The Complete 1st Freak House Trilogy: Box set (The 1st Freak House Trilogy)

by C. J. Archer

  "We'll wait and speak to him directly," Jack said. "Will he be long?"

  Her lips pressed into a thin line. "Let's hope not."

  Silence blanketed us, and I shifted uncomfortably as Mrs. Myer's gaze flicked between Samuel and myself. It was as if she couldn't decide which of us was more interesting. Yet she didn't ask questions. I'd found that strangers usually liked to pinpoint where we were from, who we were connected to, that sort of thing. It was a way of categorizing us, I supposed, and helped determine how we should be treated. Mrs. Myer asked us nothing. It was refreshing in a way, yet disconcerting at the same time. I wasn't sure how to react.

  It appeared it drove Samuel to distraction too. His fingers drummed on his knee and his foot tapped on the rug. He avoided Mrs. Myer's scrutiny by staring at the door, as if he could conjure her husband by sheer force of will. What was wrong with him? Why was he so agitated?

  Finally, a man joined us, thank God. His entrance broke the tension in the room. Samuel sprang off the sofa as if something had bitten him. He thrust out his hand in greeting. "Mr. Everett Myer?"

  "Yes," the man said, smiling.

  "My name is Samuel Gladstone."

  Myer shook his hand. He was as tall as his wife, but more slender with long, fine fingers. He had very little hair on the top of his head, most of it having migrated southward to his side whiskers and eyebrows. He wasn't a handsome man, but pleasant enough to look at with his gentle smile and soft hazel eyes. He introduced himself to each of us, bowing when he came to me in a most gracious manner.

  To Jack he said, "Langley? Are you a relation to August Langley of Frakingham?"

  "He's my uncle," Jack said. "You know him?"

  "We've met. I hear his estate is an ancient one with ruins of an old abbey on it. I have a passing interest in archaeology," he explained.

  "It is indeed old."

  "Please forgive my footman's brusqueness earlier. I'd given him instructions not to disturb me while I finished some business matters."

  Mrs. Myer's cough didn't quite cover her derisive snort, which I think was her intention.

  "Ah, Edith dear," he said with a sigh in his voice. "You're here." Had he not seen her when he walked in? Or was that his way of reluctantly acknowledging a wife he didn't like?

  Her glare was so cool it could have soothed my hot skin if it had been directed at me. "Of course I'm here. I couldn't allow your guests to languish in the hall."

  Myer's fingers stretched at his sides. He turned to us, but the gentleness had gone, replaced by a frosty glint in his eyes. "Shall we adjourn to my study?"

  "No need for that," Mrs. Myer said before anyone could answer. "Stay here where it's more comfortable. I'll have Adamson serve tea."

  "We wouldn't want to bore you with business matters, dear."

  "It wouldn't be a bore. I would very much enjoy hearing what these young people have to say. Besides, I do believe they're not here to discuss business at all. Mr. Gladstone seems to have a familiarity about him. If you look into his eyes, perhaps you can see it too, Everett. Go on, look."

  Myer did not look, merely shook his head at her. There was a sort of tug-of-war happening between them, but I wasn't sure of the rules or who was winning.

  "Edith, dear," he said, standing in front of his wife, blocking my view. "Perhaps you ought to retire. You did say earlier that you had a sore throat." His voice was like honey warmed by sunshine. It made my head hum and my eyes droop. It was compelling and eerily familiar.

  A sharp shock in my shoulder jolted me out of my stupor. Jack glared at me and shook his head. I frowned back, and he showed me his finger. It was red. He had touched me, firing a spark between us. Whatever for?

  Then it struck me. I was being sucked into a trance by Everett Myer's voice. He was hypnotizing his wife! I swallowed my gasp and blinked back at Jack. He gave me a reassuring smile. Now that Myer had stopped, I was in no danger of succumbing, yet I still couldn't quite believe what had happened.

  So it was true. Myer was a hypnotist, and a powerful one at that. One who didn't need a swaying object or very much time if his wife's vacant look was anything to go by. Like Samuel.

  I tried to catch Samuel's eye, but he didn't notice. He was staring at the Myers, his brow deeply furrowed and anger vibrating off him.

  "I think I'm getting a sore throat," Mrs. Myer said, staring at her husband with adoring eyes.

  "Perhaps you should retire to your room to rest," Myer said. "I'll see you later, my dear." He held out his hand and she took it. "Say goodbye to our guests, Edith."

  "Goodbye," she said, and left the room.

  I watched her go in stunned silence. There were a million questions I wanted to ask, but I couldn't get my tongue to work. I was utterly speechless.

  "That was low, Myer," Samuel said, his jaw hardly moving.

  "Agreed." Fury edged Jack's voice like sharp flint.

  Myer sat in the seat his wife had vacated and crossed his legs. He didn't seem to care what opinion we had of him. "She'll suffer no ill effects. I'm very sorry you had to witness that. She's a stubborn woman and needs a little husbandly guidance from time to time."

  "Don't you dare try to justify it," Samuel growled. "Not to me and especially not to yourself. What you did was despicable."

  Myer seemed taken aback by the outburst. He frowned at Samuel and gave a single shake of his head. "It's nothing more than what you yourself have done, Mr. Gladstone."

  I gasped. "You know what Samuel is?"

  "I do now. I admit that I didn't suspect a thing at first, although Edith did. Perhaps her experience with me has led her to see the same quality in others. You two gentlemen are immune, it seems. Although you look quite pale, Miss Smith. It is Hannah Smith, isn't it?"

  It took me a few moments to recover. Myer seemed quite unconcerned by the fact that he'd just hypnotized his wife and equally unconcerned that we knew it. I hadn't feared him before, but that may have been a mistake. If someone from the Society had paid Mott to summon the demon, there was no reason why it couldn't have been Myer himself.

  "I am Hannah Smith."

  "Just now you said that I know what Samuel is," he went on. "Which would imply he is the only one of the three of you who is like me." His gaze focused on Jack. "That begs the question, why are you not touched by my little parlor trick, Mr. Langley?"

  "It's no parlor trick," Jack said. "It's a despicable practice." He stood and approached Myer. Myer smiled. If it weren't for the vein pulsing above his collar, I would have thought him unafraid. "Nobody deserves to be hypnotized against their will."

  "Calm down, Mr. Langley. Don't pretend you haven't been a party to Mr. Gladstone's own hypnotizing on occasion."

  A lump weighed heavily in my chest. We had indeed witnessed Samuel hypnotize a woman, but only to find out where her sister lived. She'd been Reuben Tate's housekeeper and our only link to finding him. Surely Myer didn't know that. How could he?

  "Enough games," Jack snapped. "We know who you are. We know you hypnotized Hannah when she was a child."

  "Is that what this visit is about?"

  "Yes and no."

  "Which is it, Mr. Langley? Yes or no?"

  "Mr. Myer," I said before Jack's temper could make matters worse, "are you a member of the Society For Supernatural Activity?"

  "That's not the question I thought you were going to ask," he said with a laugh. The tension left his shoulders, and his eyes brightened. "I am a member. I am also the Grand Master."

  "Grand Master?" Jack said. "So you give the orders?"

  "Orders to do what, Mr. Langley?"

  "To summon demons."

  CHAPTER 4

  Myer's eyebrows drew together to form a bushy hedge. He pressed himself into his seat and held up his hands, warding Jack off. "Mr. Langley…I…I don't know what to say to that. Demons? What in God's name are you implying?"

  I rubbed my temple where it felt like a small hammer was tapping away at my skull. I was hot, tired and my patience had
worn thin shortly after walking through the door. The Myers were an exhausting couple. "Don't play the innocent with us," I said to him. "We know you're aware of the existence of demons, just as you are aware that the power of hypnosis isn't necessarily a learned gift. So, does Mr. Langley need to ask you the question again?"

  Myer's nostrils flared. I half expected him to try to hypnotize me as he'd done his wife, but he did something more unexpected instead. He smiled. "I like your spirit, Miss Smith. You are correct. I do know about demons, but I didn't want to be tricked into admitting anything. There are some people in this country who would commit members of the Society to asylums simply for stating they believe in demons and other paranormal things. It's a natural tendency of mine to be cautious."

  "Of course. I'm sorry, Mr. Myer, I hope you can forgive me." He had taken a risk, and it was only fair that I acknowledge that. It didn't mean I trusted him.

  Myer clasped his hands together and rubbed one thumb along the other. "Let me assure you that I have never summoned a demon, nor have I given the orders to anyone else in the Society to do so."

  "Why should we believe you?" Samuel asked. For someone usually so amenable, he was behaving rather aggressively toward Myer. I thought he would have liked to meet someone like himself. Myer may have hypnotized his wife in front of us, but it wasn't like Samuel had never done it. He'd hinted that he'd committed numerous sins with his talent in the past that he was now ashamed of.

  "Because it's the truth, Mr. Gladstone," Myer said. "There's no way I can prove it, so you'll just have to have faith and trust me." He turned to Jack. "You'd better tell me why you've come here accusing me of such a despicable thing."

  Jack returned to the sofa and explained about the demon that had tormented us for several days until we'd managed to kill it.

  "Kill it?" Myer echoed, frowning. "You mean sent it back."

  Jack leveled his gaze on Myer's. "It's gone. That's all that matters."

  Myer's thumb rubbed faster. "Of course. I'm glad it's no longer here. Very glad. A demon running loose is an extremely dangerous thing."

  "You have experience with demons?"

  "Not personally. I'm no demonologist. Others in our organization have more knowledge of these matters than I do. I leave the demon hunting to them."

  "Do you know of anyone who might summon one?" Jack asked.

  "Of course not. Why would they do such a thing?"

  "To do harm," Samuel said. "Revenge. Greed. Jealousy. Why does anyone do anything evil, Mr. Myer?"

  Myer's thumbs stilled. "A good question, Mr. Gladstone. Let me assure you, the members of the Society are carefully selected. They have an interest in the supernatural, but from a curiosity and scientific perspective only. We don't allow loose cannons."

  "How fortunate that you're able to see into a person's mind and know what they're thinking."

  Myer tilted his head to the side and regarded Samuel through narrowed eyes. He stared for so long that I felt uncomfortable for Samuel. Remarkably, he didn't look away. He met the other man's scrutiny without blinking. "You know I can't do that," Myer said. "My talent doesn't stretch so far. Does yours?"

  "No."

  A log in the fireplace shifted as the low flames ate through it. The movement broke the standoff between the two men, and they both looked away. I couldn't determine what had just transpired, and I didn't try too hard to think it through. My head hurt enough.

  "Why do you think a member of Society summoned the demon?" Myer asked.

  "We're not certain," Jack said. "It's one option we're considering among others." He explained about Mott and how his widow mentioned he'd met with someone from a 'Society.'

  Myer unclasped his hands. "That's flimsy evidence at best."

  "We're aware of that," Samuel said through a clenched jaw.

  "And what are your other options?"

  "We don't have to discuss them with you."

  "Samuel," I said gently.

  He tore his gaze away from Myer and raised his brows at me. "You wish to tell him…everything? Are you sure?"

  "It's quite all right." I tried to smile, but it probably wasn't very convincing if his worried frown was anything to go by. Beside me, Jack shifted a little closer, but he didn't try to counsel me against speaking. I wasn't sure I wanted to talk about it, but it was necessary. Myer had a long history with Lord Wade and the Society, and that meant he probably knew Reuben Tate. It also meant he was aware of unnatural phenomena. He might be shocked by my revelations, but he wouldn't call me mad.

  I told him everything, beginning with how Tate had summoned a demon and used the creature to try to abduct me. I went on to explain why Tate wanted me and that led to my fire starting and failing health.

  "Miss Smith, I…" He approached and squatted beside me. He took my hand and cradled it loosely in his own. Whatever unethical things he'd done with his hypnosis, I was certain that the sympathy in his eyes was genuine. "I don't know what to say except that I'll help in any way I can."

  "There's nothing you can do," I said, forcing myself to smile for him. I saw no point in wallowing in his pity. "Unless you know of a cure."

  "I'm afraid not."

  "Do not pretend that you're shocked," Jack snapped.

  Whatever had upset him? Did he not like Myer touching me? Did he think Myer was trying to hypnotize me?

  Myer let go of my hand and returned to his chair. "Mr. Langley, I can assure you I am very shocked."

  "You knew she could start fires," Samuel said. "We know you hypnotized her as a child at Lord Wade's request."

  "Yes. Well. That's true. It improved her immeasurably."

  "Improved her?" Jack snarled. "She was a child!"

  "Her ability frightened her, Mr. Langley. Have you ever witnessed a terrified two year-old? No? Let me tell you, it's not an easy thing to calm one. After I put the narcolepsy and memory block in place through hypnosis, she forgot her temper and slept through the worst of it before she could do too much damage. I labeled it a success, as did Lord Wade."

  "I label it inhuman. What you did was unforgiveable and a gross abuse of your power." Jack's voice was as cold and sharp as a shard of glass.

  Myer clasped his hands in his lap again. The knuckles went white. "Don't judge me, Mr. Langley. You weren't there. Lord Wade and I did what we thought best. Mr. Gladstone, I hope you understand at least."

  Samuel looked down at the floor and didn't answer.

  "Miss Smith?"

  "I don't think we should dredge up the past," I said. "What's done is done."

  Jack closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He gave a single nod. "Let's discuss the present and how you can help us now, Myer."

  "I'm not sure that I can," he said. "If Tate summoned one demon, it stands to reason that he summoned the other by the same means."

  "One doesn't automatically equate to the other," Samuel said, looking up. His eyes were clear and bright. Where earlier he'd been angry with Myer for hypnotizing without consent, I was beginning to think he saw the likeness to himself now.

  "Whether Tate did it or not, it doesn't matter," I said. "We don't know where he is."

  "Do you?" Jack asked our host.

  Myer shook his head. "I haven't seen Reuben Tate or August Langley for many years. Not since they let their membership lapse."

  "What were they like?" I asked. "Others have said they were brilliant."

  "They were. They had a fiery partnership though." He winced. "My apologies, I should have chosen a better word."

  "That's quite all right." I removed my gloves to cool my hands. They'd grown progressively hotter. My head ached too, and my skin prickled. I needed to escape the room soon and get into the fresh, cool air. I didn't want to faint in the Myers' drawing room.

  "Tate and Langley argued like a poorly matched married couple," Myer said. "But when they set aside their differences and worked together, they produced marvelous things. I wasn't surprised when I heard that one of their cures sold for a substantial amount
of money. It was a shame they went their separate ways after that. A great shame."

  "What exactly did they do for the Society?"

  "Nothing in an official capacity. Studying the supernatural was a hobby of theirs. Their investigations into the scientific basis for unexplained phenomena helped us determine who was fraudulent and who was genuine, particularly in the area of spirit mediums and hypnosis."

  "Hypnosis!" Samuel said. "So Langley has been aware of people with natural hypnotic abilities for some time?"

  "Oh yes. He even studied me. He declared me genuine. Has he done the same for you, Mr. Gladstone?"

  "He hasn't studied me."

  Myer laughed. "Don't be so sure about that."

  Samuel pouted and looked as if he would ask another question, so I got in first. "Do you know why they stopped being friends?"

  "Why not ask Langley himself?" This he said to Jack.

  "We have," Jack said. "Now we're asking you, Mr. Myer."

  Myer's Adam's apple bobbed furiously. "I don't know. I never knew them well."

  "Do you know of anyone else in the Society who can start fires?" I asked.

  "You're the only one I've met, Miss Smith. And Tate as it turns out, although that's news to me."

  Nobody told him about Jack, nor would we. Myer did not need to know all our secrets.

  "Do we have any more questions for Mr. Myer?" I asked Jack. Talking had taxed me. All I wanted to do was get cool and sleep.

  Jack must have understood. "We'll go," he said, rising.

  "Wait," Myer said. "I have a question for you, Mr. Langley. Why didn't you feel something when I hypnotized my wife? Mr. Gladstone is immune, and I could see that Miss Smith was affected by my voice, but not you. Why?"

  Jack lifted one shoulder. "I don't know. Have you never met anyone who wasn't affected?"

  "No. Never. Have you, Mr. Gladstone?"

  Samuel smiled, and I was relieved to see it was his usual charming one, dimples and all. He'd been out of sorts ever since our arrival. "Only Langley here."

  One corner of Jack's mouth lifted in a cocky smile. It was pure arrogance, yet I loved it. I suspected he enjoyed keeping his secret from Myer just as much as I did.