I thought she’d be against the change.”
I nodded. “You mean to say your superior senses misjudged her character?” I replied mockingly.
Raven dipped his head, sheepishly, acknowledging my dig at him. “It is rare that I misjudge a person’s character, but I’ll admit,”—Raven met my eye with a sheepish look—“she might not have been the first person I have misjudged recently.”
I gave him a mock-stern look. “As long as you don’t hold fast to your first impressions—”
“You know I don’t.”
“then I suppose you might redeem yourself yet.” I winked at him, then turned serious. “I’ll admit, I was surprised too. I haven’t seen Pearl in a couple of days either. Not since the attack. Though now that I think of it, Alice mentioned that Pearl has been helping to nurse the patients who had been taken to your house to be treated.”
“If Pearl can see beyond her friend’s appearance, then it gives me hope for Melfall,” Raven murmured.
“There’s often more to a person than appearances would have you believe,” I agreed, though I was thinking of the Hearts standing outside the wall. As though they were waiting for something.
“Alice was smart to move on the changes while the attack was still fresh in the people’s minds. I’m going to have to make you a new hat.”
I blinked. “A new hat?”
“Since we’re discussing appearances, I’ll not have you walking around wearing another milliner’s hat.” He grinned, then pressed a kiss on my lips, then on my forehead. As he pulled away, Mr. Hopewell opened the door.
“Miss Rowntree?” he said. “Welcome home. Dinner has been served, but I’ll have someone bring a tray to your room.”
Raven brought my hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to my knuckles. “Good night, Miss Rowntree. I will see you again soon.”
5
6th September
A serving girl, Rose, stood in the hall, holding out a silver tray laden with a single cup and saucer, and a number of sweet pastries. Alice took the cup of coffee, acknowledging Rose with a nod and taking a quick sip as her ladies maid, Nancy, fetched her light coat and hat. Alice winced as the hot liquid scalded her lips.
“Hurry, Nancy, I’m already late.”
“You haven’t even had time to sit down for a proper breakfast, Madam President,” Nancy protested. “Surely, there is time for a pastry?” Nancy had served Alice since she first became President of The Forge. An older woman, her hair almost completely white, Nancy sometimes acted more like a mother than a maid. “Eating while standing gives one terrible indigestion, you know.”
“Thank you for your concern, Nancy, but this is all I have time for today,” Alice replied, setting the half-empty coffee cup back down on the tray. She nodded to Rose, who bobbed a curtsy, then withdrew into the kitchens. “I’ll be out all day, but I hope to be home for dinner.”
“You work too hard, Madam President,” Nancy scolded. She tucked a stray lock of hair into Alice’s hat as she pursed her lips. Then she relented. “I’ll be sure to ask cook to have a hearty dinner ready for you when you return.”
Alice gave Nancy a grateful smile. She glanced in the hallway mirror to check her appearance, then spun around and marched to the door. Mr. Hopewell, the butler, opened the door on cue so that Alice didn’t even have to break stride as she stepped outside.
“Wait, Mother!” I said, rushing down the hallway after her. “I need to speak to you.”
“I’m running late, Ivy,” Alice replied, half-turning to glance at me, her lips pursed. “I’m speaking with the grandmasters of the United Guilds about taking on additional apprentices and using their skills to rebuild the city. It really is an important meeting and I cannot—”
“Let me walk with you,” I said. I didn’t even look in the mirror as I stepped outside behind her.
“You’re not even matching, dear,” Alice said, but she turned and stepped quickly down the steps. “What will the editor of The Forge Hart say if someone sees you? What would Pearl say?”
“If yesterday’s speech is anything to go by, Pearl has turned over a new leaf. In any case, I promise I’ll return home to dress properly after we’ve had the chance to speak.”
Alice sighed. “What do you need to tell me so urgently?”
“The gates,” I replied. “I need your key.”
Alice coughed, startled, and put a hand over her mouth to cover her shock as she looked sideways at me. “I know there are lots of changes in Melfall, dear,” Alice said. “But I hardly think you’ll like country life any better. Besides, the changes are to take effect in all of The Forge—not just Melfall.”
My face broke into a grin. “I’m not leaving the city, Mother,” I replied. “I want to examine the Hearts. I want to bring one to my workshop to study how it works if it’s not too heavy. If I can’t move them, then I’ll—”
Alice stopped dead in her tracks. There were furrows on her forehead as she turned a stern expression on me.
“Absolutely not,” she replied. “I forbid it.”
My mouth dropped open. “Why?”
“The people of this city are too frightened of those dreadful things for you to bring one of them inside the city.”
“I need to see how it works—”
“You don’t.”
“You don’t understand—”
“I understand you are too curious for your own good.”
“But—”
Alice put a hand on my shoulder, giving me a slight shake. “It’s too soon, Ivy. The people of Melfall need to feel safe. There are lots of changes afoot, and we need to make our people feel like they are properly protected. If I let you open the gates and bring those Hearts inside, there will be panic.”
“But—”
“No,” Alice said firmly. “Chasing down rabbit holes might satisfy your need to know how things work, but I have to lead these people, and they are frightened. Your curiosity will get you in trouble one day—but not today. I will not allow it.”
Alice straightened her hat, a stubborn expression on her face. “Besides,” she continued, as I hurried to keep up with her. “I’ve had to pull the guards from their double shifts on the wall to help with moving the people in the tunnels to proper accommodations. There’s no need for the guards to watch Hearts that aren’t doing anything. If the wall isn’t being properly manned, I cannot risk the gates being opened. Not yet.”
My shoulders sank, and I slowed to a stop. I watched as Alice turned to continue on her way, raising her hand in goodbye as she walked away.
I stood in the middle of the market underneath the broken scaffolding, trying to work out whether there was any way I would be able to get a closer look at the Pinnacle clock. Slowly, I walked around, noticing the paneling that seemed to cover the inner workings of the clock now. Rather than the tower showing its workings on the outside, like an unfinished structure, panels had been slotted into the grooves between the exposed struts. I ran my hand along them, a cool, smooth finish like pressed metal underneath my fingertips.
I looked up. Above, the paneling stopped, but it had an unfinished look, as though there should be more panels covering the skeleton of the tower.
“Ivy?”
I looked over my shoulder to see Gaia coming towards me, waving a hand.
“What are you doing here?” I asked
“On my way to visit Genie at the hospital.” She glanced up as though searching for whatever had caught my attention. Then she looked back at me. “What are you doing?”
I pointed up. “I’m trying to get a closer look at the clock, but I can’t get up to that platform. Do you think you could give me a step up? Then I should be able to reach that rung of the scaffold and pull myself up to the first level. I’ll get a better look from there.”
Gaia laughed. “Half of the people of Melfall are lying in hospital beds, and the other half are trying to work out what they’re going to do with their lives now that they won’t get paid for looking pretty. And you want to get a closer look at the inner workings of a clock!”
I put my hands on my hips as I glared at the Gaia, who was still smiling. Then I shrugged my shoulders.
“What can I say? It’s bothering me,” I replied. “The clock, the Hearts, the attack—there’s something going on that I can’t figure out. Something’s not right, and I’m sure it’s got something to do with this clock.”
Gaia smiled and shook her head. Then she got down on one knee and laced her fingers together so that the palms of her hands formed a stirrup for my foot.
“Thank you,” I said as I put my foot into her hands and reached upwards.
As I stretched, Gaia hoisted me a little higher until all of my weight was pressed down on her hands, and my other foot lifted off the ground. My hands wrapped around the lowest rung of the broken ladder, and I screwed up my face with the effort of hauling myself up.
As I got a grip, Gaia struggled to her feet, continuing to push my feet upward so that she took some of my body weight as I pulled myself up.
Finally, I hoisted my upper body onto the first platform of the scaffold, and I lay there panting for a moment.
“Ivy?” Gaia called up from below. “Are you alright?”
I wiggled further onto the platform until my whole body was lying on it. Then I got to my knees and leaned over the edge to wave at Gaia.
She waved back to me, then turned and kept walking in the direction of the hospital.
Catching my breath, I watched my sister until she disappeared down a street leading away from the city center. Then I turned my attention back to the clock tower.
I kneeled on the platform, to get a better view of the panels below that had slotted into the grooves of the upright poles of the tower. On the outside, the metal had a pattern pressed into it. Hearts and swirls—the pattern matched the rest of the clock.
However, from a vantage point directly overhead, I saw the pattern on the outside of the panel was different to that on the inside. On the inside, the panel was a white color with uneven black and red marking in the corners that I couldn’t quite see. I lay down on the scaffold, wiggling forward until I was hanging over the edge. My head hung over the side of the platform so that I could see directly down.
I squinted as I tried to see, wishing I had brought a torch to dispel the shadows on the inside of the panels. I inched further forward, sure that I would be able to see the pattern if I could just get a little closer.
I reached down, just able to touch the panel below me, and tried to press it back just enough to get a proper look at the design on the inside of the panel.
I gasped, then almost fell over the edge of the platform.
I wiggled back, getting my legs tangled in my skirts as I pulled myself back to lie flat on the wooden platform. I flipped onto my back and closed my eyes.
It wasn’t just a panel that someone had put on the clock to hide the inner workings. It was a card. A playing card.
Thoughts swirled around my mind as the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place.
The Hearts hadn’t attacked the city. They were trying to get to the clock. To become part of the Pinnacle clock tower.
But why?
Tick, tick, tick.
I opened my eyes to look up at the giant clock face above me. It wasn’t purely aesthetic to cover the clock in the panels made from the back of the Hearts.
Unless…
I rolled over to get to my knees, pushing myself up until I was standing on the platform, looking up. I covered my eyes to shield from the sun that was shining directly down on me.
There were hundreds of more slots. Enough spaces for each of the Hearts standing outside the gates to have a place on the clock. Like a puzzle.
Or a key.
I rubbed my forehead as I thought.
When a puzzle was complete, it revealed the full picture. A key was used to unlock something.
Once all of the Hearts were in place in the Pinnacle clock tower, what would it reveal? Or unlock?
And why?
My heart started racing as I remembered what Alice had said when she’d left the house this morning. “I’ve had to pull the guards from their double shifts on the wall.”
I knelt down and judged the distance from the platform to the ground. Then, without another thought, I jumped, jarring my feet as I felt the impact of hitting the cobblestones. Then I got to my feet and started running.
I revved the engine, and the back wheel squealed as the steam bike leapt into action. The wind pushed against me as I drove through the streets, whipping at the loose strands of hair that were not pinned down by my helmet. Large goggles covered half of my face, but I was grateful they protected my eyes from both the wind and my hair. I gritted my teeth as the bike bounced and lurched across an uneven section of cobblestones in one of the narrower streets.
I gripped the handles tighter as I leaned into a tight turn, taking the quickest route to the Guild Hall, where I knew Alice would be meeting with the grandmasters. Although Alice hadn’t had time for my request this morning, now that I had proof that the Hearts were somehow important, I had to make her listen to me.
I leaned into another corner, dodging a man cleaning windows before hitting the accelerator again. An inexplicable sense of urgency coursed through me. Somehow I knew that every moment that passed was important. Every moment wasted was a missed opportunity. I didn’t have a moment to lose.
When I rounded the next corner, coming out of a narrow street to enter the wider Seventh Avenue, I spotted the Guild Hall immediately. Though it was no taller than any other building in the city, it dominated its neighbors through the grandeur of its carved entrance and the copper-tipped spires on its tower roofs.
I drove straight up to the entrance, leaning my bike against a street lamp as I waved for the guard at the entrance to the Guild Hall to watch it. Taking the steps two at a time, I wrenched my helmet and goggles from my head and tugged off the bulky riding gloves. Then, tucking those under my arm, I used my other hand to clutch at my skirts as I ran the rest of the way up the steps.
Ivy: Daughter of Alice Page 31