Page 7 of The Journal of a Thousand Years (The Glass Library #6)

CHAPTER 7

I t was surprisingly easy to swap Thurlow’s letter for mine. Bristow held it in his hand as he answered my knock. He must have spotted it on the floor when he came to open the door. He looked stunned to see me at such an early hour. He would barely be out of bed himself.

“Good morning, Bristow.” I whipped the letter out of his hand before he realized what was happening and held out my piece of paper, folded in half. “I changed my mind. This is the one I want delivered to Gabe.”

He took it and I crumpled Thurlow’s note in my fist.

“Will you come in for breakfast, Miss Ashe?”

“Not today. That letter isn’t urgent. Don’t wake him.” On a whim, I kissed Bristow’s cheek.

His cheeks pinked. “Is everything all right, Miss Ashe?”

“Fine. I have to go.” I hurried down the steps and along the pavement to the corner. I tried not to think about Gabe’s reaction as he read my note, but my mind continued to wander there anyway. He would be furious and worried, and perhaps confused. He would go directly to my lodgings then on to my friends’ homes to search for me. I must be quick if I didn’t want him catching up to me, even though I had a head start.

It wasn’t until I was driving home that I suddenly realized Bertie could have easily escaped while I was at Gabe’s house. Indeed, I’d expected him to. Yet he had not. That changed things a little.

The house where I rented a room was quiet. It was too early for any of the lodgers or our landlady to be up. Mrs. Parry must have gone back to bed after I’d been abducted, none the wiser to my predicament. My room was paid in advance, so after I packed a few essentials, I quickly dashed off a note of farewell without explaining why I was leaving in a hurry. I hadn’t yet thought of a suitable excuse for my sudden departure, so it was best to say nothing.

I drove to the home of Cyclops and Catherine Bailey next. I knocked several times until he finally answered. His eyepatch was in place, but he clutched the waist of his trousers to stop them falling down. He held a belt in his other hand. He seemed relieved that it was me on his doorstep.

“I thought you were a constable come to tell me something terrible had happened.” He peered past me at Bertie Hobson. “Has something happened, Sylvia? It’s very early. Are you all right?”

“I am now, but before I give you an account of my night, I need you to promise you won’t tell Gabe.”

He shook his head. “I can’t do that.”

“Then I can’t tell you what happened, but I will tell you that you must warn Gabe not to trust any of the Hobsons.”

“It’s true,” Bertie said from behind me. “My mother and sister are up to their necks.”

Cyclops scratched his bald head with the hand that held the belt. Then he stepped onto the porch and closed the door behind him. “I don’t want to wake Catherine or the girls.” He threaded his belt through his trouser loops. “You have my word I won’t tell Gabe…for now. Go on, Sylvia. I’m listening.”

“The Hobsons and Thurlow abducted me in the middle of the night.”

He stopped doing up his belt and stared at me. His one eye blinked back at me then narrowed as it shifted to Bertie. “I take it you were set free.”

“I escaped.”

“Bloody hell.” He rubbed his jaw. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I’m fine, just a paper cut here.” I showed him my neck.

“Ah. So that’s how you escaped. And you brought one of your abductors to me to turn him in?”

“Not quite. I want you to arrest Mrs. Hobson, Ivy and Thurlow, if you can find them. I’d also like you to contact Mr. Jakes at Military Intelligence. Bertie wants to talk to him about a batch of army-issue boots manufactured by his company, but it’s too early for Mr. Jakes to be at his office.”

“I’ll make a telephone call. Wait inside where it’s safe. I assume your abductors are cut, too, but not dead?”

“I think so. Make your telephone call, then we’ll tell you about it.”

A few minutes later, we got back into Thurlow’s motorcar and drove to Scotland Yard where Cyclops had arranged to meet Mr. Jakes.

As I drove, I told Cyclops about the abduction, including the excuses Mrs. Hobson and Ivy planned to use to place the entire blame on Thurlow so they could walk free. He scribbled down my statement in his notebook.

When we arrived at Scotland Yard, I informed Bertie I’d drop him and Cyclops and go on my way, but he begged me to stay for the duration of the interview with Mr. Jakes. I reluctantly agreed. Time was marching on, and Gabe would wake soon.

As I parked the vehicle, I reminded Cyclops not to tell Gabe anything about my abduction. He must carry out the investigation in secret for as long as possible.

“I assume the reason you want me to keep it from him has something to do with that?” He pointed his pencil at the two small cases on the back seat beside Bertie.

I remained silent.

“Running away won’t solve anything, Sylvia.” When I didn’t respond, he added, “So you plan to leave without talking to him?”

“She left him a note,” Bertie piped up.

Cyclops shook his head. “Whatever excuse you wrote, he won’t believe it. You two love each other. It’s obvious to everyone, including him. Talk to him, Sylvia. Be honest.”

“I’m leaving for his safety,” I finally said. “That’s also the reason why I don’t want you to say anything about my abduction. You know he’ll put himself in danger to exact justice. It’s better if you do it. Just as it’s better that I go. Last night proved that I make him vulnerable”

He sighed and shook his head again.

“Warn Gabe about Ivy and Mrs. Hobson,” I urged him. “They may still try to lure him to Thurlow.”

“How do I warn him without telling him about the abduction?”

“Bertie informed you of their plans for Gabe when he turned himself in. Didn’t you, Bertie?”

“Er, all right,” Bertie said.

“You’ve thought of everything,” Cyclops said heavily. “Very well. I agree not to inform Gabe just yet.”

I thought he’d eventually see it from my point of view. He knew as well as I did that I made Gabe vulnerable. It wasn’t just Gabe. Where he went, Alex followed. Cyclops would do anything to protect both.

While we waited for Mr. Jakes, Cyclops sent a team to the Bethnal Green address where I’d been kept captive, and another to the Hobsons’ home.

We didn’t have to wait too long before Mr. Jakes arrived. It was still early, and traffic hadn’t yet hit its morning peak, but I suspected he must have been nearby when he learned he was wanted at Scotland Yard. He looked as dapper as always, with his neatly combed brown hair and dark lashes framing light blue eyes that seemed to miss nothing.

He sat in a chair and removed a gold cigarette case from his inside jacket pocket. Cyclops asked him not to smoke in the confined space, so he returned it. “This must be important.”

Cyclops clasped his hands on the desk. “This is Bertie Hobson. He wants to confess something to you.”

Mr. Jakes must have known who sat with us, because he showed no surprise at the mention of Bertie’s name. The only sign he gave that he’d not expected a confession was the sudden arch of his brows.

Bertie glanced at me. At my encouraging nod, he cleared his throat. “It wasn’t my fault. It was my father’s,” he said in a rush of words. “He fell ill and told me to perform magic on the leather while he was confined to his bed. Naturally, I told him I was artless and couldn’t, but he didn’t believe me. He’d always suspected I was a magician, that my magic was simply buried within me. That’s why he and Mother sent me to Rosebank Gardens years ago. You can check for yourself. I’m sure they still have the old admissions records somewhere. If only he believed me when I protested, those boots would never have been distributed to the army.” He sat back, satisfied with his statement.

Mr. Jakes’s cool gaze gave nothing away. “Come with me and we’ll put it all in writing at my office. Scotland Yard isn’t the place for you.”

Bertie looked relieved. Perhaps he thought he’d be released. I wasn’t so sure he would be, however. But whether Mr. Jakes believed the blame belonged solely to the deceased Mr. Hobson, or he believed Bertie should hold some accountability, it didn’t matter to me. I shook Bertie’s hand and wished him good luck.

He exited Cyclops’s office, but Mr. Jakes hesitated in the doorway. His fingers drummed on the door jamb. “Why did he come to you with this, Miss Ashe?”

“That’s not important.”

“Let me be the judge of that.”

I simply shrugged.

“Does it have something to do with the attempted abductions of Gabriel Glass and the speculation surrounding his magic?”

“Gabe is artless,” I said, parroting the words I’d repeated several times overnight.

I went to push past him, but Cyclops asked me to wait. Mr. Jakes left the office and closed the door.

Cyclops rounded the desk. “Sylvia?—"

“Nothing you say will convince me to change my mind.”

“I can see you’re determined.” He took my hand in his huge one. “I’ll just say good luck, but not goodbye. I believe we’ll see one another again soon.” He kissed my forehead then reached past me and opened the door.

“Take care,” I said and left.

I didn’t cry as I walked through the warren of halls to the main exit. My heart didn’t thud, my stomach felt settled. Either I was too tired to feel anything, or too numb, because seeing Cyclops for the last time should have drowned me in misery.

I left Thurlow’s vehicle where I’d parked it and took a taxi to my next stop. Fortunately, I’d asked the driver to wait for me because I was there an even shorter duration than I’d expected. Daisy didn’t answer my knock. She must be sound asleep still, or in the bathroom getting ready for work.

I scrawled a note and slipped it under her door. It felt woefully inadequate, but I couldn’t stay to say goodbye in person. After my lodgings, this would be one of the first places Gabe looked for me after reading my note.

I didn’t know where Petra lived, and her shop wouldn’t be open yet, so I headed to the next person on my list, since he lived closer to Daisy than the Hendry sisters and I didn’t want to double back. Nor could I go to the library to farewell Professor Nash. After my flat and Daisy’s, Gabe would go there. I would post the professor my key when I found a new home.

To my surprise, Huon answered the door almost immediately after my knock. He must have been passing it and not bothered to wait for his butler or footman. His hair was messy, and he wore a blue-and-white striped dressing gown without shoes. Thankfully, the dressing gown was tied at his waist because he didn’t appear to be wearing pajamas underneath.

“Good lord, Sylvia, you look like you could do with this more than me.” He handed me the cup of coffee he’d been holding. “Come in. I have so much to tell you.”

“I can’t. I have to go.” I sipped the coffee, closing my eyes as the warm, bitter liquid hit the back of my throat. I suddenly felt overwhelmingly tired. It was the only explanation I could think of for why I let Huon draw me inside.

“Where do you have to go at this hour? It’s early.” He checked the clock on the hall table. “The shops and the library don’t open for at least another hour.”

His butler passed, carrying a tray. He was about to go up the staircase when Huon stopped him.

“Change of plans,” Huon said. “Serve breakfast in the dining room, after all.” He bent his head to his butler’s and whispered something in his ear.

“Very good, sir,” the butler said, turning around.

Huon invited me into the dining room. I glanced toward the taxi waiting for me. My cases were in the back seat. I signaled to the driver that I would only be a few moments while I finished the cup of coffee. I was going to need its stimulating effects if I wanted to stay awake all day.

Once we were seated at the polished table, Huon gave me his news. “You are looking at the newest businessman to gain a government contract.”

“What?” He wasn’t making sense. Or perhaps my mind wasn’t working properly. It was beginning to feel woolly from lack of sleep.

He beamed. “My invisible messaging business will provide services to the Ministry of Labour, but I can’t tell you in which particular aspect of their vast portfolio. Let’s just say, my service will become more important if the government’s theory about the rise of trade unions is proved correct.”

“I’m so pleased for you, Huon.”

“Thank you. I’m pleased for me, too.”

“Did you tell your father about the contract?” I knew Huon’s relationship with his father had been a rocky one ever since Huon demobbed. Instead of returning to the family’s ink-manufacturing business after the war, he’d settled into a hedonistic life that revolved around the next party.

“I telephoned him yesterday. He said he was proud of me. Then he said he’d reinstate my allowance to tide me over until the business returns a decent profit.”

“Wonderful.”

“I told him where to shove it. I don’t need his help.”

“Family is important, Huon. Don’t cut yourself off from them.” Tears suddenly welled as I thought about the aunts and cousins I’d found. I might never see them again.

“Are you all right, Sylv?”

I nodded and attempted a smile. “I should go. My taxi is waiting.”

“Nonsense. Stay for breakfast.” He asked the footman who’d been bringing in covered platters and placing them on the sideboard to pay the driver.

“Oh, no, don’t,” I said, rising. “I need that taxi.”

“Nonsense,” Huon said again. “You need to eat something. You look peaky. Besides, I want you to see that I’ve become a better person. More settled and mature.”

I sighed as I watched the footman leave. I really ought to go after him, but I suddenly didn’t have the energy. “Yes, of course,” I murmured dully.

“Then I want you to tell Petra how much I’ve improved.”

“I can’t. I?—”

“Please, Sylv. Do it for me. I really like her, and I am trying very hard to be the man she deserves.”

My eyes welled with tears again as I realized I would never see how things played out between Huon and Petra. I would never be part of their lives, or Daisy’s. Would she and Alex find a way to be together? I was going to miss so much. I was going to miss them all, my dear friends.

Huon saw my distress but got the wrong end of the stick. “Don’t fret, dearest Sylvia. We will find a way to surmount the differences between our families, as long as Petra sees me as worthy enough to put up a fight when her parents inevitably tell her ink is inferior to graphite. So will you go to bat for me?”

“I can’t. I won’t see her?—”

“Actually, you can see her now.” He stood and held out a hand toward the door.

I spun around to see Petra standing quite still in the doorway. She stared at me with an expression somewhere between confusion and sheer panic.

“Sylvia! What are you doing here at this hour?”

I was about to ask the same question, until I realized the answer was rather obvious. Unlike Huon, she was at least dressed, but her hair hung loose past her shoulders. She must have come downstairs in a hurry after the butler sent someone up to fetch her when I arrived.

She frowned at Huon as she took a seat near him. “You didn’t think to turn her away?”

“She’s our friend and she looked like she needed coffee.” He reached across the table to take Petra’s hand. “You look beautiful, my love. I do like your hair like that.”

“It’s not done yet.”

“Undone is my favorite style.” He rose. “Help yourselves to breakfast, ladies. There’s a good selection this morning since I knew I was having a special guest stay.”

Petra patted her hair but didn’t look at me. Her cheeks flamed as she continued to fuss with her hair.

I got up and hugged her from behind. “I’m happy for you,” I whispered in her ear.

“You shouldn’t be,” she whispered back. “It’s a mistake. This is…wrong. He’s wrong for me. I shouldn’t—” She cut herself off and glanced at his back as he stood at the sideboard, oblivious to our discussion.

I hugged her tighter. “Yes, you should love him. He’s quite sweet and a good man, underneath it all. The war’s effects on him are starting to wear off.” I gave her shoulders a gentle shake. “Thanks to you. You saved him, Petra. Now, allow yourself to be happy. You both deserve it.”

She sighed. “Our families won’t accept it.”

“You’ll find a way to make them accept it. I know you will.”

“Daisy was right. Our situation is a modern-day Romeo and Juliet story.”

“That was Shakespeare’s story, not yours. You have it in your power to write your version.” I clasped her shoulders, turning her to look at me. “We are all the authors of our own stories, Petra. Certain twists and turns might be out of our control, but the overall tone and direction of the plot are ours to write.”

Petra wasn’t entirely convinced. “I agree about that, but there’s still the matter of Huon’s arrogance. I don’t want to give in to him or he’ll be impossible.”

I glanced at his back. “Then don’t give in easily.”

One side of her mouth lifted with her crooked smile. “I’m glad you’re here, Sylvia. You deserve happiness, too. Speaking of which, how is Gabe?” She seemed to notice my state for the first time. “You look pale and tired. And your hair is down, too. Is something wrong?”

Huon dropped the fork he was using to pile bacon on his plate. The clatter shattered my fragile nerves completely. “Help yourselves, ladies, or I’ll eat it all myself.” He turned around, a rasher of bacon pinched between thumb and forefinger, just in time to see me burst into tears.

Petra guided me to a chair. “Sylvia, what is it? What’s the matter?”

Huon patted my shoulder. “It’s Glass’s fault, isn’t it? Want me to challenge him?”

“This isn’t the Middle Ages, Huon. You can’t challenge people to duels.”

Huon handed me a napkin. “I didn’t mean a physical challenge. I’ll have a stern word with him, that’s all.”

I gathered up my frayed nerves and dabbed at my damp cheeks. “It’s not Gabe’s fault, although it does concern him. It’s a rather long story, but the upshot is, I’ve come to realize I’m a danger to him. Terrible people are after him for the time magic they believe he controls. Because he’s proven so difficult to kidnap, they will come for me since he cares about me. So, I’ve decided to leave London. It’s the best way to keep him safe.”

Huon folded his arms. “That makes sense, I suppose.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Petra said. “It’s true that Gabe cares about you, Sylvia, but he cares about other people, too. Not in the same way, obviously, but there are other people in his life he’d want to protect. Willie and Alex, for example.”

“They’re more capable of looking after themselves than me.”

“True,” Huon said, nodding.

Petra shot him a glare before turning back to me. She took my hands in hers. “You can’t leave now. Everyone you care about is here. Not just Gabe, but Daisy and me, Alex and Huon, and the professor, of course. Besides, you adore your work at the library.” She squeezed my fingers. “Running away might throw Gabe’s kidnappers off for a little while, but not forever. They’ll find another way to get to him. The only way to protect him is to stop them. All running off will do is cause you both to be miserable.”

Running away…

It was what my mother had done. She believed moving from city to city had kept us safe from Melville Hendry, and perhaps it had. But it also caused disruption for James and me. We’d had no stability, made no friends, known no other family. Every time we had started to set down roots, we’d been wrenched away again. I was a shy child who took time to get to know others, so moving frequently made me withdraw further. I was the outsider at every new school and neighborhood, and my lack of confidence meant I never developed the skill to make true friends.

If Daisy hadn’t been so open and vivacious, I might never have made a single friend in London yet. I owed her a great deal for taking me under her wing. I shouldn’t abandon her now when she needed me.

A knock on the front door startled me into action. I folded the napkin up and set it on the table. “Thank you both. You’ve been a great help.”

“Well?” Huon prompted. “What have you decided to do?”

The butler appeared in the doorway. “A Detective Inspector Bailey to see you, sir.”

Cyclops pushed past the butler. He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing me. “I hoped I’d find you here, Sylvia. I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Your landlady said you’d gone, Daisy wasn’t at home, and the library was locked.”

Huon indicated the sideboard. “Would you like some breakfast?”

Cyclops didn’t seem to hear him. He looked pained.

I rose, although my legs weakened at the sight of Cyclops. I’d never seen him look so worried. “What is it? What’s happened?”

“It’s Gabe. He’s been abducted.”