Hello Ruby red-fans. I just want to say that I love the trilogy. And this fanfiction is about Gideon's two visits to Lady Tilney in Ruby red. Enjoy and don't forget to review.
Operation Jade Solo
Gideon's point of view.
"Good Lord," Mr. George sighed. "What a disaster. We promised Grace, that nothing would happen to Gwendolyn. She will never let us forget this."
I didn't say anything, because I was only listing with a half-ear. Poor Gwendolyn. First she is dragged into a mission that she was complete untrained to handle, then she gets attacked in Hyde Park in the 18th century and she might have killed somebody. How could her own mother keep a secret that big for so many years? From the lodge is one thing, but she should have warned her daughter about the risk, at least prepare her.
Maybe she thought that if you ignore the problem long enough eventually it would go away.
Well, it didn't work, and now I was facing a new problem.
The order from the count. I was going to make Gwendolyn fall in love with me. That was easier said than done. I knew that Charlotte had fallen in love with me a long time ago, so I didn't need to encourage it. But Gwendolyn…?
You are a handsome charming young man. It shouldn't be too hard for you. Right now she relies on you, work with that.
But how can I do that? It was cruel to play on a girl's feelings, especially on a girl like Gwendolyn, whose life has just been turned around like flipping a coin to the other side. She didn't deserve to be treated like a piece of game, but that is what she had become, because of her mother. But could you do it for the greater good? One person's heart for the sake of human lives. It did seem small, if you thought about it practical, and yet…
The count had said that women were leaded by their feelings, while men used logic. And it did made sense. A woman would thoughtless jump into a burning house to save a child and then most likely get herself killed, while a man would try figure the best way for getting it out. The heart and the head, two important things in a human, but the feelings needed to be controlled. But wasn't there any other way than make Gwendolyn fall in love with me? Of course she has no idea of this whole situation and one day she might do something that could jeopardy everything.
"And she even killed somebody. This is going to scar her for the rest of her life." Mr. George groaned.
You have to secure her loyalty, Gideon, I remembered the count saying to me. A woman in love would never betray her beloved.
I thought about Helena from the Shakespeare play A midsummer night's dream. She kept following Demetrius unhappily in love, despite knowing that he didn't care for her. Would Gwendolyn end like her, if I followed the count's order? If I succeed in making her love me, and then let the charade fall.
Be kind to her. Kiss her. Take all means necessary.
Did that also mean that I had to sleep with her? Wouldn't that be going too far?
Gwendolyn was… sweet, I think, but I didn't fell in love with that kind of girls. With Charlotte I could talk serious like equal adults, unlike the others in the lodge who talked to me like I was still too young.
Gwendolyn Shepherd was a stubborn, unpredictable and disobedient… child? I sighted. Could a child stab a man in a fight?
I think you might even enjoy it, the count had said to me. The more I thought about it, the sicker I felt. In the eighteenth century some men made it a game to seduce women. A Casanova game.
If I made Gwendolyn fall in love with me, then I soon or later will have to break her heart by telling her the truth. That it was all an act after the orders of the count.
The count was a man, who liked to keep his cards close. Gwendolyn didn't trust the lodge because her mother didn't trust them and she was probably more willing to trust her mother than them. That would make her a card, that the count didn't have close. But I was, so a relationship between her and me would make a useful connection.
What was I supposed to do? The count was right, of course. I needed to make sure that Gwendolyn didn't become a liability. But soon the circle would be close, so it wasn't necessary, right?
The limousine stopped outside the temple. Finally.
"Do you need any help?" asked Mr. George.
"No, no, I'm fine," I assured him and got out of the car. Soon we got up to the dragon hall, where uncle Falk and Dr. White were waiting. My uncle looked like he was about to explode.
"Gideon, what happened? You were both supposed to stay in the temple, and then Mrs. Jenkins tells us that you ended up in Hyde Park. And where is Gwendolyn?"
"We were attacked," I answered. Uncle Falk looked shocked. I sighted. "The count wasn't in the temple by the time we came. The secretary told us that he was at Lord Brompton's place. We didn't have time to wait, so we took a carriage over. When we left, the driver took us to Hyde Park, where we were attacked."
"By whom?" Dr. White asked. He stood up and got me to sit down, so he could check my wound.
"Three men. They killed Wilbour, the driver. I got out of the carriage and fought them, killed one of them. Gwendolyn took Wilbour's sword and stabbed another of them."
Uncle Falk looked at little shocked. He clearly hadn't thought of little childish Gwendolyn capable of stabbing a full-grown man.
"Saving your 'stupid' life," Mr. George added half-smiling, making air quotes at 'stupid'.
"Yes," I admitted. "Then I managed to disarm the third man. I tried to question him, but I couldn't get much of him before Gwendolyn and I had to travel back."
"And where is Gwendolyn now?" Dr. White asked and looked at the door behind me, probably expecting her to come in any moment.
"At home," I answered. "She was so exhausted and shaken by the whole thing, that we took her directly home."
Uncle Falk looked a little prickly, like he couldn't decide if it was the right or wrong choice I had made sending Gwendolyn home to herself. Then he sighted. "And you have no idea, who these men were?"
"I didn't find anything that could tell me their identities. The man who I questioned said, that he had his 'orders', but he didn't know who that person was. And there's another thing: Wilbour had been told by someone to take Gwendolyn and me to Hyde Park, presumably to a meeting place. That's how we got there in the first place."
That surprised Uncle Falk. "That would mean…"
"… that these men might have been send from someone in the lodge."
"That could make sense," Mr. George said. "In the annals, there is mentioned that there was a traitor in the lodge in the count's period, spying for the Florentine Alliance. Unfortunately he's not mention by name. He could have given the driver those orders and then send a message out to the Alliance."
"Well, it has to be somebody in a high position who could give the driver orders without being asked questions," added uncle Falk. "But why would that person send you to the count first instead for sending you two directly to the park?"
"Time," Mr. George answered after a moment of silent. "It would take time for a message to be delivered and then prepare an attack. If you arrived in the park too early you would have suspend it to be a trap at once and had gotten away."
I nodded, agreeing with him.
"Good lord, what a disaster," Uncle Falk muttered.
Mr. George sighted and began leaving us. "I will look through the annals and see if I can find out some more," he said and left the room.
"Well," Dr. White said. "Your wound is not bad. Just a little scratch in the flesh. Nothing to worry about. I will say that you will be able to run your little errand tonight."
"My errand?" I repeated confused.
"Well, we have decided that we should work out 'Operation Jade' today, which we had planned before… the complication."
Of course, Operation Jade. I had completely forgotten about it. When I began elapsing, they waited around a year for making me ready for the blood missions. They needed me to be more contented with the time traveling before I could begin with Operation Aquamarine (Cecilia Woodwille). But there were still more missions to do.
Operation Jade was concerning Lady Margaret Tilney, number eight in the circle and Jade. I ready knew a lot of her life history from my studies. She was born Margaret Grand in 1877, married to Lord Tilney, lived in Belgravia and had three kids, two daughters and a son, and then died in 1944 outside London under World War II. The annals had only described her as a friendly and cooperating person. It shouldn't be too hard.
And after what else had happen today, I might need a distraction.
"Or would you rather wait to tomorrow?" uncle Falk asked.
I shook my head. I needed something else to do. Something that could shake off the memories of the attack.
"Good, Mr. George and I has planned very thing out." He stood up and picked up a few documents. "Gideon, you are going to elapse to February 7th 1937. Lady Tilney will have just return from her four hours' time travel and after a half hour a son of a family friend will come to pick her up for dinner at his family's place. We will give you an hour to the entire operation. Just go up to Madame Rossini and get dress. You will get more details at the safe with the chronograph."
Well, that sounded good. I got up on my feet and left the Dragon Hall for Madame Rossini's room.
I liked clothes from the twentieth century better than the ones from 1700, because they look a little more normal and was more comfortable to wear. Madame Rossini wasn't there (perhaps she had gone to the bathroom) which left me to choose my own 1937-outfit.
After I got dressed, I went down to the Chronograph, where Uncle Falk, Mr. Georges and Dr. White were waiting for me. Dr. White handed me the gear that I would need to collect the blood. And while Mr. Georges was checking the Chronograph, uncle Falk gave me the instructions.
"The password of the day is Radix omnium malorum est cupiditas. And the name you will be giving the guard at the watch is Mr. Eric Talboy, a novice who, at the time, is at work as junior secretary in city hall in Oxford."
Sometimes I had to use another name to get passed the guards. Mostly to prevent altering the past.
"Eric Talboy," I repeated. "Working as secretary in Oxford City Hall."
Uncle Falk handed me the letter, he had been holding. "And here is a letter, you can show him, if it becomes necessary."
"Thanks," I said and took the letter into my pocket.
Mr. George stood next to a stack of the annals and was now looking in one of them. "And you don't have to be concerned, Gideon. The annals say that 'Eric Talboy' passed."
"Good." That was good to know. No complications. I placed my finger in the chronograph and few seconds later I landed in 1937.
I took a deep breath and found my way to the watch.
"Who's there?" I heard the guard demand and I saw him raising his sword.
I stepped forward into his sight. When he saw me, he lowered his sword a little.
"Name?"
"Eric Talboy," I answered. "I'm here to talk with Lady Margaret Tilney. Privately. It's very important."
"Password?" the guard asked.
"Radix omnium malorum est cupiditas." I even showed him my signet ring.
"And you want to speak with Lady Tilney? Privately?" he asked suspicioned.
I nodded, ready to show him the letter.
"Well, I'm afraid that you're too early, sir," the guard said. "Lady Tilney arrived around three hours and three quarters ago and went to the Dragon Hall to elapsing."
"I can wait," I said and looked down on my watch, "for an hour."
The guard nodded. "Very well. Follow me, Mr. Talboy."
He lead me up through some stairs to we ended up outside Dragon Hall.
"Please, wait here," the guard said to me and went inside. Around ten minutes later he came back. "Lady Tilney has come back, sir. You can come in and talk to her."
"Thank you," I said and walked pass him into Dragon Hall.
Lady Tilney was sitting close to the wall, probably resting after the elapse. In her age it might be exhausting for her. She was an old gray-haired lady with a striking resemblance to Lady Arista.
"Lady Tilney?" I asked politely.
The old lady looked up at me and seemed at little surprised. "Oh, dear," she said.
"Don't be afraid," I said quickly. "I'm Gideon de Villiers from the year 2011, descendant of Jonathan de Villiers."
Lady Tilney just nodded.
"I apologies for disrupting, but there is a situation in my time, that require your help." I took a deep breath before continue it. "The chronograph has been stolen and is now lost, but we do have a second one repaired and working, but we need blood from all the time travelers."
"Yes, I know," she said.
What?
"You do?" How could she know?
"Yes, I'm well aware of the situation. The first chronograph was stolen by Paul de Villiers and Lucy Montrose in May 1994. I have been informed of it, and I'm sorry to tell you that you cannot have my blood."
Double what?
"You know of the situation, and yet you refuse to give us your blood to help us?" I need to be sure that I heard it correct.
"Correct," the lady said.
"Lady Tilney," I tried. "You do know how important it is for the lodge to collect blood from all the time travelers and what it could mean if you refuse."
"That is not something I want to discuss with you. It's my blood and I do with it what I want. I think we are done now."
"But listen, Lady Tilney…"
"What's wrong?" a voice asked and made me jolt with surprise.
A young boy was standing in the doorway. He wasn't as tall as I was, but he looked to be around my age maybe few years younger. He had raven black messy hair, that didn't seemed to have been cut short for a while, and blue eyes, that showed an innocent curiosity.
But it wasn't his present that bothered me most. It was that there was something about him, that seemed familiar to me. His face, colors and the way he tittered his head. Something, that I couldn't place.
"Aunt Margaret, is everything all right?" he asked concerned.
"Good day, Stefan, I have just gotten a visitor," Lady Tilney answered him and pointed me out.
The boy – Stefan – turned his face to have a proper look at me. He suddenly got a weird look in his eyes like he was shocked to see me. I suddenly thought back to earlier, when I met Gwendolyn for the first time and she had looked oddly at me too, like she had seen a ghost. Bloody hell, why did I think of that now?
"Good lord," Stefan said in awe. "That's so…" What?
"Don't say more, Stefan," said the old lady as she got up on her feet. "Would you be so kind as to keep him from following me until I have called for the guardians?"
The boy took unwilling his eyes away from me and nodded to Lady Tilney. "Of course," he assured. Then he took a step forward to stand between me and her. "Don't move," he said to me without breaking eye contact with me as Lady Tilney left the hall. "And don't think about using any of your nice tricks on me. My brother-in-law has taught me everything he knows of self-defense." And then he smiled like he had just told me a joke. But at the same time he looked a little… awkward. Maybe because he wasn't comfortable with this sudden situation.
I jumped at him. I needed to get away. I wasn't sure what could happen, but I didn't want to find out. But the kid blocked my attack and pushed me back before I could anything to him. Damn. He did know self-defense.
At first he looked at little shocked, like he couldn't believe what he had just done. He lifted his fits up, preparing himself for a possible second fight and took a deep breath. "This is so strange," he murmured.
I was about to ask what he meant, but then a second person came into the room. It was a man at least in his forties, but he was almost bald.
"Hello, Mr. Rucastle," Stefan greeted him cheerfully. "I didn't know that you were in the lodge too."
"Young boy, there are many things you don't know about me," Rucastle said smiling and then spotted me. "Is this the young de Villiers, Lady Tilney told me about?"
Damn, now I couldn't get away from them.
"Yes," answered Stefan. "How long do you think it would take for him to vanish?"
What that boy knew about the time traveling? He could even guess that I was one.
"Not long," Mr. Rucastle said. And he was right. There were only around fifteen minutes left for me. Frustrated I sat down, where Lady Tilney had just sat seconds ago. The two men still kept their eyes on me, and I felt like a criminal, who was being watched over until I could be sent back to my holding cell.
After those fifteen minutes I could feel the dizziness, my vision got blurry and after a few seconds I was back in 2011. Uncle Falk, Mr. George and Dr. White were all in the Dragon Hall looking hopeful.
"Well?"
I sighted. "No, I didn't get the blood. Lady Tilney was full aware of the situation and refused me to have it."
That surprised them all.
"She knew that the first chronograph has been stolen? And she refused to help with the other?"
I nodded. "Yes, she even mentioned Paul and Lucy by name. Before I could discuss it further with her, she called upon guardians – well, just one of them – to keep me away from her."
"This is impossible," Mr. George said. "The Annals described her as friendly and cooperating."
"Well, maybe you should change that, because the lady I met wasn't cooperating at all."
"This has been an awful day," Dr. White cursed and left Dragon Hall in rage.
Falk sighted. "This is like a bloody full moon. First Charlotte turns out not to be the ruby, then this. Gideon, what exactly happened?"
I sighted. "I told Lady Tilney about the first chronograph and that it had been stolen. Then she said that she already knew and wouldn't let me have her blood. In the middle of it all a boy – a family friend, I assumed – turned up and Lady Tilney asked him to keep me away from her. She left the room and few minutes later a guardian turned up send by Lady Tilney."
"Should I get the annals and look through them?" asked Mr. George. He went to the stack and pick of the annals. "I think there was written somewhere about Lady Tilney leaving the temple that day."
"Do you think it can be of any help for us?" uncle Falk asked.
"It couldn't hurt to look. The guardian, Lady Tilney called after, did you get his name?"
"Mr. Rucastle," I answered. "He talked to the boy like he knew him."
Mr. George looked in the book. "That would be James Rucastle. He worked in the secret service and was a friend of the Tilney family. He was also a contact for the lodge in the secret service. This is from the records at the Peters Watch on that day. '1232h - A young man introducing himself as 'Master Stefan' came to the entrance asking for Lady Tilney. He said that his parents, friends of Lady Tilney, are expecting her for dinner at their place. He knew the password for the day. T.I. showed him the way up to the dragon hall, where Lady Tilney was at the moment.' And this is seventeen minutes later. 'Lady Tilney left accompanied by 'Master Stefan' and Mr. James Rucastle from secret service. Nothing unusual.'"
Well, that few seconds of my life I would never get back.
"So what on earth happened?" Uncle Falk asked. "How could Lady Tilney have known about the theft?"
"Well, somebody must have told her before Gideon went to her."
"But who? Lucy and Paul? You think they told her and persuaded her to not cooperate with us."
That seemed like the most oblivious answer. Those people would stop at nothing to hinder us in closing the circle. It's their fault that I never had a normal life. Or as normal as it could have been for me.
"I say it's possible," Mr. George agreed. "But what could they have told her?"
"Who knows that those two have been doing to destroy…?"
Then Mr. George broke in.
"Maybe we shouldn't draw too many conclusions on so few facts. It's also possible that she gave us her blood earlier in her lifetime."
I could see that uncle Falk wasn't so sure about that, but Mr. George did have a good point. Lady Tilney might have refuse because she had (in her point of view) already given me her blood and wanted to make sure it was going to happen.
"Well," he said. "Let's try another year. It must be as early as possible. Gideon, go to the guest room and rest a little, while Mr. George and I tries to figure something out."
"Okay," I said and left the Dragon Hall. I first needed to pick up my normal clothes.
There was a room, where I could sleep if I had to stay late in the lodge. There was a bed ready for me and some nightclothes and a sink to wash myself in. On the wall hang a picture of uncle Falk's family from when he was younger. There was a seventeen year old Falk with his parents, his brother Paul, who was eight years old at the time, and a baby girl, who the mother held in her arms. Sophie her name was. Falk told me, that she died before she even was one year old. His mother never got over it.
Mrs. Jenkins came a few minutes later with a plate of sandwiches for me and a glass of juice, which I was grateful for. I was starving. And I didn't mind the juice. Coffee would have just kept me awake.
It had been an earthquake of a day. First I had to deal with my mother telling me that Raphael was on the brink to get kick out of school. Then it turned out that Charlotte never had been ruby, but it was her cousin Gwendolyn. I have been ordered to court her by the count. We got attacked in Hyde Park. I got yelled by her and was called an arrogant, long-haired, violin-playing creep in silk stockings. And lastly Lady Tilney had refused me to let me have her blood.
I thought about Gwendolyn. I felt pity for her. That she suddenly got pushed into this and had to rearrange her life. I had my whole life to get used to it.
After some time, that felt like hours for me, I finally feel asleep.
I got a weird dream that night. I dreamed that I invited Gwendolyn to my apartment for dinner and a chat. But instead of going to my place, we ended up in a French salon in the eighteenth century in costumes. I was standing on the floor playing the violin, and Gwendolyn was sitting on a couch watching me while she was holding a big yellow kitten on her lap.
I woke up, when I heard somebody knocking on the door and Uncle Falk calling. "Wake up, Gideon. There is breakfast in a half hour."
I groaned as I got up. It was such a weird dream.
"In a minute," I called back. "I just need to get some clothes on."
Good Lord, how could you be so tired?
After I cleaned myself and got dress – not too much, I have to change later – I went down to uncle Falk's office where he and my breakfast were waiting. A plate with sausages and fried eggs. It was still warm and smelled great. I suddenly felt very hungry.
"Good morning," Uncle Falk greeted. "Me and Mr. George has worked out a new plan."
"That sounds good," I agreed and sat down.
"Mr. George has called Grace – Mrs. Shepherd. He is going to pick up Gwendolyn from school after your visit to Lady Tilney. We are sending her to the cellar in 1956, where she can make her homework without being disturbed. So do you want a lift home after your errand before we pick her up?"
I shook my head. "No, my car is parked outside."
"Well, that settles everything. William – Mr. Whitman – will keep an eye out for her at the school, as he had done with Charlotte."
"Fine," I said and ate my breakfast.
Madame Rossini yelled at me for taking from her atelier yesterday without permission, but I told her at I had been in a hurry and to make it up I allowed her to choose my clothes for today's mission.
This time I had to wear an outfit from the ninetieth century: A gray coat with covered buttons and matching waistcoat, dark trousers, short turnover shirt collar, and floppy black bow tie. I thought that I looked at little like Oscar Wilde or maybe Dorian Gray.
After I got dressed I went down to the cellar. Uncle Falk and Mr. George were both waiting for me there.
"Are you all right?" uncle Falk asked. I just nodded.
"Listen, you are now going to 1894. Lady Tilney will have come back from her initiation journey and she will be outside the dragon room before her second uncontrolled journey. You will have a half hour to speak with her. The phrase for the day is ubi amor, ibi dolor."
Where there is love, there is pain.
"And don't forget, Gideon, she wasn't married to Lord Tilney at the time, so address her to her maiden name 'Miss Grand'," Mr. Georges added.
"Got it," I said. And then I travelled back to 1894.
It took me some time to get passed the guard, but I managed. One of them told me, that Miss Grand has just arrived to the temple, and the members from the inner circle were preparing the chronograph for her. I said that I just needed to talk with her for a half hour, and then they took me up to her.
Young Margaret Grand was sitting outside the Dragon Hall. She was wearing a gray dress and next to her chair were her overcoat and hat. In her young years she looked a lot like Charlotte, especially with the red hair, but she seemed… gentler comparing to Charlotte. But I didn't see much resemblance to Gwendolyn other that some traits in the face.
"Miss Grand?" I asked her.
She nodded. "That's me."
I bowed. "My name is Gideon de Villiers. I'm number eleven in the circle of twelve and I'm from the year 2011. I have a request for you."
"I see," she said. "It's about my blood, isn't it?"
Now I felt like my blood was freezing. "Yes. Do you know why?"
"I suppose it has something to do with the chronograph."
"Yes," I admit. "The first has been stolen, but the other has been repaired."
"And you are collection blood from the others in the circle of twelve. Yes, I know."
She already knew. "Yes, may I have some of yours?"
"Unfortunately, no. I can't give you my blood."
I did except that, but I could return back with nothing. "Could you at least answer a few questions?"
She looked like she thought about it, then she smiled. It was not an I'm-keeping-a-secret-smile like Charlotte's. "Of course," she answered and pointed to the chair in front of her. "Have a seat."
I bowed. "Thank you." Well, maybe I could get some useful information to give Uncle Falk.
I sat down and asked. "How did you learn of the theft?"
"I had visitors from the future, who came and warned me about this meeting, Mr. de Villiers. Something terrible was going to happen if the circle of blood was closed. They said it was a matter of life and death."
A matter of life and death? How melodramatic. That was obviously Lucy and Paul.
"Then they have been giving you false information, Miss Grand. Those people are enemies of the lodge. They stole the chronograph in an attempt to destroy the lodge's work for over two hundred years. You can't trust them."
"No," she said. "They were terrified. I think they were very truthful about it."
"Well, that's what you think," I said feeling tired of this. "Of course you will think that."
Margaret Grand leaned back and crossed her arms. She scowled at me.
"Are you suggesting that I'm stupid?"
Damn. "No, no." Maybe Gwendolyn and her great-great-grandmother did have something in common.
"I wouldn't be surprise if you thought I was. The de Villiers twins think that women are stupid. That their life mission is to give birth to children and do as the husband tells them to, like we were some sort of dogs walking on two legs. I think, Mr. de Villiers, that I have a good judgment to tell the different between lies and truths."
Stubborn woman.
She wasn't finish. "I'm wondering why haven't the lodge questioned the facts from the count. Have you never asked yourself if there was something wrong with his information? Have you never wanted to check the sources?"
I got a little confused. Well, we never did try to check up the count's notes, but that had never been necessary. Why would the count not be truthful about his own lifework?
"The count funded the lodge to work for the benefit of mankind, Miss Grand. He discovered how the chronograph works. If it hadn't been for him, you would probably have to deal with uncontrolled elapsing. You own that to him."
But that didn't seem to change her mind. "I'm going to give my blood to the first chronograph. And I'm going to use it every day. That's all obligation I have to do. And I'm not even a member of the lodge. So you can't demand anything from me."
Damn.
"Listen, Miss Grand. Whatever those traitors told you isn't true."
"And who says that it's not the other way around?"
What? "What do you mean?"
"It's the man behind you I don't trust."
The man behind me? "The count?"
Margaret Grand nodded. "Listen, maybe we can work something out. I'm willing to discuss this at another time and at another place."
"That sounds good," I said. That was at least some better progress than on my last trip.
"But not with you, I'm afraid," she said quickly. "I will only talk with Gwendolyn Shepherd, my granddaughter's granddaughter."
I almost dropped my jaw. "With Gwendolyn Shepherd?" Did I hear that right?
Miss Grand nodded. "Either I get to talk with her or I will take with nobody at all."
I got the message. She would only talk with Gwendolyn. But how in the name of bloody hell, did she know her from?
"How do you know her from?" I asked.
"That does not matter, Mr. de Villiers. I made my point clear: I want to negotiate with Gwendolyn Shepherd, your partner. Understood?"
I stood up, fighting to hide my frustration. "Understood," I answered.
Miss Grand smiled satisficed. "I'm glad for that. Have a nice day, Mr. de Villiers."
I didn't say anything. I just nodded at her and left.
Damn. Damn. Dammit.
Again those traitors managed to be one step ahead of us. This could only be a trap. A trap for Gwendolyn.
But Paul and Lucy shouldn't have known her. They were supposed to have travel back in time with the chronograph in September 1994. That was a month before Gwendolyn was born.
As far I could think there were only three possibilities:
Paul and Lucy traveled back in time after Gwendolyn's birth.
Either Gwendolyn or I could have gone back in time to before my meeting with young Margaret and left a clue or a message that told her, who the Ruby would really be.
Margaret Tilney could have met Gwendolyn on her initiation journey, while she was traveling back in time, which is unlikely.
The other two seemed stronger. I have heard from uncle Falk that Gwendolyn's mother allowed the two traitors to stay with her and her husband in Durham. It's very possible that Grace might have been pregnant with Gwendolyn at the time and her name was already decided. Gwendolyn was born in October and Lucy and Paul stole the chronograph in May. The time window would be five to six months. So Grace had to have been pregnant with Gwendolyn at the time the traitors stayed in Durham. But if they knew her name that way, how could they have known she would be the ruby? As far as I have heard Gwendolyn was premature, born two month too early. They couldn't have known that she would be born in October, if she was supposed to be born in December. But if they waited with jumping back in time to after October 7th, then maybe they knew the date of her birth if they had contact with Grace between Gwendolyn's birth and their jump. But that didn't explain how they would know for certain that she was the ruby. There was also Charlotte. It was known that Glenda was pregnant with her before the theft.
As for the second possibility the lodge could believe that Gwendolyn would tell Lady Tilney about herself. But how could it happen?
Wait, Uncle Falk said that Gwendolyn travel more than once back in time before she and her mother turned up at the temple. Could she have met Lady Tilney on one of them? I needed to talk to my uncle about it.
But it could also be possible that I could have told Lady Tilney about Gwendolyn, but yet again how could it have happen? The lodge controls my trips to the past. They would make sure that something like that wouldn't happen.
It seemed like I was left with no blood sample from Lady Tilney and more questions than answers.
And another problem.
I'm willing to admit that maybe the count is more a 'greater good'-person. The kind of person you see in TV, who is willing to make sacrifices of the benefit of all people.
But he was a genius. He was working for something that could benefit everybody. Paul and Lucy didn't understand it. They were insane. Now the lodge had this mess.
And it was worse for me. Now we had to drag Gwendolyn into this. No doubt she would do exactly the opposite of what I'm telling her to do. If I told her to not listen to the traitors, she wouldn't listen to me, because I had no right to give her orders in her opinion.
Unless I could improve her opinion of me.
I noticed a mirror, that wouldn't be there anymore in 2011. I looked at my reflection. I knew that I was good-looking.
I had become the fisher. And the bait. And Gwendolyn was going to the prey.
It would be difficult, I knew that. After all I had just declared to my uncle in front of her that she was 'not my type'. And I have to get a moment with her alone, because all the guardians think that a relationship between Montrose and de Villiers was nothing but trouble.
She might think I'm too old for her. I was soon nineteen and she was still sixteen. Or maybe finding it awkward since I'm a university student and she is in High School.
What if she already had a boyfriend? Could I really destroy a relationship and make her fall for something that was not real?
I closed my eyes and reminded myself that it was for the greater good. And for the greater good, sacrifices had to be made. It was the order of the count, and I could hardly ignorer them.
If there is a God somewhere, please forgive me.
How do you flirt with an average girl? Take them to the cinema and try holding their hands in the dark? Invited them to dinner at a restaurant with candles?
Last time Raphael visited me, I saw him flirt a little with some local girls. They both got flattered when he said something in French to them. Do girls like when a guy speaks in French to them? Maybe I should give him a call and ask about it.
…
Did I actually consider asking my brother for flirting advice?
They said it was a matter of life and death.
What did Lucy and Paul tell Lady Tilney that convinced her to listen to them?
So what do you think? :-)