The light glinting through the train window was just coming across her face, The warmth from the body behind her enticed her to stay but she knew there was much to be done today. She sighed gently and scooched back into the warmth and nestled into the forms of his body and his arm then gently wrapped around her waist and fell limp again. The pleasant feeling of butterflies in her gut told her to enjoy the moment but then as her mind became clearer and more focused she noticed her boots on the ground and beside them, her brother's boots... and his pants... and his shirt... dread filled her abdomen for a slight moment before she noticed she didn't see his under clothes and between the sheets she could feel the softness of his cotton shirt against her bare shoulders and the resulting sigh escaped her.
She laid there till he stirred about an hour later. She felt him shift and stretch and almost shove her to the floor with a groan. With a bump of her hip to his he latched on and grabbed her by the hip before she could fall.
"Good morning darling sister" she could hear the smile in his sleepy morning voice.
"Sleep well bed hog?" her voice was sing song to his husky morning voice.
"God above Sweet sister, Yeessss" he snaked a hand up to her shoulder brushing the sheet aside and kisses her shoulder.
She pulles away quickly and throws her legs over the side of the small bed.
"I do belive we have a lot of people to tell that im actually alive." She then notices her legs are thank the heveans above still dressed with her pants from the night before and she only needs to reach for her boots, her top half shivers at the cool morning air, the fire in the corner had gone out and the chill had taken over. Her white cotton blouse is unbuttoned and half falling down her shoulders and she promptly starts buttoning it back up while looking back at her sprawling brother in the bed.
"EEEviieeee"
His whining had always won her over; just the way he drew out her name and when ever he used that tone you'd know he was about to say something crazy "What if we dont tell everyone. What if you stay a ghost?"
"Jacob that is... that's insanity!" She glares back at him and goes to pull her boots on finaly
"Just think about it!"
"Not a chance!" and the second boot is on and she is now standing folding her arms across her chest.
"But no one would suspect you, there are so many benifits to this!"
"I will not put everyone through this"
"Everyone already has sister"
"That makes this no easier to tell them I am actualy alive Jacob."
"But you dont have to! That's the point, you could go where ever; when ever; and no one would be the wiser."
"And no one would know I exsist, Records wouldn't follow you."
"We couldn't tell anyone, could we?" her arms drop. "Poor Henry.."
"We tell the important people of course, I tell the council, of course the Queen knows now and that would be it. You become a ghost."
"Is this really the best idea Jacob? I wouldnt be able to stay here on the train... someone would notice eventualy"
She had a point, this whole plan was stupidly crazy. Pretend to be dead to everyone. Poor Clara O'Dea, Her small friend, she would be lying to her, lying to Henry and everyone else.
Logisticaly they had the money saved up to afford to rent a flat somewhere in town, the Rooks and their buinesses made sure of that. It could in turn work, as long as she became a night owl, no more day time strols, no more showing her face in public... she would etentialy become a phantom assassin.
"Jacob, your idea is insane. You'll be lying to everyone. You will have the most work to pull off you know"
"Evie, sister dearest, are you saying yes?"
She only noods pulling on her red coat and gauntlet.
"Then we have work to do!" he leaps from the bed and the sheet falls back to the bed and she silently giggles at the fact that he is naked from the waist down.
"father above help us both!" she turns quickly and waits for him to pull his trousers on.
"What!"
"Time to start planning."
lll
She worked at her desk the entire day, the curtains drawn in the train car pulling it into darkness. Jacob had promptly left to scout a flat in the City of London, something near the Thames for easy escape. She had told him to think of affordabilty and simplicity, nothing over the top and sent him on his way.
He left the logistics to her and locked the car door behind him, she was happy he'd returnd part way through the day with a basket of rolls and some apples.
His plan was to act depressed and secluded for a while, shutting himself away in grieft, Jacob was always a prankster but if he played his cards right they could both end up winning the game they where now playing.
Secluding himself away and passing most of the logistical jobs off to Henry had been an easy play, Jacob was never the best with math and Agnes was already dealing with the financials of the Rooks and all thier buisnesses. Jacob had asked Henry to keep and eye on them for a while as Jacob would have to travel to infrom his grandmother of the news. When realisicaly she had passed the year before father had, but no one needed to know about that tiny peice of information.
This gave them a cover for leaving town to go to Paris in the comming weeks and Finaly Jacob had spoken with Clara about keeping track of blighters movments and informing Henry for a while, she had ears all over the city and with his sister "gone" he was going to need help. Evie had not been impressed that her brother had guilt tripped miss O'dea into the work but it wouldnt be long before that girl was taken under someone's wing to become an assasin herself, she was to good at the jobs she was already doing, a quick wit and so talented.
Her new note book was staring her back by the end of the afternoon, her old note book would be given to Henry to keep all the blighter information she had already had in safe hands, and she would inform Jacob to give it to him next time he came to the train. Her new note book had been an old brown leather bound book she had found in her fathers desk along with the letters. Her plan was simple for the note book; Keep the most basic on information and keepthe rest between the two of them.
Later this evening she would visit the Queen again to inform her of their new plan, but now, she was to pack up her things before her brother got back. Jacob had told her to do so, as apparently he was supposed to do it since she had passed, the train car would be taken over by him and his things and if she was dead why would he keep all her "junk" he had put it.
So whilst she is gathering her various coats and chemises, extra knives and cane swords she stumbles upon a letter crumpled in the corner of the closet. As she in opening it she hears a thump on the top of the train car.
"For an assassin your awfuly loud on your feet Jacob" she laughts without looking back. She knows it could only be him returning at this hour. She was thankfull for his return. That must mean he has finally found a place for her to move to.
The front door to the car rattles.
"Jacob?" she dosen't say it loud this time, but just enough he may here it.
The door rattles a few more times before it stops. Then there is foot steps across the roof again and a thud by the back door and more rateling of the door.
"Jacob?" this time she calls out the name demandingly. "Jacob stop this nonesence this moment" She nears the door and grabs a cane sword from her packing pile.
BANG! A fist comes through the tain door and tries to rattle it free with a bloody fist
Well thats definetly not Jacob's hand, its much to small.
She has to think fast; does she fight and kill someone here, that could make to much comotion and someone else may come.
second option, hide and pray the asailant dosent snoop to far or she could simply grab her jacket, draw her hood and kick the rober off the train and escape into the night.
She goes with option 2, she had already cleared away most of what was under her bed and she drops silently and rolls under the nailed down frame and not a moment too soon.
Her eagle vision shows a small figure opening the door, the fist wrapped in cloth and slowly moving in.
"Evie?" The figure moves about the cabin or the car slowly, lifting things, turning things over, and then she reaches for the note book. she cant tell wich at this time but she hopes its the old one and not the new one!
She hadnt herd that voice in a while but she knows it, it's Clara O'dea.
"Evie..." her voice cracks and sounds like she has been crying. she watches at the girl drops to her knees.
"Evie please I swear I herd you in here!" the girls voice is hoarse and heart breaking "Jacob came and told me the news this morning I couldn't take his word for it, you wouldn't give up that easily..."
Evie is now holding her breath, for this plan to work Clara mustn't know she is here, maybe eventualy but not right away. she waited for the girl to rumage around for another few moments, notices her looking at the canes and jackets and mentaly notes to get her one of her own eventualy, or even gift her, her old one.
She waits and continues to wait and finaly Clara sit on the bed above her, her little feet overhand the bed for a moment but then she pulls her feet up and under herself.
they both stay like that for a bit and finaly she sees someone else aproching. The creature most certainly had to be Jacob, finaly, she had been under the bed now for what had to be an hour.
"Clara?" yup that was Jacobs voice. he comes closer and kneels beside the bed. "Did you brake in here?" He picks her up and sets her down on the chair oposite the bed and tends to her hand with bandages and ointment. "Clara you must understand Evie is gone and braking in here to go through her things isnt the right thing to do"
"But I swear I herd her in here!" Her voice is strained and Evie just knows the girl had been crying again.
"Well she isnt in here, see Clara, I have been packing up her things to put in storage." his pause makes her thing he is about to do something stupid. "Here Clara, she would have wanted you to have this."
The conversation goes on for a little longer before Jacob get the train to stop at the next station for her to get off and not a moment too soon, Its gotten dark at this point and she wouldn't be able to get to the Queen before it was too late.
Finaly once Jacob comes back and sighs
"You can come out now", she rolls out from under the bed. "Quick thinking Evie"
"You gave her my pocket watch?"
"Yup, had to giver her something, and honestly would you have rathered I gave her your cane or a kukri from your infinite collection?"
She sighs a heavy sigh and pushes past him.
"I have to go see The Queen" she says almost out the busted door while pulling up her hood.
"Already taken care of, Elizabeth even gave me a cookie!"
"well then I need to stretch my legs." she grabs the roof of the train car and pulls herself to the top of the train.
"Well Phantom, let me join you. I have somewhere I would like to show you"