Hello everyone! So it's been quite a while since my last update. I apologize for taking so long. Thanks to everyone who's read Peace at Last. I really appreciate it. And if you want to review, that would be great. : ) Your comments are so inspiring! My excuses for not writing are lame, so I won't bore you with them, but I hope you enjoy. Here's chapter ten. : )
Chapter Ten
Deryn Sharp felt a cold shiver run down her spine as the man's eyes locked with Alek's. The boy stood frozen, his face pale in the glow of the candelight. A slow grin spread across the man's face, his eyes glinting like the blade of a knife, then he turned, and began slipping into the crowd.
Alek turned to Deryn. "What do we do?"
She stood for a moment, chewing her lip as she tried to think. She wished Dr. Barlow had been a bit more specific. But the lady boffin never explained anything fully. Now that they knew it was Alek's mystery man, did she expect them to follow him?
Deryn scanned the room. The man's dark head was visible above the crowd, unobtrusively making its way toward the door. He obviously didn't want to draw any attention to himself. The bumrag.
Deryn began pushing her way into the crowd. "Come on. We'd better see where he's going." She moved forward, muttering 'excuse me's' as she stepped in front of people. Alek followed right behind.
His face was tight with worry as he asked, "Don't you think it's a bit strange that we found the man so quickly? We've been to precisely one party, and he was just here, waiting for us." Alek frowned as he stepped around a reporter holding an unwieldy camera. "It just seems rather odd."
Deryn nodded. "Aye, I wonder what he's up to. It does seem a squick suspicious-" She glanced back at Alek. "-almost as if it'd been planned."
Alek 's voice came from behind. "Indeed. But what are we supposed to do about it?"
Deryn shrugged. "Nothing for now. We'll just have to wait and see what happens."
Deryn squeezed by another reporter. Alek's mystery man was a ways in front of them, making his way closer to the door.
She glanced about, wishing for the tenth time that Dr. Barlow had sent someone from the Society to help. It would have been rather nice to have some assistance. After all, the man was barking dangerous!
Deryn eased her way past a plump woman in an elaborately feathered hat. The throng of people pressed tightly together, everyone transfixed by the mummy unwrapping. Professor Redgrave had started on the bandages and had already removed several tightly wrapped layers. Deryn would have liked to be watching, too, if only to see Alek squirm.
"Excuse me," Deryn said, stepping quickly around a man in a bowler hat. She could just barely see Alek's mystery man, about to slip out the door!
"Hurry!" she cried, no longer concerned with making a scene. She dodged through the crowd, earning glares from annoyed partygoers. But they couldn't let him get away.
By the time she and Alek reached the exit though, the man was already halfway down the hallway, his long legs carrying him quickly toward the door.
Deryn and Alek ran down the corridor, their dress shoes slipping against the marble floor like a pair of skates on ice.
Though they were quick, the man was faster. He reached the wood door first and escaped out into the night. Deryn raced after him, the loris a heavy weight on her shoulder. Alek followed close behind.
But as they burst onto the front porch, Deryn saw a carriage pulled by a fabricated horse waiting out front, its dark shape illuminated clearly in the silvery moonlight. The man leapt aboard shouting, "Drive!" to the cabbie.
"Deryn, look! He's escaping!" Alek yelled.
"Aye, I can see that!"
She glanced about for a way to follow. A few yards farther down the drive, a line of carriages was parked beneath the trees.
Deryn began to run. "Follow me!" she cried.
Deryn and Alek ran toward the carriages, two shadows darting across the ground like a pair of ravens though the sky. They soon reached the vehicles and Deryn clambered aboard the nearest one. It was a typical four-seater-someone's private carriage, and pulled by a small fab.
Alek scrambled up beside her. "But isn't this stealing?"
Deryn grabbed the leather reins and gave them a flick. The carriage lurched forward and began to move rapidly down the drive.
She turned to Alek with a grin. "Not if we bring it back it's not."
The loris scampered down next to her, sinking its tiny claws into the seat cushion. "Stealing, Mr. Sharp," it said seriously, then giggled. It rather seemed to be enjoying itself.
Deryn gave the reins a shake. "Oi beastie," she called. "Let's try to hurry a bit, shall we?" The fab pulling it was moving a bit too slowly. If they kept up this pace, the man would easily get away. The carriage picked up speed.
"You have driven one of these before, haven't you?" Alek asked worriedly as they turned onto the street. It was dark now and cold, Deryn's breath appearing as smoke from a fire. Overhead, stars illuminated the sky, their light mingling with that of the street lamps.
The man's cab was moving quickly away from them, which at least made the chance of him spotting them far less likely.
"Aye, of course I have." Deryn snorted. "How else do you suppose we got about Glasgow? You didn't think we walked everywhere, did you?"
Alek smiled. "Hardly. But what about omnibuses and taxis? Glasgow's a large city isn't it?"
Deryn shrugged, her eyes focused on the road ahead.
"My family lived more in the country really, so we had our own horse and cart. Jaspert taught me how and I drove quite a bit, actually." She looked at Alek and grinned. "And chickens-we also had plenty of those."
Alek scratched Bovril's head distractedly. "I see. . ."
Deryn peered at the road ahead. The older, wealthier neighborhoods were beginning to disappear, to be replaced with a more commercial section of London. They had left the grand estates and sprawling mansions behind, and were now headed past several story flats, restaurants, and shops.
The traffic began to increase, too, the road becoming crowded with omnibuses and taxis. Bovril gazed curiously about, the glow of the city reflected in its eyes like fireflies in a jar.
A breeze twisted through Deryn's hair as she craned her neck, trying to keep the man's carriage in sight. His cab was moving along at a good pace, a few carriages had come between them.
Deryn turned to Alek. "Where in blazes do you think he's going?" She thought at least he'd lead them to some poor and run-down part of London, somewhere that crooks and shady characters like himself would be. But instead, they'd turned onto a street that was barking posh.
On either side, fancy stores, restaurants, and other buildings were crammed together like books on a shelf, their tall rooftops reaching to the sky. Blazing lights from hotels and clubs dazzled Deryn's eyes, and gleaming brass tubing twisted up the sides of the most elegant hotels, the use of message lizards an efficient way to connect guests to the front desk.
Alek shook his head. "I don't know. Do you suppose he's aware we're behind him?"
Deryn frowned. "I'm not sure. But I reckon the man's a sneaky beak. So whether he knows or not, he's probably keeping an eye out."
Alek nodded. "Well, for our sake, let's hope he doesn't see us."
Several carriages separated Deryn and Alek from the man, Deryn keeping a careful distance away. She peered ahead, but it was impossible to tell whether he realized she and Alek were following him.
"Look." Alek pointed ahead. The man's carriage was beginning to slow, and the taxi pulled over to the side of the road. Deryn watched as the man leapt to the sidewalk and handed the cabbie some money. He glanced furtively about, then headed into the nearest building.
Deryn looked for a spot to park, and deftly guided the carriage to the curb. She and Alek quickly scrambled down from the carriage and stood staring up at the structure before them. The sound of music drifted down to the street below and bright lights lanced out into the darkness. A bored bouncer stood guard at the entrance.
Bovril shifted on Deryn's shoulder. "Nightclub," it said.