To Dream Again

by Laura Lee Guhrke

  Mara gave him a smile of greeting, and he answered it with a smile of his own, a smile that gave her hope for the first time in days. No matter what the outcome of his battle with his brother, she wished they could regain the closeness they had once shared.

  They ate in Mrs. O'Brien's tiny dining room as if they were a family. Mara watched Nathaniel and Billy as they sat side by side and talked about trains. The landlady bustled around the table, refilling their plates, looking happier than Mara had ever seen her.

  "I intend to help the employees pack train sets today," Nathaniel told the boy.

  "Can I be an em-ploy-ee, too?" Billy asked, pronouncing the word carefully.

  "Of course. How about if you stand at the end of the line and check each train set to make sure nothing is missing? I'll pay you..." He thought for a moment, then said, "A penny per set. How's that?"

  "Smashin'!" Billy swallowed his last mouthful of eggs and shoved back his empty plate, then jumped to his feet and started for the kitchen. "Let's go, Nathaniel. Time's a'wastin' and we got to go t'work. 'Bye Mara. 'Bye Mrs. O'Brien."

  Nathaniel lifted his teacup, his eyes meeting Mara's over the rim. "I think I just officially hired him as an employee, partner."

  Something fluttered inside her at the tone of his voice. "A part-time employee," she answered in a firm whisper. "He shall go to school."

  Nathaniel gulped down the last swallow of tea, and rose. He set the cup back in its saucer and gave her a mock salute. "Yes, ma'am."

  She and the landlady followed them through the kitchen as far as the back door of the lodging house. There, she leaned in the doorway, watching Nathaniel being dragged up the steps of the fire escape by a very enthusiastic boy, both of them laughing.

  "By Mary and all the saints, it does me heart good t'see that."

  Mara glanced over at the landlady, who was standing behind her, peering over her shoulder. Once again Mara looked across the alley at Nathaniel and Billy and couldn't agree more. It did her heart good to see it, too, and she realized she'd been very wrong about herself.

  Her heart wasn't empty at all. A man and a boy had somehow sneaked in, had managed to slip past every barrier and wall in their way, and had filled her heart with love again, filled it until there was no room for fear.

  ***

  Calvin Styles was buried the following morning in Tower Hamlets, the same public cemetery where his wife had been buried the year before. Mara and Nathaniel attended the brief graveside service with Billy between them. Emma Logan was also in attendance, looking much older and sadder than her twenty-five years. No one else came.

  Billy's face betrayed no emotion as the body was lowered into the grave, but he squeezed Mara's hand very tight when they dropped in the first handful of dirt.

  Afterward, Mara and Nathaniel had a brief whispered consultation and agreed that keeping busy was the best thing for the boy. It was Saturday afternoon and the factory was closed, but they set him to work checking the train sets already awaiting delivery, a task that occupied much of his weekend.

  Mara bought a cot for him to sleep on and placed it right beside her own bed, just in case his nightmares returned. When they did, she was there to soothe him with a comforting touch or hug.

  Monday morning, Nathaniel drafted a letter to all the retailers who had agreed to purchase train sets, informing them that trains would be delivered to their warehouses by Friday. Percy typed the letters, and Nathaniel sent Billy out to post them with enough money to buy stamps.

  Proud to be in charge of something really important like letters and money, Billy raced to the post office and completed his errand. Eager to tell Nathaniel, he ran all the way back and turned the corner into the alley beside Elliot's at full speed. When he found Jimmy Parks and his friends playing marbles beside the fire escape, he skidded to a halt, his pride in his accomplishment replaced by a sick feeling of dread.

  Jimmy spied him and swaggered forward, pushing the other two boys aside. "Well, if it ain't Spotty Face," he drawled and pulled at the brim of the too-small cap that sat atop his head.

  Billy swallowed hard, knowing what he had to do. He faced the larger boy, spreading his legs wide apart in fighting stance just as Nathaniel had taught him, his heart pounding like a piston on one of Nathaniel's steam engines. "I don't like it when y'call me that, Jimmy. And I want me cap back."

  ***

  Algernon was hungry. He made his demand for food known to Mara by sitting by her chair and letting out a series of loud and indignant meows.

  "In a minute," she told the kitten, her fingers moving rapidly over the beads of her abacus. "I want to finish this first. It won't take long."

  She continued adding up the column of figures. She had to finish the December budget today so that she and Nathaniel could make some decisions tonight about expenditures. Their cash balance was very low, and if they didn't cut their expenses somehow, they'd be overdrawn before revenue from the trains started coming in.

  As she worked, she tried to remain oblivious to Algernon's protests. But the kitten meowed so loudly and persistently that she lost count three times and finally gave up.

  "All right, all right!" She pushed aside her abacus and stood up, laughing in capitulation. "Food first."

  Nathaniel and Billy often used the fire escape as a shortcut to Mrs. O'Brien's. Mara usually did not, finding the drop to the ground difficult to navigate in a skirt. Today, however, she decided expedience was more important than decorum. She opened the door onto the fire escape, but froze in the doorway at the sight in the alley below.

  Billy was facing another boy as two others looked on, and she knew immediately what was happening. All her protective instincts came to the fore, and she stepped forward to start down the fire escape, but Nathaniel's words came back to her. He has to be able to stand up to those boys on his own.

  She pressed one clenched fist to her mouth, and watched with all the fear and agony of a mother as the larger boy stepped forward and gave Billy a shove.

  But Billy didn't move. He stood straight and unshaken, a frown of fierce concentration on his face. "I want me cap, Jimmy," she heard him say.

  Jimmy lifted the cap and waved it in front of Billy, but when Billy tried to grab it, Jimmy jerked it back out of reach. "Come an' get it, Spotty Face."

  Billy stepped forward and reached for it again. Jimmy pulled it back and moved to hit him with his free hand, but Billy was ready for that. He blocked the blow and slammed his fist into the other boy's stomach.

  Mara bit down on her knuckles and watched in silent agony as the fight began in earnest. Jimmy threw himself at the other boy, but Billy stepped back and kicked him in the teeth. The blow sent Jimmy sprawling backward to the ground.

  "Bloody 'ell." Jimmy got up and shook his head from side to side, dazed, but not yet defeated. Moving toward him to continue the fight, Billy locked his legs around the other boy's and pulled him down as well.

  They rolled across the cobblestones, but when they hit the factory wall, Billy was on top. He gave Jimmy a solid punch to the jaw. "I've learned 'ow t'fight, Jimmy. Give in or I'll darken yer daylights. I swear I will."

  Jimmy tried to throw him off, but Billy punched him again and he gave a grunt of pain, "'elp me, lads!" he cried, appealing to the other two boys for assistance.

  The two watching the fight looked at each other and shook their heads. Davy Boggs seemed to speak for both of them when he said, "Not this time, Jimmy. Fight yer own fight."

  "Bloody cowards!" he screamed back in fury. "I don't need yer 'elp anyway."

  He managed to throw Billy off, but before he could get to his feet, Billy knocked him flat again. Fists clenched, he stood over his opponent, ready to go another round, if necessary. "Give, Jimmy! Say ye give."

  The other boy stared sullenly up at him and didn't answer. But when Billy moved to begin the fight again, Jimmy held up his hands in defeat. "All right!" he shouted. "I give! I give! Stop punchin' me, ye bastard!"

  Billy stepped
back and allowed Jimmy to scramble to his feet. Keeping his eye on the other boy, he bent down to pick up the cap that had fallen during the struggle. He settled it on his head. "Get outta 'ere, Jimmy Parks, and don't never try t'fight with me again."

  Mara watched as Jimmy Parks wiped the blood from his nose and turned away, running out of the alley, one of the other two boys right behind him. Davy Boggs was the one who remained behind.

  Billy stared at him warily, but Davy made no move to fight. Instead, he said, "I didn't like what Jimmy's been doin' to ye."

  Billy didn't relax. With fists still clenched, he faced Davy. "If ye didn't like it, how come ye never 'elped me?"

  Davy shoved his hands into the pockets of his knickers. "Never 'ad the nerve, I s’pose."

  Abruptly, he turned and raced out of the alley, leaving Billy standing alone but victorious.

  He looked up and found Mara watching from the top of the fire escape. Then he grinned and gave her a thumbs-up sign just as Nathaniel might have done. She gave a sigh of relief and mirrored the gesture. She smiled back at him, her heart threatening to burst with pride. The realization hit her with sudden force.

  Nathaniel had been right all along. Some risks were worth taking, and some things were worth fighting for.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  After his morning squash game, Lord Leyland paid a visit to his new bankers. Milton Abercrombie was flattered and pleased that Lord Leyland had deigned to visit the bank in person, but his pleasure quickly changed to alarm at the viscount's first words.

  "I have come about a very serious matter, sir."

  "Oh, dear." Abercrombie made a worried, fluttering motion of his hand. "Please sit down, my lord."

  Lord Leyland took the offered chair opposite the banker's desk. "This is a grave situation," he said, settling back in the chair. "I felt it required my personal attention."

  "Is—" The banker licked his suddenly dry lips. "Is something wrong?"

  "When I first came to you, I was confident that your bank would be able to provide me with investment opportunities that were both profitable and secure." The viscount looked down and studied his manicured hands. "But I fear my confidence may have been misplaced. I have concerns about your solvency."

  Abercrombie was aghast. "We have been in business for over forty years, and there has never been a run on our bank. I assure you, we are one of the safest banks in England."

  Lord Leyland met his gaze across the desk. "Nonetheless, I feel compelled to discuss my concerns with you."

  "Of course," the banker murmured faintly.

  "You must understand, I will soon be responsible for a substantial fortune. When I marry in April, I will need to be completely satisfied that your bank is safe before I place any further investments with you."

  His lordship's money—or lack of money, if the rumors were true—was not crucial to the bank's business. But his future control of Honoria Montrose's millions and the promise that those funds would be funneled through Joslyn Brothers was another matter entirely.

  Abercrombie hastened to put the viscount at ease. "My lord, you may be assured that we make our financial decisions very carefully. We would never put the investments of our clients at risk."

  "Indeed?" Leyland leaned forward. "I find myself doubting that, sir."

  Abercrombie's hands began to shake. "I am dismayed that you should feel that way. What has brought about these apprehensions?"

  "I have recently been informed that my brother has taken a loan with your firm, and I know that he actually used my name as a reference."

  "He mentioned you, my lord,” Abercrombie confirmed. “Yes, indeed."

  Adrian shook his head. "I cannot believe he had the gall."

  "I...I'm not quite...quite certain I understand," the banker stammered, his uneasiness rapidly eroding into panic.

  "My brother is an irresponsible fool, sir. When our father died, he unwisely left forty-nine percent of Chase Toys to Nathaniel. If it had not been for me, my brother would have bankrupted the company. Most of the difficulties I face today are a direct result of his foolish decisions."

  "My lord, I had no idea!"

  Leyland sighed. "It's not something I would wish to have widely known. I trust you will keep this information to yourself?"

  "Of course, my lord. I shall be most discreet."

  "I hope so. It would be most unfortunate if I were forced to take my business elsewhere. It would be even more unfortunate if, when I marry, I would be unable to bring my wife's investments here. I require discretion and safety from my bankers, sir."

  "I understand, my lord." Abercrombie nodded several times for emphasis. "What can I do to reassure you that your investments and that of your bride would be completely safe here?"

  The viscount set his jaw, his expression hardening in a way that only further alarmed the banker. "Call my brother's loan."

  "Oh, dear." Abercrombie clucked like a distressed hen. "I'm not at all certain we can do that, my lord. It is not our policy to call a loan without cause. Perhaps—"

  "Then let me provide you with cause, sir. My brother falsely used my name as a reference, because he couldn't possibly have obtained this loan any other way. Why, his own suppliers won't even give him thirty days' credit."

  "What?"

  The viscount was quick to press his advantage. "They are demanding cash on delivery, sir. It's appalling that your bank would be so gullible. East End tin vendors and brass foundries can spot a fraud more easily than you."

  "Oh, my." Abercrombie's voice was a squeak.

  "You can see, I'm sure, that this situation is at the root of my concerns. I have money on account with you and it frightens me that my money could be at risk because your bank makes poor decisions. I need reassurance that all my future investments with you will not be in jeopardy."

  He paused long enough for Abercrombie to appreciate the ramifications, then he spoke again. "Call his loan."

  The banker straightened in his chair. "I understand, my lord. I'll see to it immediately."

  Lord Leyland smiled, a tiny, ironic smile. "Yes, I thought you would."

  ***

  It was late morning when a messenger came to the factory, delivering a letter to Mara from Joslyn Brothers, a letter addressed to both Nathaniel and herself. Puzzled that the bank would send a letter so urgent that it could not be delivered by post, she opened it and frowned in disbelief at the typewritten words. Her disbelief changed to alarm, then numb shock as she read the letter through several more times.

  "You should've seen it, Nathaniel. Jimmy ran like a scared rabbit! An' I got me cap back an' everything."

  Billy's enthusiastic recounting of the story interrupted her fourth reading of the letter as Nathaniel and Billy entered the office together.

  Nathaniel noticed the expression on her face. "Mara, what is it?"

  She turned to the boy. "Billy, I want you to go to Mrs. O'Brien's and fetch some milk for Algernon."

  "Right now?" Billy frowned, puzzled. "We already fed 'im this mornin'. Remember? After me fight with Jimmy, you sent me for the milk—"

  "Now."

  The hard edge of her voice startled him. "Yes, ma'am."

  He departed without another word.

  Nathaniel crossed over to her desk. "What's wrong?"

  She thrust the letter at him. "Joslyn Brothers is calling our loan," she said, and as she spoke the words aloud, she began to shake.

  "What?" He took the paper from her trembling fingers and read it quickly, then crumpled the paper into a ball and tossed it onto the desk. "That bastard," he muttered to himself.

  "How did he manage it?" Mara rubbed her hand around the back of her neck, feeling a headache coming on, feeling the old, familiar panic. "Joslyn Brothers has an impeccable reputation. He couldn't have bribed them."

  "Couldn't he have?" Nathaniel gave a heavy sigh and raked a hand through his hair. "I'm sure the idea of all Honoria Montrose's money coming to their bank in the future was incentive eno
ugh to cooperate."

  "Who?"

  "Honoria Montrose, the American heiress. Adrian's engaged to her. They're to be married in April."

  "Oh, no." Mara groaned and buried her face in her hands.

  Nathaniel stared down at her bent head, knowing he had to do something. Finch was still trying to find the evidence they needed to put a stop to Adrian's schemes. But to do that, the solicitor needed time, and time had just run out. Barely able to control the rage and frustration he had been keeping in check for so many years, Nathaniel turned away and headed for the door. "I'll be back later."

  "Where are you off to?" she cried, but he did not answer.

  He walked out of the office, slamming the door behind him, and left the factory. He hailed a cab, giving the driver the address of the Chase Toy Company. He formed no strategy, he made no plan. His anger was in control of him now, and the only thought on his mind was wrapping his hands around his brother's throat. He found it a very tempting notion.

  ***

  It was galling to see Adrian's secretary show no surprise at his arrival, but it was adding insult to injury when the secretary said, "Yes, sir. Lord Leyland has been expecting you."

  He followed the secretary down the long corridor to the door at the end. After a soft knock, the secretary opened the door to announce him.

  Nathaniel walked in, and Adrian rose from behind the polished mahogany desk. Nathaniel gritted his teeth at his brother's triumphant smile of greeting.

  "Good morning, little brother. What brings you here?"

  Nathaniel was in no mood for trite small talk. He yanked out one of the upholstered chairs opposite Adrian's desk and sat down, uninvited. "Let's forget the polite preliminaries, shall we? I told you before and I'll tell you again, it won’t work."

  "But of course it will work, because you're out of options." His brother's smile widened as he leaned back in his chair. "When do you leave?"