A sensible girl
Four days later was my birthday and towards evening, I was standing in my room in front of my mirror and allowed, with my expression twisted in pain, that Maria laced me in the corset of the new dress. I had encouraged Lander to line the neckline with some fabric and to reduce it with that, what he had done quite unwillingly. Also Theresa had been everything but delighted about that change but I wanted it like this. On my special day I wouldn´t be dressed like a simple prostitute, just to impress some men. I didn´t need that. Someone who wanted me just because he liked my neckline, could go hang.
Apart from the corset, I felt much better in this dress now and was glad that I hadn´t to think about how much the men got to see from my décolleté. So I could give a satisfied smile to my reflection before I left my room with Maria and went down to Theresa, who was standing in the centre of the great parlour and urged the servants to finish their work. In about an hour we were expecting our guests and I still didn´t know who my mentor had invited. When she heard my steps, she turned towards me with a bright smile and reached out her hands for me, which I grabbed.
"How much I would like to see you in this dress, child. But I know that Lander did a good job, except of this terrible change.
I only smiled about her words and let my look roam through the parlour. Everywhere were candleholder set up, a large buffet was taking up a whole side of the room and the seating-accommodations had been shoved aside to create enough space in the centre of the room. Here should be the dancing and the listening to the music while the rest of the society was going to split onto the hallways during the evening anyway.
I didn´t know how many guests we were expecting but I was relieved that they were not going to be as much as on the soiree of the judge. We hadn´t space for that anyway. I would have to spend time with all of the guests and the less they were the better.
"I hope you mostly invited ladies and gentlemen I know."
Theresa smiled brightly and patted my cheek. "Don´t worry, you will see many familiar faces. But of course I want you to make new acquaintances, too."
I rolled my eyes because I knew what she was alluding to. "You won´t give up, won´t you?"
"Not until I can give Lander the task of sewing a wedding gown for you."
As it rang at the gate, the both of us looked at each other likewise surprised and Theresa frowned indignantly, while one of the girls went out to open the gate.
"A premature guest, how rude."
Theresa linked arms with me and together we went to the entrance door, where the head of the maidservant appeared again.
"A Jeffrey Gardner and a Walter Tibbet want to speak with you, Milady. Shall I invite them in?"
My breathing stopped shortly and with wide eyes I stared at Theresa, who pinched her lips and nodded grimly. "Let them in. Lillian, would you bring me to the parlour, please? I don´t want to greet them here."
Without saying a word, I did what I was told but couldn´t hide that my hands were trembling. Gardner was here? In England? And he was visiting us?
"What do you think is it he wants?", I asked and didn´t managed to hide the fear in my voice. I didn´t know exactly what I was afraid of but I had the feeling that I couldn´t mean something good if Gardner was making an appearance. With Tibbet who had threatened to me a few weeks ago, that he would keep an eye on me because he didn´t believe in the circumstances of my uncle´s death.
Theresa sat down on an armchair and indicated to me that I should take up position next to her.
"We are going to find it out but you have to pull yourself together. You mustn´t be afraid of him, then you have no reason for that."
I only nodded faintly and tried exerted to calm down my wildly beating heart, as Jeffrey Gardner, followed by Tibbet, entered the parlour. He had taken off his hat and implied a bow with a bright smile, before he stepped towards us.
"Lady Bonham. Miss Lillian. It´s a pleasure to be greeted by you."
He gripped Theresa´s hand at first, implied a kiss on the hand and then he turned towards me with his usual charming smile. "Miss Lillian, you are feast for the eyes, as always."
I got a kiss on the hand, too and gave him a thankful smile, which I hoped didn´t seemed too shaky. Tibbet stood in the door with an almost bored expression and as he noticed that I was looking at him, his lips twisted into a nasty grin.
I will keep an eye on you. On you and your Spanish friend.
Was that it? Was this about Connor? I swallowed heavily and turned my eyes away from Tibbet, had to force myself into hiding my nervousness.
In the meantime Gardner had taken a seat at Theresa´s request and now Tibbet and I were the only ones who were standing. I didn´t want to sit anyway. I rather had the feeling that I had to flee and I stood tensed, one hand dug into the headrest of Theresa´s armchair. My teacher appeared totally relaxed.
"Please tell us what brings you here, Mr. Gardner. We´re expecting guests for this evening and I would like to have this conversation finished, before the first ones arrive."
"Of course. I don´t want to keep you back for too long but I have to speak about something quite serious with you and especially with Miss Lillian. Unfortunately it cannot be delayed."
I held my breath for a moment as his gaze met mine but I couldn´t read any evil intention in his eyes. He was totally calm.
"Unfortunately I have to tell you, that Judge Pellmore was found dead yesterday. Murdered."
He made a short break and I felt how all colour subsided from my face. Richard Pellmore had been murdered, a few weeks after Connor and I had visited his soiree and I didn´t believed that it was a coincidence that Gardner had just appeared here to tell us about it. After all we weren´t close to the Pellmores.
"Do they know who the murderer is?" Theresa´s voice was still amazingly calm and I was glad that I hadn´t to say something myself.
"We are quite sure, yes." Gardner looked at me again and I swallowed heavily. I almost suspected what was following now.
"Tibbet told me that you had arrived with a young Spaniard. A Rafael Valdés. Is that true?"
I nodded, not able to speak.
"Well, this Valdés is obviously not what he pretended to be. He´s no Spaniard. He´s a savage from America and on top of that an assassin." He made a break and scrutinized me. I didn´t know how to react. Shocked? Casually? Caught? I decided in favour of the former because it fitted perfectly to the fear I was feeling again. I made no effort to hide the trembling of my hands anymore and as I looked shortly to Tibbet, I thought that his grin had become wider and more spiteful. They said they knew that Connor had done it. But had they caught him? Or were they still searching for him?
"I´m sorry, but I have to ask you if you knew it, Lillian?"
I looked at Gardner again, whose blue eyes had become more serious than before. Almost lurking he returned my gaze and after some hesitation I shook my head. I felt bad about slandering Connor but I thought that I had no other choice. The templars would find a reason to jail me for treason or something else, even though I wasn´t part of the order. But my uncle had belonged to them and they would simply manage it that it seemed like I had instructed his murder and then I could be dragged towards the public court.
"You need to know Lillian, that I was seriously worried as I heard of your uncle´s death and your disappearance afterwards. I don´t think that you are in league with this savage and if you confirm it, I´m going to believe you."
His look almost ran me through and I felt more and more uncomfortable. I didn´t think that he was going to make it easy to me. There was something else in his eyes, too. He was planning something but I didn´t know what.
"Don´t be foolish, Gardner", Theresa intervened. "You don´t actually think that an innocent girl like Lillian is dealing with such men. She came back from America completely traumatized, beside herself with the loss she had suffered. This assassin took advantage of her situation and cheated her."
Gardner´s look wandered to my mentor and he sighed deeply. "Of course I don´t think that but I have to be sure." He looked at me again. "Lillian, you know that I never made a secret of my affection for you. I can´t bear it that you had to deal with such a person and especially I can´t bear the thought that someone exploited you for his own advantage. Is it like Lady Bonham said it or not?"
No, it wasn´t. Connor had killed my uncle and had freed me with that, although unintentionally. He had brought me back to my homeland and I had helped him voluntarily. Even though he had given me the feeling that he had exploited me: He wasn´t the monster Gardner was trying to make him to. But I had no choice.
"Yes, it is. I didn´t know who he is." My voice was nothing more than whisper but it seemed that it was enough for Gardner. He nodded and a smile sneaked onto his face as he stood up and approached me. He took my hand, squeezed it and looked deep in my eyes.
"I´m very pleased that you are the sensible girl I am considering you to be."
His free hand came dangerously close to my face and I had to pull myself together not to flinch back as he began to play with one of my curled strands. He was scaring me. His proximity and this furtive expression in his eyes.
"I couldn´t bear it if you betrayed me, because I would have had to punish you just as the bastard himself."
Just as?
"Have you seized him?", my voice was shaking with this question but Gardner was just smiling and brushed, nearly tenderly, the strand of hair behind my ear.
"Please don´t worry about this vermin. It doesn´t you good."
He took a step back and reached into his coat pocket, to retrieve a small parcel, wrapped in tissue paper and gave it to me.
"A birthday present. I thought that it may please you and that it will remind you of me."
My hands were trembling as I took the parcel and shortly, there was a dangerous sparkle in Gardner´s eyes before he was smiling as charming as usual again.
"Well, I don´t want to detain the Ladies any longer. A nice evening to you."
He bowed and had one of the girls leading him outside. Tibbet gave me a nasty look once again, before he left, too.
A weird silence spread inside of the parlour, before it was broken by Theresa´s snort.
"This bigoted fellow. With his charming attitude, he´s one of the most repulsive men in the order. But promise me, child: Don´t let him unsettle you. He has nothing on you and it´s good that he has accepted this lie. You could have ended up on the gallows."
Her words got no response. Trembling I had taken a seat and stared at the parcel in my hand which I held tightly. I didn´t want to open it. I didn´t want to know, what was in it. I was afraid. But nevertheless I tore the tissue paper off and exposed a jewellery case, which was big enough to contain a bracelet or a necklace. Slowly I let the clasp snap open, looked inside and the case, together with its content, fell to the floor with a muffled bang.
"What is it, child?" Theresa´s voice sounded worried but I didn´t react. Wide-eyed I stared at the piece of jewellery, which had fallen out of the case onto the floor.
A broad leather strap with three bear-claws tied to it and each one of them was dappled with blood.