“You don’t smell so good yourself,” I retort as he marches me before him, none too gently, to the carriage. Right before we approach he jerks me back and whispers in my ear.
“I was outside looking for you.” He shoves me forward and I stumble the last few steps to the carriage where the guards are waiting to haul me up without the benefit of the steps. I am thrown into my seat, and the carriage moves forward once again as Findley climbs aboard.
As we ride by, I look once more at the hole in the ground caused by the explosion. It could be a way out, but it would have to be a last resort attempt. The distance to the tower of debris is a great one, one I am not certain I could jump. One misstep would lead to certain death. Still, once down, I know the way out. But I am not going anywhere without Levi and Pace.
If Pace wants to go.
A flash of yellow catches my eye. I can’t believe it. Pip! He dives down from the cloud that hovers at the building tops and swoops over the carriage, chirping madly, before he darts off once more, back into the cloud.
“He must be lost,” the guard behind me says.
I say nothing even though I know Pip is not lost. He knows exactly where he is and what he is doing. I only wish I could say the same.
9
I take a bath as soon as I am returned to my room by the guards, taking advantage of the time alone, as Findley has been sent out to take care of the rioters we encountered. I scrub out my clothes as best I can and hang them to dry. Luckily I still have the leather pants I was wearing beneath my clothes the night we were captured, and I put them on with an undershirt that I find in one of the drawers. When I come out of the water closet I find a box on the bed and a note that says to be ready promptly at seven, which is still hours away.
I open the box to find a lovely dress. It is pale green with a high waist and short puffed sleeves. The neckline is modest, for which I am grateful. There is also a delicately knitted shawl beneath the dress, along with the appropriate undergarments. The only thing missing is a pair of shoes. I have no idea where I am going at seven, but it requires me to look nice. I consider rebelling and wearing my regular clothes, but that might result in my not going wherever it is I have been summoned to. The only chance for escape I have is when I leave this room.
A meal has been delivered also. I sit down at the table and find an envelope beside my tray addressed to me. The writing is exquisite; done in pen and ink on thick parchment. This is no ordinary letter as paper is a valuable commodity in our society. An ornate P is pressed into the red wax that seals the envelope. I open it carefully because I have never seen anything like it in my lifetime.
Your presence is requested for a
Celebration of the upcoming nuptials of
Miss Jillian Pembrooke and Captain Pace Bratton.
7:00 this eve
37 Park Front
I did not want to believe it when Ellen told me. I thought it was just a ruse on her part to get to me. There is something about seeing it on paper that makes it seem much too real.
Could this engagement be real? Is it possible that Pace was sent by my father to spy on us and his crime manufactured so I would take him in? And what about Jilly? Was she at David’s for the same reason? She said she wanted out because she was being forced into a marriage she did not want. Was she already engaged to Pace and part of my father’s elaborate plan to trick us? Now that their job is done, they can go on with their lives.
I think back on our moments together. On the things Pace said to me and the way he treated me. His fear in the tunnels was real. Was he so desperate to please my father that he subjected himself to his biggest fear of being closed in with no escape? Am I that gullible that I was taken in by his sweet words? Is my disbelief now because I do not want to admit I was wrong about Pace or because he truly has feelings for me?
Had feelings for me.
I go to the window and manage to press my forehead against it, as if somehow the answers that are out there will find their way into my mind. Somewhere beyond the glass is Pip. I know he was looking for Pace when I saw him. But where is Pace? Is he truly one of them? Has he turned his back on all of us? I feel as if everyone has, since Levi and I are still prisoners. I had faith that Lyon could get us out when I surrendered to my father. Now I am not so sure. The only thing I am certain of is that I will go mad if I remain locked in this room for another day.
I’ve got to do something to get us out. Tonight may be my only chance. At least now, for better or for worse, I have a plan.
Findley knocks on my door promptly at seven. He is dressed formally in the dark blue uniform of the enforcers with the addition of a white shirt with a stiff upright collar. There is also a set of ribbons and bars on his chest along with the gold bands on his arms that signify his rank. I know without seeing him that my father will have many more decorating his uniform, for all his years of faithful service.
Findley looks uncomfortable, still he raises an eyebrow in approval of me in the green dress. I can only hope that he does not notice the leather pants that I wear beneath it, or the fact that I have my shirt tied low around my hips. There can be no argument about my boots. I refuse to wear the other shoes. I wish there was some way that I could conceal my jacket. I tried several different ways and none of them passed a casual inspection. I will just have to make do without it. I do not need anything to alert anyone to the fact that I plan on escaping as soon as the opportunity presents itself. I am able to conceal my goggles in a small beaded bag that I found in my room. I added a linen handkerchief to it, along with my own kerchief and a comb as an excuse to carry the bag.
I am careful not to raise my skirt too high as I go down the stairs behind Findley. The last words he spoke to me come to my mind, and since he has been so forthcoming with me of late, I have no qualms about asking him, “You said you were looking for me outside when the tunnels blew,” I ask. “Why?”
“I was concerned for your safety,” he replies.
“Why? You didn’t even know me.”
“But I knew the rovers. About the rovers.” Findley does not turn to look at me as we continue down the stairs. “There are very few people I would wish them on.”
“Including my friends that are outside?”
He does not answer.
“One told me that there are not enough resources for both our worlds. Therefore they are determined to kill all of us. I overheard them say they would just wait for us to come out the door and pick us off one by one.”
“You’ve been that close to them?” Findley turns to look at me. It is obvious I have caught him off guard. “You talked to one?”
“Right before Levi killed him,” I reply. If not for Levi I would be dead many times over from the rovers.
“I knew that young man was resourceful.”
“You cannot even begin to imagine how much so,” I say. “All of my friends are.”
“Yet they cannot conceive of a way to get you and your resourceful friend out of the dome.”
I was hoping to strike a nerve with Findley. Instead he has struck mine. Still, I will not give up on the Hatfields. “They are careful of our lives,” I assure Findley. “They will not do anything that will put us at risk.”
“Yet your lives are already at risk just by being outside,” Findley points out. “And you have no way of knowing if they have fallen victim to the rovers or simply have left and given up on you.”
“They would never do that.”
“Are you certain of that?” Findley continues. “For all you know, the catwalk could now be deserted and your so-called airship nothing more than a memory.”