Chapter 14

I stepped out of the carriage and handed my bags to the head servant. Ben and Cassian stepped down after me.

"Lord Jizabel, who—"

"These two are dear friends of mine. I wrote to father, telling him to expect them to come," I snapped.

"But, milord—"

"The agreement," I growled, "was that I keep up with my studies, which I have done impeccably. No one dared to tell me that I couldn't have friends."

We entered and Father stood smirking at us.

"Welcome back, Jizabel," he said. Cain looked more serious than he ought to have been, but when he looked at us, he smirked.

Finally! He seemed to say.

"Your friends, I take it?"

"Cassian and Ben," I said. "I wrote you to let you know I invited them to stay for the summer."

"I don't need you to tell me to recall it," Father said. "You both are most welcome here."

"Thank you for opening your doors to us, Lord Hargreaves," Ben said, bowing his head.

"You boys must be tired from your long journey. Go settle down first and Jizabel can show you where the dining room is. I'd like a word with him in private." Cassian and Ben left and I approached him. "You're planning something, aren't you?" Father hissed.

"What would I be planning?" I asked back, "If I was conspiring anything, I'd put Cain at risk, wouldn't I? I just wanted to have some friends over. Is that such a crime?"'

Father snarled and pushed me away. "Do you plan on being Cain's scapegoat again this summer?"

I nodded my head and Father left, leaving me and Cain in the hallway.

"How're you doing?"

"Well enough," Cain said, "Riff's been caring for me while you were gone. We thought you'd come back for Christmas. What happened?"

"Father had other plans," I said, shivering despite myself. "That's all you need to know."

Cain and I walked upstairs and found the rooms Ben and Cassian were staying in. We all headed into my room and Ben brought in one suit case.

"What's in there?" Cain asked.

"A camera," Ben said, smiling. "I'm so glad my Dad agreed to get me one. I didn't think it'd be useful this way."

"In what way?" Cain asked again.

I ruffled his head. "The plan's this, we're going to look at the various poisons we can use and use the best choice—the fastest killer of all those cute little things we have available."

"Jizabel, you're scary," Ben snapped.

"Anyway, if they do an autopsy on Father's body, they'll find poison and the four of us will be suspect. In other words, we're giving them our reasons for why we killed Father," I said.

"We also brought a phonograph."

"Which will be hidden in the tower," I said. I looked at Cain. "It is still done in the tower, right?"

Cain nodded. "It is."

"Good. Where's Riff?"

"Taking care of his duties," Cain said, crossing his legs. "Why?"

"Ben, we need Riff's testimony to be on the phonograph," I said, answering Cain without actually acknowledging he asked. "Until then, we can't put it up there."

"How many sessions do we need on the phonograph?" Cassian asked.

"One should be enough," I answered.

Cain shook his head. "You weren't kidding when you said you had a plan," he said. He pulled out a notebook and handed it to me. "Every poison listed. If you want a fast working poison, then white phosphorus or emerald forest might be best. Also, whatever you do, don't add sugar in your tea until Riff successfully replaces it. The sugar cubes are laced with arsenic."

"Shit! You're serious?" Cassian snapped.

"Dead serious," Cain said. "I asked him to replace the sugar cubes with ones dipped in rose hips. I know I wrote this to Jizabel."

"You did," I said. "In the letter you sent me back in January."

"And the purpose of that is?"

"If you smell something like roses in your tea, you'll know that someone's trying to poison you," Cain said, smirking.

"I thought you were the genius, Jizabel."

"He's my brother. Obviously we both received the deviousness gene."

"Deviousness?"

"Shut up, Cain," I said, rubbing my knuckles into his head.

"Ow-ow-ow!" Cain hissed, rubbing his head. "Jizabel, you jerk!"

I shrugged, grinning. Ben finished setting up the camera. "Okay, Cain, Jiz, show us your backs."

"Excuse me?" Cain growled. I tackled him and tried to pull off his shirt. "Jiz! What the hell! Let go!"

"Crying out loud, Cain, I used to bathe you when you were two!"

"That's an entirely different matter! This is—"

"Cassian, Ben, hold him down!"

"Riff! Riff! Save me!"

I pulled off the shirt and Cain tried to bolt for the door. "Geez, Cain, tell me this much: do you still sleep—"

Cain turned to me and glared. His face was red like a tomato. "Don't even finish that sentence, or so help me Jizabel…" So he did.

Cassian and Ben looked at me curiously. I smiled and we pulled Cain away from the door.

"Cain, all we're doing is getting a photograph of your back and mine," I said.

"I still feel like three guys just molested me."

I looked at Ben and Cassian and we burst into laughter.

"Getting molested is an entirely different experience, little brother," I said after I calmed down, "And I pray it never happens to you." That said, I discarded my own shirt. First we had Cain's back photographed and a few minutes later, mine.

"Jiz, maybe you should cut your hair," Cain suggested, "It's really long." I glared at him.

"Not for all the wealth in the world, Little Brother."

"But you sort of look like a girl."

I shook my head. I didn't need to be reminded…

The door opened and we looked at Riff. He stared at us. "Um…begging your pardon, Lord Jizabel, but why are you shirtless?"

I looked at Cain, who smirked at me. For someone who had been suffering at Father's hand while I was gone, Cain seemed smug. It irked me a little bit.

"That doesn't matter, Riff," I snapped. "Did you get your testimony against Father ready?"

Riff nodded.

"The phonograph's in my room at the moment," Cassian said. I followed after the others after putting my shirt back on. As I buttoned it back up, Cassian prepared the phonograph and Riff took out a piece of paper.

"Ready?" Cassian asked. Riff nodded. Cassian turned the phonograph on.

"May twenty-third, 1879, this is the testimony of Riffael Raffit against Earl Alexis Hargreaves on the account of severe abuse of both sons, Cain Christopher Hargreaves and Jizabel Erik Disraeli."

Riff looked at us and we nodded our waved our hands, telling him to continue.

"For two years, beginning in the winter of 1877, Young Cain, currently seven years old, began to suffer at the hands of his father at night. Every night to this day even, Cain is whipped. The following summer in 1878, Cain's elder brother, Jizabel Disraeli also began to suffer the same nightly whippings in replacement of his younger brother. Though noble and admirable, Jizabel is refered to by their father as Cain's 'Scapegoat.' Both brothers, along with myself and two others, do not deny that we are guilty of premeditated murder. Though we agree that what we've done was illegal and not ours to decide, protecting two boys from their father—a sadist only to those who know him well enough—was first and foremost our duty. If Lord Alexis had not died, his sons Jizabel and Cain surely would have. Following this recording is one incident in which Lord Alexis administers 'punishment' to Lord Jizabel."

Cassian stopped the phonograph and we replayed it.

"This is good," I said. Now all we have to do is get it to the tower."

"I just have one question," Cain said. We turned to him and he crossed his arms. "How are you going to play it once you're up there?"

Oh…we didn't think that far…

Cain shook his head. "Okay," he said, "Let me think…we need someone small to go up there and wait for Jizabel and father to enter and turn it on. The only problem then would be whether or not that person gets caught."

"Also, where are we going to hide it?" Cassian added.

"There's a table big enough for me and the phonograph to hide under and it's usually covered by a very long cloth," Cain said, "Would that work?"

"Yes," I said. "But do you think you can stay hidden, Cain? I barely could when I found out what Father was doing. It took all my control not to beat him to a pulp."

"Not that you could."

"True—hey!"

Cain, Cassian, and Ben snickered. Riff smiled and shook his head.

"Seriously though, Big Brother, you couldn't physically take Father on," Cain said.

"That's why we're using a phonograph and poison," I said. "In a few weeks, Cain, you'll be the Earl. Think you can handle it?"

Cain nodded. I ruffled his hair. Things were about to change.