Chapter 1

James Carstairs sat perched on the edge of the window seat in his bedroom, replacing a string on his violin. He had few candles lit as the moon was bright and full. It shone directly outside his window. He heard someone coming down the hall, and wondered for a moment if it could possibly be Tessa again, coming to his room for some more midnight music…

These thoughts were interrupted by a loud thud outside, and someone calling out "By the Angel! When did this plant stand get put here?" James smiled as he recognized the voice of Will in this outburst. The door soon swung open to reveal his friend and parabati, disheveled and a little drunk perhaps but standing.

"Jem—my good man! Did you know there is a plant stand outside of your room now? Nearly killed me!" Will greeted him.

Jem let out a small laugh. "It's been there over a month. Sophie put it there. Said it brightened up the hallway."

Will looked perplexed for a moment as he tried to think back one month and remember the plant stand being there. He shook his head and frowned as he had no memory of it being there. "No matter," he said. "Let's say you and I go out for a night on the town. What do you think?"

Jem continued to work on his violin strings. He smiled down at his work, fully aware that a night out with Will meant drunkenness and debauchery. Will sidled up to the window seat and sat down in a heap. "Come on then!" he said. "Put this thing away and come have a night of fun with me!"

Jem looked up at his friend then. He had reached a decent stopping point. He smiled at Will. "All right then, where to?"

Will immediately started listing off possible places for them to visit—bars, brothels, and gambling dens included. Jem listened while carefully putting away his violin. He would finish the work tomorrow and then possibly entice Tessa to come back for another midnight performance.

"Jem…Jem! Are you listening to me?" Will said loudly.

"Hmm…Oh yes—pubs and gambling dens, but no brothels." Jem said coolly.

Will grinned. "Oh, alright. You win. First stop then is Angela's for a drink!" Will said giddily.

Several hours—and several drinks—later, both boys stumbled into a gambling den known as The Dragon's Lair. Will ordered a round of drinks while Jem scoured the floor for a good table to play cards. Once seated, they stayed through several rounds of both drinks and cards. Eventually, the only ones left at the table were Jem, Will, the dealer, and two men who looked like they had been there a long time as well.

Jem looked at Will in between hands. "Did you ever notice," he began a little drunkenly "how beautiful Tessa is? Because I've noticed!" He smiled in a hazy way.

Will raised his eyebrows in surprise. It was rare for Jem to get drunk, and even rarer for him to reveal such a detail. "I did in fact notice this little quirk of hers, yes," Will replied.

Jem stared at Will and narrowed his eyes. "Let's say we make this hand of cards a bit more interesting, eh?"

Will stared back at him and waited for Jem to lay his stakes.

"Whoever wins this hand will be free to woo Tessa as he sees fit…and the loser must not interfere!" Jem finished with a slight hiccup.

Will smiled. "My dear Jem, a hand of cards is not what is needed to decide this. No, in fact we must let Tessa herself decide between us!"

Jem looked at him in a confused manner.

Will continued. "We will each try to…get Tessa to see our charms and see who she chooses!"

Jem slapped his parabati on the back. "Good thinking William! We must let the beautiful lady decide!" He shouted.

The other men at the table looked at the pair oddly. Will smiled and waved at the dealer. "I think we'll sit out the next round." He turned to Jem. "And I think we ought to head home to get to bed." Jem began reaching for his coat. Will smiled at him. "You'll need your rest if you want to 'woo' Tessa as you claim!"