Chapter 12: A Disappearing Act

Abigail bolted down the hallway and tried to remember where the diningroom had been. Her mind was frazzled with fear and anger all at the same time. Ishmael, the first mate, saw her stop and clutch her chest tightly while looking in every direction like a frantic animal.

"Is something wrong, Miss Quatermain?" he asked as he moved towards her with concern.

"The diningroom, which way is it?" she panted. He stared at her in confusion for a moment and then gestured towards the hallway leading to it. She nodded to him gratefully and then started off in a greater hurry. The doors to the diningroom were still slightly open, but no conversation seemed to be coming from the room at the moment. Abigail raced up to the doors and shoved them open with the force of a bear. She ran towards the table and scooted to a stop before colliding with the edge. "I've found him, I found the traitor!"

"What?" Allan said in confusion.

"Who is it?" Mina asked seeming to be completely focused on the girl and not the looks that were now being exchanged between all the members still present.

"It's Dorian Gray; he's taken at least five pictures of the machinery on board," Abigail panted. Nemo's eyes flared with anger and he rose to standing. "They're with other things that he's taken. He's trying to do something terrible!"

"Calm down, Abigail," Allan said as he reached a hand towards her. "What happened? How do you know this?"

Mina felt it best to speak before the girl incriminated herself. "I sent her into the staterooms to find the camera that had been used on the bridge," she explained. "Apparently it worked."

"You did what?!" Allan said in shock and anger.

"Are you sure that it is Mr. Gray?" Jekyll asked in concern.

"I was just in his room! He has. . . he's. . . he has samples of Misses Harker's blood and something else from Mr. Skinner!" Abigail exclaimed turning more and more pale with each word that escaped her lips. The men present turned to one another in turn, trying to silently decide on a course of action. Mina growled in frustration and moved towards the girl. "He's taken a vial of Dr. Jekyll's potion! He's planning something dreadful with all of them! I was right, father, he's not to be trusted! I told you I sensed that he was off."

"Sensed?" Nemo said looking at Allan sternly. "Is she clairsentient?"

"It's nothing," Allan replied quickly. Abigail looked at him with wounded surprise, but shook off the offense quickly as she began walking hurriedly towards the door to the diningroom. Allan frowned, thinking for a moment that perhaps Abigail had been right and that he simply hadn't been able to sense evil on this voyage the way that she had. Maybe Mr. Gray was as he seemed, cold and selfish. He turned to the others. "Jekyll, you and Sawyer go and see if one of your bottles, or what not, is missing. The rest of us will go and have a conversation with Mr. Gray. We'll get to the bottom of this."

The two nodded and left the room hurriedly. Sawyer stopped for a moment and stared uneasily at Abigail. She looked away, turning pink with the knowledge that she had done something very wrong. She would have to confess about reading his journal and the letter, of course, but that would need to be done much later. Right now the task of making sure that Mr. Gray's sinister plans for the future were thwarted was most important. Allan looked down at Abigail with obvious mixed emotions. Sneaking around even to find the source of danger, just didn't sound like her at all. He frowned and looked towards Mina. Mina returned the gaze with sternness, questioning with complete silence why the man hadn't thought of it himself. Abigail had many talents and advantages on the voyage that the rest of them did not and could not have. He reached towards Abigail and carefully took one of her trembling hands.

"We have to hurry, father," she said. "Now that he knows that I know, he might try anything to get away."

"That would be rather difficult, Miss Quatermain," Nemo interjected as he started towards the door as well. "We're nearly 20,000 leagues below the surface of the sea itself. He would have quite a task ahead of him if he were going to try and escape."

"Never underestimate a cornered beast," Allan said firmly and motioned for the four to start down the hall towards the staterooms.

Abigail felt her heart nearly bursting. She had completed a rather weighty task just now. She had been a spy almost perfectly, but now she could finalize the need behind her task by bringing Dorian's treachery into the light. Her vision began to tremble almost as much as every nerve ending in her body. As the group reached the door to Gray's stateroom, Abigail felt the tension and fear melt into proud resolve. She had caught the villain red-handed and was now ready to watch as the others rendered judgement. Allan knocked on the door harshly. Mina looked down uneasily at the girl. Something wasn't right about this. Abigail was undoubtedly telling the truth, but she had never known Dorian to be so unorganized or careless as to simply let someone loose that thought ill of him especially if they had evidence proving it. Dorian had a silver tongue and velvet hand that he used to steer the thoughts and hearts of anyone useful to him or that could potentially do him harm. Why hadn't he tried to threaten or persuade Abigail into silence? This was not going to end well. The door opened smoothly revealing Dorian dressed in more casual attire than he had been a few moments before. He smiled warmly.

"Goodness, why so many visitors?" he asked with a charming smile. Abigail felt the trembling return for a passing second at his voice and smooth demeanor. "What can I do for all of you?"

"Mr. Gray, there is a need to search this room," Nemo said firmly. Of all the persons present, he was indeed the most angry for the time being. The Nautilus was his life's work. Taking advantage of the vessel or taking away any of its secrets was nothing less than material molestation, adultery with what the Captain saw as his only lady. Dorian looked in feigned confusion at the group, but this was only marked by Abigail and Mina both. As the immortal youth stepped aside and allowed the two older gentlemen and ladies to enter, he looked towards the closet with a twinge of amusement. Abigail was the only one able to see this and felt an angry growl welling up within her. Nemo and Allan searched every inch of the aristocrat's room, more so than Abigail had done. When the two had reached the closet, Nemo almost immediately noticed the unsettled box that Abigail had been examining several moments before. He took hold of it and nodded towards Allan. The two walked over to the desk and set the box down carefully before opening it. The expression of shock on either face was indescribable. "Did you find what you needed?"

"What on earth?" Nemo remarked as he held up a jar with what looked like a small stained cloth in it; it was one of three such jars. The shape was recognizable to anyone who had taken advanced biology or who owned a large garden that was home to many insects. "Are these cocoons?"

"A Viceroy from the Guinea Islands," Dorian said proudly. "It's quite a rare and delicate creature when born, but they can remain in stasis for many years and be transported to regions away from their own easily in such a state. I can hardly wait to be back in Westingshire where I have my country home with its enormous rose garden. She will be a lovely addition, don't you think?"

"Abigail, is this what you saw?" Allan asked in complete bewilderment. Abigail felt her breath stop. She fought away the overwhelming shock of seeing everything so differently than it had been a few moments before. She hurried to her father's side and gazed at the contents of the box in horror. The jars each held a bizarre cocoon and the envelopes behind them read plainly: Favershom Brothers Quality Rose Enhancement Powder. She grabbed the sides of the box away from the two men and set the contents to the side before turning it upside down and shaking it furiously. "Abigail, there's nothing else in it."

"There was! There were jars with bloody cloth and glass slides in them! Where are the photographs? Where is the list of things to retrieve?!" she exclaimed feeling more and more flustered by the second. She turned angrily to Dorian. "You've hidden them! I know you have! Where are they?"

"My dear girl, I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about," Dorian replied innocently. "I haven't hidden anything from you. You were in here a moment ago; you do remember seeing this box and the butterflies, don't you?"

"This is a trick! He's hidden them, I tell you!" Abigail exclaimed now pointing angrily at the man. "He's lying!"

"I would never lie to you, Abigail," Dorian said with a low and commanding tone. "You were mistaken if you saw anything else."

A piece of paper suddenly slipped out of a small section of the box. Abigail gasped and snatched in one hand.

"Here, this must be the list! It has all of our names on it!" she said waving it proudly. Allan took it from her and carefully opened it. "Look, there are names and items on it that he plans to take and has taken!"

"Abigail, this is not a list of names," Allan said with tremendous disappointment. He handed it to the Captain who frowned and handed it to Abigail. The girl looked at the paper with further horror crossing her visage.

"This, this isn't right," she whispered. The paper held the names and addresses of five people in Kensington and Westingshire with either 'distant cousin invite for tea' or 'old friend of mother's invite to dinner' written beneath each. She breathed heavily and set the paper back on the desk, glaring at Dorian coldly. "What are you playing at?"

"During those dull afternoons and trite evenings with company? Nothing more than the piano. Silence after the meal or entertainment ignites such unpleasant conversations. I can't even get away with so much as a game of billiards without someone remarking about how dreadful it is for me to be living as a bachelor," he replied casually. "Not that anyone would do anything about it. I'm afraid I'm just too intimidating when alone with a woman."

Mina rolled her eyes and snorted softly. As the rest of the group turned to her, loud footsteps filled the hallway. Jekyll and Sawyer appeared at the doorway and looked quite unsettled. Allan moved to face them fully and noted their expressions instantly.

"What did you find?" he asked.

"One of the vials is missing," Jekyll said angrily. "Which means someone is up to no good."

"Well, had I known that I was under investigation I would have asked for an explanation more firmly," Dorian said indignantly. "You really should warn a fellow first."

"He has the vial! It must be on his person!" Abigail said excitedly. She stood angrily in front of Dorian and stared at him. "Hand it over! You're not going to get away with your thievery! Where is it, up your sleeve?"

"Abigail," Allan began as he placed a hand on his daughter's shoulder to calm her.

"As a matter of fact the girl is on to something with that," Dorian said with a wicked grin. Abigail narrowed her eyes, trying to read his actions before they could make her look any more foolish. With a fluid sweep of his right arm, Dorian reached into the cuff of his left sleeve and withdrew a vial of fluid. The vial and fluid were mirror images of the potion that Jekyll used to release his alter ego. The rest of the room gasped in amazement as Dorian effortlessly withdrew the cork and held the rim to his nose. He smiled pleasantly before re-corking the bottle and handing it to Jekyll. "If you drink such a thing to transform, then I wonder just what kind of supplies are in your laboratory."

Jekyll took the vial and removed the cork once again, sniffing the fluid as Dorian had done. His expression shifted and he handed it calmly to Quatermain.

"It's cologne," the doctor said with a heavy sigh.

"It can't be!" Abigail shouted. "He stole a vial of the potion!"

"Abigail, this cannot be Jekyll's potion," Allan said as he stared at the bottle. "This is cologne, though not terribly high in quality."

"Expensive scents tends to make one seem cheap when in a room full of men in French silk. The wealthy are hardly knowledgeable about things of the lower class and find anything unique more intriguing than exotic women. I find it easy to be unique in doing the simple things that no one would expect," Dorian explained with a laugh. Abigail let out a choking sound and stared from face to face in terror. How could they believe all this? Dorian was obviously acting and, as Mina had said before, did it poorly. He smiled tenderly as an owl taking pity on the mouse in its talons. He extended his arm and held out the bottle to her. "Here, Abigail, it will make you feel more at peace if you know for yourself that it is safe."

Abigail took a step back and looked harshly at him. "You're lying," she said softly. Allan began to say something to correct and end the girl's suspicion. "He's lying and you're letting him!" she shouted angrily at the older man. "How can you not believe me? I know what I saw!"

"Maybe someone put 'em here to hide from us and you came on it like they planned," Sawyer offered.

"Don't encourage this," Allan said to the boy. He turned back to Abigail. "You're mistaken, Abigail. Mr. Gray did not take the potion or anything else. We would have seen it. I would have been aware."

"I'm more aware of people than you are!" she shouted in a higher and positively frantic tone. "I'm not wrong about these things, father! I was blessed by the shaman Mkube just like you were! Don't you see? This was why I was given the blessing, to stop terrible things from happening! Something dreadful will happen in Venice if you let him get away with this!"

"Abigail, that blessing was simply a part of a ceremony. He would have said the same thing to any other child born under his care, it is their tradition," Allan explained soothingly. "This irrational behaviour of yours has to stop. We're on a very serious task."

"Then act like it!" Abigail said with tears forming in her eyes. She clenched her hands into fists held over her chest. "Why don't you believe me? You believe in your own gift, surely you must, why not mine!? You know that the blessings are real! Mkube said that Africa would never allow you to die? Don't you remember? He blessed you and that's why you weren't hurt at all when Harry. . ."

"Silence, child!" Allan shouted angrily. Abigail shrank several inches at the rage in his voice and the now furious expression on his weathered face. There was something else as well, something hidden. Abigail was far too emotional at the moment to take time to try and read it. He sighed and turned away for a moment. "I have been careless. I should not have allowed you to come along like this, it's driving you mad." Abigail's eyes grew lighter as the audible breaking of her heart made itself known physically. "When we're done in Venice, I'll find a way to send you home safely. Your mother will be relieved to have you back."

"You believe him," she whispered in horrific realization. "You believe anything but what I told you, what I felt."

"Miss Quatermain, perhaps that wound on your head has jarred something. It's quite possible that you were hallucinating," Jekyll offered. Abigail turned to him in further shock and rage. "Why don't I have a look at it for you?"

"You're mad, you're all mad, you all believe him!" she exclaimed in nearly a scream. She looked from figure to figure in pure hatred at the moment. Not even Mina was safe from the cold glare, but did not have the same share of anger as the others. "Extraordinary Gentlemen indeed! There's hardly anything extraordinary about ignoring the truth! I'm not going to be party to this! When you're all mired neck deep in the lies that you're accepting I'm not going to dig you out!"

Before another word could be spoken aloud, Abigail forced her way out of the room and back into the quarters she shared with Mina. The vampiress watched, feeling a tad helpless in this situation. She believed the girl, but also knew that it was not prudent to play along like she did believe her. Dorian was a dangerous man, far more dangerous than even Abigail suspected. Therefore, it was more practical to act on the side of caution and watch him a while before bringing down the hand of justice on him. She stared at the others with a somewhat saddened look in her eyes.

"Poor dear," Dorian said shaking his head. "She must be absolutely beside herself. The severity of the mission, losing her friend, being away from home, and then to be away from sunlight and open air for several days like this must be so taxing. Little girls aren't meant to be caged like this."

"She was acting out of necessity," Nemo corrected. "Something, or rather someone, on board is setting her on edge. All women have the insight to find evil. It is part of their gift of maternal instinct."

"Then you agree with her?" Dorian said in surprise. "You think me to be a traitor?"

"I believe that there is a traitor and that Abigail senses it to be nearby," Nemo said. "Something about you has drawn her attention. What exactly that draw is has yet to be revealed. Perhaps you have a reputation towards women that she can read from your past."

Mina cleared her throat and stepped towards the doorway. "I will go and calm her for now," she said.

"You'll do no such thing!" Allan said angrily. Mina looked at him in surprise, cocking her chin towards him as a challenge. "It was your fool idea to have her slink around other people's private property like that. You are a bad influence."

"Not so bad as to keep you from asking me to watch after her," Mina reminded coolly. "Abigail needed something to do and I believe that she did find the film in this room. Perhaps Mr. Sawyer is right in thinking that the objects were hidden here by the true villain."

"I really wouldn't put much weight on what the boy says, either," Allan said without turning to face his current point of conversation. "He's been near when more harm has come to her than anyone else."

"Now you wait just a cotton-picking minute! I haven't done anything to hurt her since I found out about all this!" Sawyer shouted defensively. "She's been safest of anyone with me!"

"Really? Let's recheck your recent history," Dorian said. "It was your knife that cut her and your presence that distracted her when she tried to use the rifle up deck."

"That's neither here nor there, Mr. Gray, accidents happen," Jekyll said. "Still, it might be best if she's left alone for a short while."

"My God, do none of you ever think beyond what's easiest for you? She's obviously terrified of something and needs consolation," Mina exclaimed with frustration. "I will go and see to her."

"I will go and see to her. I'm the one that she looks to," Allan said. Mina raised one brow.

"Looked to, but was turned away," she reminded firmly. "Besides, you've been a bad example of reacting properly to heated situations. There is quite a bit of you in her. She needs to be comforted without an open display of pity or condescendence."

"What makes you think I would do either?" Allan asked furiously.

"Past examples this very night," Mina said. "Dealing tenderly with someone without marring pride is something I, as a woman dealing in the world of men, have had to perfect. Delicate egos are the focus of the care of any wife, mother, sister, or daughter. Abigail is not wrong, Mr. Quatermain. There is something amiss. Hopefully, we will be able to uncover it before it does permanent harm to ourselves, the world, or Abigail."

With that, Mina left the room silently and headed straight for her own door. She knew that Abigail had found a significant piece of the puzzle that the League was to solve and combat. She would need to ask the girl questions about what she had truly found. First, however, she needed to be assured that the girl did not hate her for being silent. Mina remembered well how painful it was to have a friend standing silently beside one while under verbal attack. It was time that Abigail learned the secret of silence in order to complete a hazardous task among men. It was one of a woman's greatest weapons to work unseen or unheard. She had been given a taste of it in searching the rooms; now, she would need to perfect it.