The man stopped his pacing and looked at Alexander and nodded, “Alright.”
Alexander could sense that Lord Stansfield as not alright. His fear was evident and Alexander had to do something to calm the man down.
“Lord Stansfield, I need…no…we need you to be strong tonight.”
Stansfield looked confused, “We?”
Alexander nodded, “Marcella and I need you to succeed tonight. She needs to believe in you again. What happens in the Boar room tonight affects you, your family, and my future wife’s happiness. If we both fail tonight, she will never speak to either of us again. You have to be strong, and if you cannot then fake it. Sometimes we must put up a façade in order to protect ourselves from our true feelings, and from the ones we love. I know this by personal experience, but I am no longer that man. I am not going to let Marcella down. Do you understand me Lord Stansfield?”
Lord Stansfield grinned, “Yes, yes I believe I do. I will do what I can.”
Alexander looked down at the time again, “You have three minutes now sir, surely you know where the Boar room is. I will enter the room five minutes after you. Be strong Lord Stansfield.”
Lord Stansfield walked over to the door, opened, took a deep breath, and walked out of the room with some new confidence in his stride. Alexander breathed in and out. He had to get this right. He would have to win this game tonight, and not for himself or for Lord Stansfield, but for Marcella and her four sisters.
Alexander looked at his pocket-watch, and decided it was time to leave the room. He had a few minutes to spare before going to the Boar room. He figured that he should make his presence known here tonight. If he showed up out of nowhere, it would be really suspicious. So, he made his way down to the gambling floor.
Tables all around him were being used to play whist, poker, craps, biriba, and many local and international games. All were available to be played. It was a busy night at Circe’s Palace.
Many familiar, and unfamiliar, faces were all over the place. He nodded to a few and grinned to others. He checked the time once more on his pocket-watch, he had a couple of minutes left before he had to be in the Boar room.
Alexander walked past the room to see Stansfield laughing nonchalantly with Mr. Coll. How about that, the indigent gambler was an excellent actor after all. Thank God.
A woman came to his side and asked him comfortably, “Would you like a drink my Lord?”
Alexander glanced at the short woman. She wore a golden mask that covered her face completely, her golden-blonde hair was pulled tightly above her head in braids. She was dressed in a costume of green velvet drapes, and she looked rather familiar to him, but he didn’t have to time to figure out who she was right now.
So he simply nodded, “A scotch would be grand, thank you.”
She curtsied and strode away from him.
It was time.
He stepped into the Boar room with a large fake smile on his face. Mr. Coll saw him and stood up to greet him right away, he looked guilty of something.
“Lord Westbrook! Nice to see again so soon since the Stanton’s Ball.”
Alexander smirked and turned on his rakish side, “I wanted to have some mature fun tonight, if you know what I mean Coll.”
The men started laughing and Alexander looked over to the table, “What are you playing Mr. Coll? I’d love to join in, if you don’t mind of course.”
Mr. Coll gurgled, “They have a special dealer tonight who happens to favor Old Maid. Have you played it before?”
Alexander nodded, “Years ago at a Graves garden party in Kent.”
Mr. Coll turned lobster-red, he was definitely guilty, “Well, um…then you should play. You shall play! The more money you lose, the more I gain. Come to the table, I already have someone lined up to play with us.”
Alexander walked over to Lord Ernest Stansfield and looked at the red-haired man. He stood away from the table and looked stunned as he saw Alexander, “This might be the tallest man I’ve ever seen Benedict, what is he…part Giant?”
Mr. Coll motioned for Alexander to sit across from him as he laughed at Lord Stansfield, “Uncle, I hope you don’t mind but I’ve invited Lord Westbrook to join our game. The more the merrier I always say.”
Of course he did.
Alexander shook hands with Lord Stansfield, “Pleased to meet you Lord Stansfield, I believe I danced with your daughter the other night at the Stanton’s Ball.”
Lord Ernest simply nodded, “Likewise my lord, that must have been good fun.”
The dealer finally made his way to the table, however he was actually a she.
In fact, she was the woman in the green velvet drapes who had taken his drink order minutes ago. The dealer was a woman? Well that was a first for Alexander, but then again Viktor was not a misogynist pig. He valued women, and he always gave the women in his life what they wanted because he believed that they deserved it all.
The dealer sat down at the table and smiled at all the men at the table, “My name is Brianna, and I will be your dealer tonight gentlemen.”
She sounded Scottish, but Alexander knew better. Her name was not Brianna, and she did not hail from Scotland. This was Emilia, no doubt about it. Tricky thing she was. She had most likely taken a hackney and followed them out here.
Emilia had learned from the very best, and she would never get caught because of that fact. She was wearing that golden mask that covered her face, and her hair even seemed lighter than usual. It must be one of those many wigs, or even the makeup powders, that Viktor had lying about.
Another woman came from the side door with a tray that had a bottle of Scotch and three glasses on it. The dealer motioned for the woman to pass the glasses out as she said, “Gentleman, here’s a Scottish treat. The bottle is on me.”
Mr. Coll looked the dealer up and down with a smirk as his gaze lingered on her bosom, “I appreciate the hospitality, but the quicker we start the game the better.”
The dealer nodded with a seductive smile, “Of course sir, I am here to serve you as you wish.”
A man in red came in with a new deck of cards and placed it on the table right in front of the dealer. This was one Viktor’s Four Horsemen. The man wore red to symbolize war, and war this was about to be.
Emilia took the deck and showed it to the men in front of her, “The game is Old Maid. Do you all know how to play?”
All the men nodded and the dealer took the deck of cards into her hands, shuffling them like a proper professional. Alexander made a quick mental note. Do not play cards with Lady Emilia Hamill, ever again.
“The Queen of Hearts will be the old maid. The gentleman to my left will pick from the pile I offer him. If the dealer holds the old maid in the end, then a second game will be forced to be played amongst the original players at this table.”
Alexander caught movement from behind Mr. Coll. He was beyond relieved to see Vincent entering the room from a backdoor with Viktor. Igor was not too far behind his boss. How that man crouched bellow the door panels everyday in this place amazed Alexander, the man surely must have some serious neck pain.
Viktor motioned for the giant Russian to go to the back corner of the room. Igor then walked over to the corner and didn’t move once he got there. Alexander could have sworn that the man wasn’t even blinking.
Viktor then sat down with Vincent at an adjacent table to Alexander’s and signaled for someone to get them some drinks.
Emilia began to deal the cards clockwise and Alexander could sense the angst that Lord Stansfield was beginning to feel, Mr. Coll on the other hand was extremely undisturbed, and that made Alexander suspicious of the man.
He made another quick mental note, this man next to him was ready to pounce for blood, and put an end to his so-called uncle.
Emilia finished shuffling and waited for Alexander to pull a card from her dealer’s hand. He then discarded two kings face up on the table, then Stansfield pulled a card from Westbrook’s pile and then discarded
two sevens, and so on. Alexander could see Lord Stansfield’s cards from his chair.
He did his best to suppress a groan as he saw Stansfield’s cards. What an unfortunate gambler his future father-in-law was. The man had the Queen of Hearts, the Old Maid.
This was not good for Alexander’s plan.
He had hoped that Mr. Coll would get the Old Maid in his card pile, and from there the evening could’ve gone as Alexander had originally planned. This simply proved to Alexander that no one could tempt the fates, especially when it came to card games.
Pairs were being discarded at a quicker rate than was usual, and Alexander knew that this game would be finished a lot quicker than he had originally presumed it would be.
Mr. Coll gurgled as he discarded a pair of Aces. Lord Stansfield looked over to Alexander quickly, and Alexander winked at him in a supportive way. What else could he do right now?
He had to keep the man relaxed.
A miracle was going to be needed to win this game right now. The game was coming to an end, and it was clear to Mr. Coll that Lord Stansfield had the Old Maid. Mr. Coll was grinning from ear to ear like a naughty child who had gotten away with stealing.
Alexander was furious, but he wouldn’t let his emotions get the better of him. It was time for Lord Stansfield to show the Old Maid, and he did. Mr. Coll started laughing vehemently, “I knew you had it, now it’s time for you to give me my winnings Lord Stansfield.”
What happened to using the word Uncle?
Lord Stansfield turned to Mr. Coll with a blank face as he said, “What do you want Mr. Coll? Money, land, both?”
Mr. Coll chuckled, “I’ve done things to ensure that I get the titled lands once you die. Which, I expect, will not be long after this loss truly hits you in your feeble brain. As for the money, you can simply write down on a piece of paper that you bequeath it all, to me, your heir. Mr. Benedict Coll of Ipswich.”
Lord Stansfield was turning red and he was about say something to Mr. Coll, but instead the man stood up, bowed to the table, and then quickly rushed out of the room. Alexander wanted to follow behind him, but he knew that if he did that then it would look suspicious.
Mr. Coll laughed as he looked at Alexander, “Well Lord Westbrook, from you I would like a nice chunk of monies as well. How much would you be willing to give me tonight?”
Alexander was ready to throttle the man, but the dealer stopped him from doing so as she spoke to them, “I apologize gentlemen, but I have to interrupt. There is an issue at this table that must be addressed.”
Mr. Coll looked at her haughtily as he perused her body with his unnerving gaze, “The only thing that you’re going to be addressing tonight is my cock you good for nothing Scottish wench.”
Viktor stood up from his table and twirled Mr. Coll around with his left hand and punched the man right in the jaw with his right fist. Mr. Coll tumbled with his chair unto the carpeted floor.
“No one speaks to the women of my establish in that way. Get your arse up, and let the dealer finish her statement before I pummel you into the carpets.”
Mr. Coll nodded as he stood hesitantly and looked over at the masked woman, “What needs to be addressed?”
Emilia proudly stood up and spoke in her perfect Scottish accent, “You may be a foulmouthed twit, but you are not a good cheater. You threw down three aces Mr. Coll, and that is against the rules. Pairs only. You are disqualified from this game, which means Lord Stansfield owes you nothing and Lord Westbrook is the official winner of this Old Maid’s game.”
Mr. Coll turned purple, “I didn’t throw down three Aces. You can check them right there on the table if you don’t believe me!”
Viktor turned over the cards and there they were, three Aces face up on the table.
Viktor looked at Mr. Coll and said, “We do not treat cheaters very well here at Circe’s Palace sir, you have two choices. One, you may leave and never show your face back here again, or two.”
Viktor snapped his fingers, and Igor emerged from the shadows of the room like the grim reaper ready to steal the man’s soul. Mr. Coll’s eyes bulged from his pompous face, as he put his hands up in surrender,.
“Fine! I’ll never return, I promise. It doesn’t matter anyways, after tonight I will have everything I’ve ever wanted, and so much more.”
Alexander looked to Mr. Coll as the man walked up to him proudly and cackled, “Good game to you Lord Westbrook, hope you have a good night.”
Mr. Coll raced out of the room and Alexander looked to Vincent with a worried look. Igor locked the door to the room and Viktor came to stand by Emilia, who had taken off her mask.
Vincent was not very happy with Emilia right now, as he sat in front of her from across the table he said, “You should not have been here tonight. You could have put yourself in danger.”
Emilia shook her head, “I know that Vin, but I came here to make sure that none of you ended up harmed. Plus, I had to help Westbrook win the game. He’s like family to us, and we always look out for our family.”
Alexander looked at Emilia with a wicked smile on his face as he asked her, “What exactly did you do?”
“You men should always know that I have something up my sleeve, or in this case, hidden somewhere in my drapes. I pulled an extra Ace from my dress and proved Coll to be cheater, you’re welcome.”
Viktor shook his head, “If you got caught I could have been in big trouble, and you could have been hurt. You saw how he was looking and talking to you.”
Emilia stood up from the dealer’s seat, “Well, I wasn’t hurt, and neither were any of you for that matter.”
Westbrook had a bad feeling coming over him. He just knew in his heart that Coll was up to something else here. Something far more malevolent, he had to go back to Marcella right away.
He stood up and said, “As much as I would like to stay and chat with you all, I have to go find Marcella and her father. The man thinks that he’s just lost everything. He has to know that I won for them before he does something drastic.”
Vincent nodded, “Be safe, Alex.”
Viktor added, “Good luck Westbrook, if you need any help whatsoever Igor is more than willing to assist you.”
Igor followed Alexander out of Circe’s Palace, “What can I do to help?”
A hired hackney came to the front of Circe’s Palace, and before Alexander could climb in he said to the giant, “I need you to go to the Metropolitan Police and locate an officer by the name of George Grahams. Tell him that a Mr. Benedict Coll is one of the men who murdered Lord Archibald Graves and that he is now after the Stansfield family. Can you do this?”
Igor thumped his chest with his right fist and then pointed to his head with his left pointer finger, “You can trust me. I will not fail, I have the mind of an elephant.”
Igor pushed Alexander into the hired hackney, closed the door behind him, and pounded on the roof for the driver to take him to Kensington.
Alexander was on his way to the Pinkerton’s home in Kensington. That’s where Marcella would be right now, and he had to find her before it was all too late.
Chapter 18
Louisa couldn’t sleep after what had happened earlier, so she asked Marcella if she’d want to join her in the parlor for a stiff drink and perhaps some reading by the fire. Louisa poured the drinks, and then they sat by the fire to read.
Marcella was too busy wringing her hands around a piece of parchment paper that she had wanted to write a letter on for her family. She wanted to reach out to them and warn them, but Marcella could barely find the right words to write down.
She looked deep into the fire burning bright before her, and she wondered…what was going on at Circe’s Palace tonight?
Louisa and Marcella sat in the warm Pinkerton parlor for what seemed like hours, neither of them could sleep, and for some odd reason it felt as if time had stopped.
The sun was slightly peaking through the windows, and they hadn’t been able to sleep a wink. They we
re full of nervous energy, and anxiety from what could possibly happen to them next.
A pounding could be heard on the front door of the house, and that jolted them both from their lethargic state. A knock sounded on the parlor door, and then a footman peeped his head inside.
“Pardon me my ladies, but Lord Stansfield is at the door and he looks quite mad.”
Marcella jumped up right away and ran to the front door towards her father. He was pacing back and forth, and he definitely looked out of his senses.
“Father? What ever is the matter?”
Lord Stansfield stopped pacing and stared at her with tired eyes, “Marcella, we need to go. Now!”
Marcella didn’t understand, “What! Why father? What’s happened?”
Lord Stansfield shook his head, “We do not have time for this conversation right now my girl, we’ll have someone come and collect your things tomorrow. We have to go now!”
He grabbed her by the hand and rushed her out the front door.
“Father, I’m not even properly dressed for a carriage ride.” Marcella yelled.
They stepped into the street towards the Stansfield carriage, “We don’t have time for you to change my dear. Hurry!”
Louisa rushed out of her house looking like a frightened child, she frantically yelled with all her might, “Marcella! What should I do?”
Marcella was forcefully pushed into carriage, but she pushed the door open to yell out, “Find Alexander!”
The carriage door then slammed closed, and then the Stansfield Pinkerton carriage lurched into motion without hesitation.
Marcella fell back into her seat with a hard thump. She stared at her father with rage, how could he do something like this to her? What was the matter with him?
She wanted to know, so she asked him, “What is wrong with you? Explain yourself now, because I’m tired of your antics father. I’ve had enough!”
Lord Stansfield had tears in his eyes, “I’ve lost everything Marcella. Mr. Coll won the game tonight. Do you understand? We’ve lost everything!”
Any ordinary girl would be tearing up at this news from her father, but Marcella was not some ordinary girl. She was not going to cry about any of this, and she wasn’t sad for her father at all.
Tempted by Curiosity Page 22