The Cheater's Game: Glass and Steele, #7

by C. J. Archer

  "That's right," said the third.

  The second woman shook her head. "She was definitely alone. She complained about the membership fee for joining on the night. If she'd been a guest of her landlady, she wouldn't have needed to join and pay the higher fee. She could have paid the lower one. You must be mistaken because she was quite alone. I distinctly remember her complaining about everything. The cost, the food, the lecture. I walked off after five minutes, particularly when she didn't seem to be listening to a word I said. That must have been when she joined you both."

  The first and third woman both looked at one another. "I found her delightful," said one, and her friend agreed.

  They must have been talking about two different women. "I'm asking about the blonde American," I said.

  "Yes," all three chimed.

  I blinked. Blinked again. And then the answer hit me like a brick. May Draper must have been here that night too! She must have been the one complaining about the cost who'd come alone, and the other was the mystery beauty, the guest of her landlady.

  I turned to the two who'd spoken to the mystery woman. "Do either of you recall her name or that of the member she came with?"

  One shook her head. The other said, "I think it was Dot or Dotty."

  "I'm looking for her, as it happens. It's quite important that I find her. Did she mention where she's lodging?"

  Both shook their heads.

  I found Willie chatting to a group of women near the table of food. She had a sandwich in one hand and a slice of cake in another. She saw me and grinned.

  Mrs. Broxham announced the refreshment break was over and it was time to return to the lecture room. Willie shoved the sandwich into her mouth and tucked the cake into her coat pocket before she joined me.

  "You'll never believe it," I said as the room emptied.

  Willie mumbled something unintelligible around her mouthful of food.

  "She was here, but so was May Draper," I said.

  "I know," Willie managed to say.

  "Did you find out the mystery woman's name?"

  "Dotty."

  "Her last name?"

  She shook her head.

  "Apparently she came with her landlady," I went on. "But she's not here tonight."

  Willie wiped her mouth with her sleeve. "Damn."

  "Quite. Come on, we'd better return to the lecture."

  "Not me. I need a drink and something better to listen to than that boring old coot." She lowered her voice as the last of the women left the room. "This ain't what I thought it would be like."

  "What did you think it would be like?"

  "A saloon, but with only women."

  I linked her arm with mine and together we slipped out of the club while Mrs. Broxham was busy giving orders to clear the refreshment room.

  "May hasn't been completely honest with us," I said once outside.

  "She's a cheat, like her husband. What'd you expect?"

  Oxford Street felt otherworldly in the evenings. During the day, the road and pavements were thick with traffic and pedestrians, but at night, only a few dining premises remained open. The glow from the streetlights held the shadows back and illuminated the shop window displays. The warmth of the day had been trapped in the city by the blanket of cloud, and it would have been a pleasant walk home, but Matt had insisted we take the carriage.

  "Think I'll go out for a drink," Willie said. She did not climb into the cabin but remained on the pavement, her gaze focused in the middle distance.

  I followed it, peering into the ethereal light cast by the streetlamps. "Willie? Have you seen someone?"

  "Don't know. Did you feel like we were being followed on the way here?"

  "No. Did you?"

  "Maybe. I don't know. I saw a carriage that I thought followed us, but then it drove on after we stopped."

  If I were following someone, I'd drive on after they stopped too, to avoid notice. "Do you see that carriage again?" I asked, checking the vicinity. There were two carriages stopped some distance behind us. One appeared to be a hansom, the other a larger vehicle pulled by two horses.

  "Don't know," she said, climbing in. "Let's drive off and see if any follow."

  She thumped the ceiling and the coachman gave the order to the horse to move on. We watched through the rear window all the way home. No carriages followed all the way; one did take the same route for part of the journey but turned left where we turned right. It had not, however, been one of the carriages parked behind us on Oxford Street.

  "What do you think?" I asked as we alighted at Park Street.

  "I think you're going inside to report to Matt and I'm off to find someone to have fun with."

  "Annie Oakely?"

  She gave me a sly smile. "Maybe."

  She didn't give the coachman instructions until I was out of earshot on the front stoop. Where she went was her own business, but I was wildly curious. Her secrecy only intrigued me more, although it wouldn't surprise me if she were keeping secrets just to irk me.

  The following morning, Matt and I were about to leave the house to speak to May Draper before she left for the day's show, but the arrival of Chronos and Fabian delayed our departure.

  "We can tell them to come back later," I said to Matt when Bristow announced them.

  "I want to speak to them now," he said. "This is more important."

  I didn't agree but kept my mouth shut as he asked Bristow to show them into the drawing room. We met them there two minutes later and had just finished introductions when Bristow announced another visitor.

  "Mr. Hendry is here with your wedding invitations, sir," the butler intoned. "Shall I ask him to wait?"

  "I don't know how long we'll be, and I know he's busy," Matt said. "Tell him we'll collect the invitations from his shop later and pay for them at the same time."

  "Surely he can leave them," Chronos said. "He'll know you're not going to avoid paying him."

  "We're trying to build trust between us," I said.

  "And it'll give us an excuse to call on him again and ask questions related to our investigation," Matt added.

  Bristow bowed out and closed the door behind him.

  I smiled at Fabian. "Forgive us for not offering you tea but we have a pressing engagement this morning. I hope you understand."

  "Should I return later?" he asked, rising.

  "No," both Matt and Chronos said. "We prefer to get this over with," Matt added.

  Fabian dipped his chin in a nod. "You are worried, Mr. Glass. Chronos warned me you would be upset by my presence in your home."

  "Upset is not quite the scale of it," Matt said. "And I prefer you weren't in the country, let alone my house, but here we are and we must deal with you as best we can."

  Fabian's brow creased. "Deal with me?"

  "An American phrase."

  Fabian seemed unperturbed by Matt's rudeness. Indeed, he seemed prepared for it. I hoped he'd come prepared with answers too, because we had a lot of questions.

  "You are the man with the magic watch," Fabian said. "May I see it?"

  "No," Matt said.

  Fabian merely smiled, unperturbed. "You look very well, very healthy."

  "Enough about me. We want you to answer our questions."

  Chronos huffed out a breath. "India, may we speak privately?"

  "Anything you wish to say can be said in front of Matt," I said. "As my future husband, this concerns him too."

  Chronos clasped his hands together, like a preacher urging his congregation to see the light. "I like you, Glass. You're a good man, and India is lucky to be marrying the heir to a barony. But you are not a magician. You don't understand her needs."

  Matt arched his brows. "And you do? You've known her for less time than I have."

  Chronos didn't seem concerned to be reminded of his abandonment of me when I was a baby. "Let me explain it to you. India needs to use her magic. It's a compulsion, an itch she must scratch. If she doesn't use her magic, a restless sen
sation builds and builds inside until it bursts forth."

  "What rot," I scoffed. "I didn't use magic for twenty-four years, and I felt nothing like what you're describing."

  "You were using your magic all the time in the shop, you just didn't know it. Since leaving the shop, you hardly use it at all, because you're not working on watches and clocks. Believe me, the restlessness will soon become noticeable."

  "I work on my new watch all the time. I've even used the spell you gave me. I can do that whenever I want, whenever I experience this restlessness you speak of."

  "It won't be enough. Soon, your own watch will become a part of you, and too easy to fix. You'll need a challenge."

  "Then I'll buy her a clock and she can tinker with that," Matt said.

  Chronos turned to me. "So you won't take Fabian up on his offer?"

  "I have some questions I'd like him to answer," I said. "We both do. Firstly, I want to know who told you about me."

  Fabian hesitated before saying, "Lady Louisa Hollingbroke. I believe you have met her."

  I wasn't surprised to hear it had been her. Her interest in magic extended beyond collecting magical objects. She had been the first to tell me about the language of magic.

  "How do you know her?" I asked.

  "Her father conducted business with my father. We have written to one another for years but met for the first time the day I arrived in London. She warned me you would not be easily convinced about your role."

  "My role in what?"

  "Not in what," Chronos said. "As what. Your role as a spell caster."

  "Your role as my student," Fabian added. "Now, you have questions. Begin, please. What do you wish to know?"

  "Why do you need a spell caster?" I asked.

  "To see if it is possible to create new spells at all."

  "Yes, but why create new spells?"

  "How can I put this?" He paused and focused on a framed painting of a snow-capped mountain range hanging on the wall. "Why does a man climb the tallest mountain? Because it is there, and no one yet knows if it is possible until he reaches the summit."

  I wasn't sure if it was quite the same thing. "And if I do manage to create a new spell, what will it be used for?"

  "That depends on the spell, naturellement. It may not be used at all. It may be written down and filed away. Without knowing the spells you will create, it is impossible to say."

  "You're being evasive," Matt said.

  "I am afraid I cannot be otherwise. I know this troubles you, Mr. Glass, but let me reassure you. India will decide what happens to every spell she creates." Fabian turned to me. "Is that what you wish, India?"

  "It helps," I hedged.

  "Of course it does," Chronos said. "You will be in control, India. Never forget that. What woman doesn't wish that, eh? My wife certainly did." He chuckled but it withered beneath my glare.

  "What's stopping you from using the new spells for your own gain?" Matt asked Fabian.

  "I am a man of honor. I would not promise you one thing then do the other."

  "How do we know we can trust you?"

  Most men would be offended at having their honor questioned, but Fabian took it in his stride. "That is a good question, and one I cannot answer for you. You must decide. Perhaps investigate me." His eyes crinkled at the corners with his smile. "It is what you are good at, no?" At Matt's lack of response, Fabian's smile faded.

  "They are all the questions we have for now," I said. "If you don't mind, we have work to do."

  "Of course, of course." Fabian rose and buttoned up his jacket. "Please, Mr. Glass, do not keep India from this."

  It irked me that he assumed it was up to Matt to make the decision for me. Clearly Chronos hadn't explained our relationship very well.

  "She is a great magician," Fabian went on, his accent thicker. "She is powerful and can be a very great magician. If you love her, you would want that for her, yes?"

  Matt's dry chuckle held not a shred of humor. "So if I refuse her, I don't love her? Is that the message you want her to hear?"

  "Non, non, non." Fabian placed his hand on his chest, over his heart. "Not at all. You do not understand. My English…"

  "I'll let you in on a secret." Matt leaned closer conspiratorially but did not lower his voice. "She doesn't like it when people assume I make the decisions for her, and I can assure you, this decision will be hers."

  "With your advice freely given, no doubt," Chronos bit back.

  Matt straightened. He was no longer smiling, not even cruelly.

  Fabian looked like a gentleman who'd stepped in a horse's deposit with no gracious means of removing it from his shoe. He simply backed away, bowed to me, and left.

  Chronos, however, lingered. Knowing him, he probably wanted to stay for lunch, even though it was hours away. I ought to do the right thing and invite him. A good hostess would. Miss Glass would, even though she disliked Chronos. People like her were used to entertaining guests they disliked. It seemed to be a burden her class bore with relative ease. I was not of her class, though.

  "That wasn't necessary, Glass," Chronos said with all the authority of a father chastising his son. "He's not bad, for a Frenchman, and you can't blame him for thinking you'll be making up India's mind for her."

  "Why can't I blame him for that?" Matt asked. "Perhaps his attitude ought to change."

  Chronos threw his hands up and walked off. "There's no reasoning with you when you're in this mood. Good luck dealing with him today, India. You're going to need it."

  I suspected he was right.

  Chapter 12

  We managed to catch May and Danny Draper just as they were leaving for the Earls Court Exhibition Ground. The show wasn't scheduled to start for another three hours, but Danny insisted they needed that much time to prepare.

  He brushed past us on the pavement, but Matt grabbed his arm, while I blocked May's exit from the Childs Street house.

  "We have some questions for you," Matt said.

  "We have nothing more to say to you," Danny spat.

  "Don't make me use force to extract answers."

  Danny swallowed. Matt simply smiled.

  "You're not the police," May said, trying to push past me.

  I moved to block her again. I was taller, and I liked to think that made me somewhat intimidating. But she only stopped trying to pass me when she glanced at Matt. I suspected his foul mood had more to do with subduing her than my presence.

  "If you don't co-operate, we will assume you killed Emmett," I said.

  That got the response I wanted. May's eyes widened and her jaw went slack. "B—but…we didn't!"

  "Then why are you hindering our investigation?"

  "We're not," Danny said.

  "Your wife is. She didn't tell us she met with the blonde woman, Dotty. She knew we were searching for her—"

  "I did not!" May cried.

  "You knew," Matt growled. "We've wasted our time looking for her, and I do not like wasting time."

  May stepped back from the threshold. I followed, crowding her so that she took another step back. Matt thrust Danny through the door and followed him. He slammed the door shut.

  "Tell us about Dotty," I said. "If you don't, we'll leave you to Scotland Yard's men. They'll have no qualms detaining you until you give them answers."

  May hesitated.

  "Tell them!" Danny urged her. "Or they'll think we killed Emmett."

  "All right." May put up her hands, warding us off. "Dotty was Emmett's girl, back home. She followed him to England and their relationship continued for a short while. It was all very secretive."

  "Why?"

  "Because he has a wife."

  "Why did you go to the New Somerville Club to speak to Dotty?" Matt asked.

  "I heard she was going to a lecture there. I didn't know where else to find her so I went too. She avoided me all night, but I caught up to her outside afterward. I wanted to ask her why she and Emmett ended their relationship. I knew she had
, because whenever I saw her outside our lodgings, she would glare up at his window. She looked mad. I wanted to find out why."

  "I don't understand why you would care," I said.

  May lifted one shoulder.

  "So she could blackmail Emmett," Matt filled in. "She hoped to learn something that she could use to force Emmett to include Danny in his cheating scheme again."

  "What scheme?" May asked, too innocently.

  Neither Matt nor I bothered to answer her. "So did Dotty tell you why their relationship ended?" I asked.

  One side of May's mouth curled up. "She's with child. His child. When she told him, he refused to believe it was his. He told her to get rid of it as he wouldn't give her money and he couldn't marry her."

  That explained why she glared angrily at Emmett at the pub and liked it when Duke punched him.

  "Bill Cody doesn't want that kind of scandal getting out," she went on. "He would fire Emmett if the newspapers reported it."

  "So you threatened to tell Bill Cody if Emmett didn't include Danny in his scheme again," I said. "Did he try to silence you and you shot him?"

  "No, no, that's not what happened," Danny said, standing with May. He took her hand, but she snatched it away. His shoulders sagged. He looked every bit the pouting youth denied a treat.

  "You're partly right." May crossed her arms. "Yes, I spoke to Dotty so I could find something to blackmail Emmett with. But I didn't approach Emmett. I was worried he'd get angry and began having doubts. He has a temper. A violent one. I didn't tell you before for this very reason—you would assume I'd killed him."

  "Thank you for telling us," I said. "It's best to be honest so we can concentrate on finding the real killer. So you both knew Emmett was cheating at poker, is that correct?"

  Danny sighed and nodded. May nodded too. "We don't know how he did it," she said. "He wouldn't reveal his secrets. Do you want to know where to find Dotty? I can tell you, if you like. She gave me her address in the hope that I would spy on Emmett for her and feed her information about him. She was jealous and wanted him to herself."

  I wrote down the address on the notepad I carried in my reticle. It wasn't too far away. We could visit next.