The lights shimmered over the gathered people as Alex slipped through them elegantly, and if one didn't know him very well with indifference. He greeted those he should, and continued, to what it would appear to the casual observer, to mingle. All the while he was hunting Juliet.
She moved through the crowd just as he did, though she was biding her time until it wouldn't look odd if she slipped away. They moved in a peculiar sort of dance, Juliet keeping just beyond Alex, Alex standing only feet away every time she turned. Dancers swirled on the dance floor, skirts trailing across the gleaming hardwood, with no sound, but an interesting flow of silks and satins. Jewels winked in the light shimmering like sunshine skipping off the ocean. The world was dreamlike and her head felt light as it spun. Laughter filled her head starting shrill and grating and slowly fading to a deeper sound that faded again into almost a sob.
Her vision darkened, spots danced before her eyes. She felt as though she were on a merry-go-round that was spinning faster and faster, sounds, sights all blending into a dizzying whirl. Voices whispered keeping just soft enough that she couldn't understand what was being said. Desperately she tried to clear her head as it spun faster and faster, unable to keep her balance any longer she reached out attempting to grasp something, anything to keep her from falling to the floor.
Pain came in aches all over her body as if she had been beaten, a dull throbbing that made her gasp for breath. She felt the peculiar sensation that something was slipping into her like a hot knife through butter. It came once in her chest, followed by the left side of her abdomen, then between her ribs on her right side. She wondered at the feeling until a dull stinging began, only to be followed almost immediately by a white hot pain that made her arch her back. She could only choke on a cry as she fell, tears of pain already rolling down her cheeks. She felt arms wrap around her, strong male arms and the familiar smell of Alex. She couldn't breathe, couldn't speak, she could only focus on the pain that filled her. Pressure built and she found she couldn't breathe at all
"I'm dying Alex." She whispered coughing, tasting the sharp tang of blood on her tongue. She had been stabbed, she knew it even as her hand came to rest on her stomach and she could feel the wetness of her blood that soaked the velvet that covered it. If she dipped her hand lower she could feel the slits in the fabric where the knife had sliced through the gown and into her flesh. "I didn't tell them Alex, I didn't. They tried to make me talk, but I didn't."
She wanted him to know she was loyal to him, that she loved him. Everything she had endured this night had been to save him. Her life was a fair trade for his; she would do it over again if she had to, even knowing the horrors to come. She felt something wet falling on her face as though it were just beginning to rain. Opening her eyes she saw Alex leaning above her tears streaming down his face and it suddenly occurred to her that she had never seen Alex cry. Something twisted in her and the tears of pain that were already falling intensified at the pain in his eyes. She would have done anything to keep that look from his face.
"I love you." She told him raising a weak hand and cupping his cheek. "I have loved you since the moment I met you. Through all the missed chances and anger between us I have always loved you." The strength was slipping out of her as the blood was pouring from her body. Her hand slid from his cheek leaving a vermillion stain as it went. A calmness was spreading over her, yet the fear of death still held its sway and she continued to struggle against it. She could feel the rushing wings as it passed over her.
"Nearer he came and nearer! Her face was like a light!
Her eyes grew wide for a moment; she drew one last deep breath,
Then her finger moved in the moonlight,
Her musket shattered the moonlight,
Shattered her breast in the moonlight and warned him-with her death."
The words whispered through her, she could feel her lips moving, but it was not her voice that said them. Darkness tugged at her with its promise of peace, she reached for it.
"Jul, Jul, you're not dying on me." A voice hissed cutting through the calm that was settling over her. "I won't let you die, wake up damn you, wake up."
He had seen her falter and immediately his heart had been in his throat. He had pushed through the crowd frantically ignoring the outraged squawk of a woman he bowled over in his haste. He caught her just as she began to fall, her fingers digging painfully into his biceps as she attempted to keep herself upright. He heard her cry of pain and struggled to hold her as her back arched. Her eyes were glazing over and he was certain a vision had her in its grasp that is until she gasped for breath. Her body was warm in his arms, her skin flushed; her breathing was slow and deep except for the occasional gasp that became more frequent. Cradling her with one arm, he pulled the eyelid of one of her closed eyes open to find her pupils were constricted. Déjà vu filled him and he wasn't holding Juliet, he was holding Friday.
Her blonde hair shimmered silver in the watery light coming in the dirty windows of the lodging house. Her breathing became more labored it was as if she were being strangled, as if some unseen hand was choking her. There was nothing he could do as he held her and she breathed her last breath, the laudanum still staining her cheeks red and keeping her body warm. Tears filled his eyes as anger and sorrow gripped his soul, he was helpless. He ran Brooklyn with an iron fist, but even he could not stop death.
He shook his head, this was not Friday, this was Julia, his Julia. Sophia, Juliet, whatever she called herself that would not change who she was. Helplessness still filled him as he looked at her beautiful face, her breathing still hitching as it slowed more as each second passed. He knew the symptoms he had seen them before, had watched as the doctor had looked Friday over and pronounced his diagnosis. Still there was something different here. There had been no pain for Friday, it had been peaceful. Julia's face was still contorted into a mask of anguish that looked as though she were enduring torture.
He felt her stir as he shook her, her eyelids fluttering as though she were fighting; as though she could hear his frantic voice through the stupor of the laudanum. Weakly she batted at the hands that held her shoulders and continued to shake her. Her breathing was still slow, but she was stirring. Suddenly she sat upright her hands clutching her chest, her breath a strangled gasp of fright. Her hands patted her dress and though searching for something and when she didn't find it joy lit her face.
It took his breath away, for the first time in years he saw in that smile the ghost of the girl he had loved. Her eyes found his and the light dimmed, and she seemed to snap into the present. Slowly she looked around seeing the people hovering around her, both curious and afraid of her. Alex stood and reached a hand down to her, grudgingly she allowed him to help her up.
"Forgive me, I fear I haven't eaten since this morning, it appears the champagne has gone straight to my head." She said softly as she took in all the people that had crowded around for the spectacle. Without another word she turned and plunged through the crowd leaving Alex with no other choice than to follow her.
"I've never seen anyone react like that to champagne, she must have taken something else. Women like her often get involved in opium and the like you know." Alex overheard the tittering voice of some tittering society matron. Obviously she didn't know what company her husband kept. For there were women "like her" sprinkled through the crowd. This was not a high society ball; rather it was a meeting of the upper crust criminals and those officials they paid to keep quiet. He took a grim sort of satisfaction when no one responded to the woman.
People were parting in front of him allowing him to gain on Juliet's retreating figure. He watched as she dodged gracefully through the last of the crowd and leapt for the stairs like a gazelle with a lion in pursuit. He caught her just as she reached the hallway leading from the foyer to the stairs. His hand closed over her upper arm and swung her around to face him.
She stared at him her eyes wide, her chest heaving, her body trembling. The shadows suited him, the light from the ballroom just beyond turning his hair a burnished gold in the darkness making him appear like a young god, the look on his face made him appear as an avenging angel. Her heart was in her throat, she could feel the tears pool in her eyes as she looked at him. The man she loved, the man in her vision she had given her life for.
"What do you want Alex." She asked her voice wavering with the emotions that were overwhelming her, that were tugging her in all different directions until she was afraid they would tear her apart. She caught the eye of a passing servant. "My coat if you please, it's a sable fur."
"What happened in there Julia?" Alex snapped, his brows drawn together in a frown that frightened her. She had to fight not to cower from the fury she saw in his eyes; shades of Morgan haunted her still. He shook her a bit. "I could have sworn the laudanum had caught up with you; but then you wouldn't have snapped out of it as you did. Nor is death by laudanum a particularly painful death and your face looked as if you were in agony."
"Call it a miracle." She said with a spark of defiance. She tugged at her arm to no avail; it would take more than a quick rejoinder to get her free. He raised his hand and out habit she cringed, waiting for the blow to strike. When after a few moments nothing happened she opened her eyes to see Alex's face expressionless. In disgust he dropped her arm, his hand finishing its journey to his hair where he ran a hand through it in frustration.
"I've never raised a hand to you Julia." Alex hissed. "Never, and I don't intend on starting now, no matter how in need of a whipping you might be. We'll leave the question of what happened in there alone for now. If it was a vision you'll tell me about it when you're ready, and if it was a miracle there's nothing to be done now. That is except tell you, that you will stop taking the laudanum, and you will stay away from opium.
"You have no control over me Alex." Juliet snapped, though she would not raise her eyes to his. It broke his heart; Julia would have looked him in the eye and dared him with her look to go straight to hell.
"I'm about to have far more control than you would like Jul." Alex replied his voice calm and as emotionless as his face had gone.
"What do you mean?" Juliet asked cautiously. She could feel the trap closing about her, but she felt as though perhaps she might have a chance to keep it from closing completely.
"I mean you've found your next patron Juliet. You'll have free reign of my town home here in the city and my country estate for as long as I care to remain your patron. You'll have a sizeable allowance for clothing, jewelry, and any other trinkets that may catch your fancy. As for any belongings you may have you'll move tomorrow." Alex said gesturing with his hands over each allowance she would have as he spoke.
"I have my own home," Juliet protested. "I will not live with you Alex, for that matter I'm not certain I want you as my patron. There are plenty of men within that ballroom that would be honored to have me as their mistress."
"Whether you want it or not, you'll have me for your patron. None of those men in there can help you. You have no other choice."
"I don't know what you're talking about." She said breathlessly turning from him to hide from that steely gaze; as though she could hide her predicament along with her face.
"There are only three men here that are strong enough to keep you safe from Morgan Donovan." Alex responded. She looked back at him her face suddenly pale as if even the man's name terrified her. "Don't waste my time or yours by deny the fact you need protection. Now there are only three that have the power and reputation, to make a man like Morgan think twice about making any attempts on you. The first would be obviously Leone, the man you came here to see tonight on the off chance that he might take you back as his mistress. Unfortunately he's happily married isn't he? The second is Nick Gianni, but as you know he's married to my sister and I would put my money on her in a fight for him. Kat doesn't share very well at all and despite your hatred of me I don't think you'd hurt her like that. So that would leave me and since I'm the only one available I suppose I'll have to take care of it."
"Don't bother." Juliet said loftily, having recovered from her momentary muteness. "A bottle of laudanum would take care of everything. My money will be left to Ally, who can do what she likes with her life, and all the rest of you will be free of the burden."
"I won't let you die." Alex voice thundered in the room. "I'll be damned before I let you die."
"You act as if you care." Juliet whispered a tear slipping down her cheek before she could stop it. "I don't understand Alex, why do you have to keep ripping me apart. What is it in me that draws you back to destroy me again? What do you want from me?"
He didn't realize he was moving toward her until he was almost upon her and she took a step back, her hand up. In his eyes she had seen the pain; she had seen the swift decision to comfort. It only confused her more, she had needed his love all her life and now she was deathly afraid of it. Alex might love her, but his love only brought devastation..
"Forget me Alex." She said, her voice wavering. He saw the frustration in her eyes as she set her jaw and continued with a steadier voice. "I don't need your help. Nor do I need to kill myself, Morgan thinks me dead. I was going to disappear after tonight. He might search for me for a little while based on the rumors of this party, but he'll never find me."
She glanced at the doorway to see the servant standing there clearly indecisive whether to leave and return or to interrupt and give Juliet her coat. She waved the man to her, thankful for the excuse to break Alex's searching gaze. Her contacts had told her Morgan was searching for her, that the sinking of Titanic hadn't thrown him off. She had narrowly escaped being found by his men twice. She knew he would find her and once he did, the pain in her vision would be nothing compared to what he would inflict. She took the coat from the man before turning her back on Alex and slipping it on.
"Goodbye Alex and thank you for your chivalrous if not misplaced worry." She called over her shoulder before starting across the foyer to the door. Where she had stood was a slip of white paper.
He might have let her go; he might have believed her, had he not bent down and retrieved the bit of paper from the black marble floor. The thick creamy vellum paper held columns of names; his eyes fell on his own name, followed by Nick's and mine. The word avoid was carefully printed next to them. He realized he held in his hands the guest list for Leone's party. Notes had been carefully taken next to each name.
"He must know how to find you Julia, or at least there's enough of a possibility he could, that you were desperate." Alex said slowly as he listened to the echo of her heels clicking on the floor. His gaze shifted to her where he found her frozen in the center of the foyer. The light played over her, making her sable coat look rich and her hair glint with red against the dark brown of the coat.
"I'm far from desperate." She replied, though she stayed as she was, back to him poised with one foot stepping toward the massive front door.
"There are at least half a dozen men on this list that I know for a fact have worked for or with Morgan Donovan. Laying out your strategy Julia?" He questioned, as she turned slowly to him, her chin rising defensively he smirked knowingly. "There is no way you could attend a party with the likes of Blink Cullegan and Skittery O'Leary without them knowing you were alive. They were newsies, they've known you since you roamed the streets with me. You'd be a fool if you thought that would keep them from telling Donovan you're alive, and you're not a fool. Which means, you desperate enough to brave Blink and Skits, not to mention me. I hurt you, I played you for a fool and your pride wouldn't permit you to socialize with me, unless you had no other choice. Does it kill you how well I still know you Jul?"
"First of all you will never call me Jul or Julia again. Those names became off limits the day you told me to leave." Her eyes were darkly dangerous as she turned back to him, her cheeks hotly flushed, even the tips of her ears burned with anger. He felt an odd sense of relief that she could still be angry without fear if pushed far enough. Morgan hadn't broken her as much as he feared. "Second Skittery O'Leary and I have a past, and you have no idea what sort of relationship I've had with these men over the years. Third if you wish to remain living you will never speak of that night again Alex. You aren't the only one with contacts, nor are you the only one not afraid to use them. How dare you arrogantly toss the night you broke me in my face. I hate you Alex, I really hate you."
"You have no idea what I went through that night Julia, nor can you ever know." Alex hissed, the pain in his heart for the words she had said with such feeling nearly blinding him with rage. His hands closed on her arms before he knew what he was doing. "Don't speak to me of it as if I just casually broke your heart and walked away. I died that night as much as you did."
"You died that night?" she cried. "You died, you didn't bloody care, you just wanted me out so that you could move in on……….I don't even remember her name."
Alex closed his eyes and struggled with control. The hatred he had seen burning in her eyes had been more than he could take. He had promised himself he would let her think what she wanted; he would bear her hatred if only to keep her alive. Yet here she was in even more trouble than her father could think to create and the executioners shadow still over her. She was dead without him, but he had no doubts Mr. Dubois would still honor his promise if he found she was with him. He knew she stood a better chance at his side than if he walked away. Harder the deal with was the knowledge that if he had stayed with her neither of them would be in this position now, and the stark pain wouldn't be staring accusingly from her eyes.
"I'm not going to let him kill you." Alex said each word coming out separately. "I'm not going to let you kill yourself and if the only person you have left to fight with is me, then so be it. You're coming home with me tonight. At the moment you will turn around with me and return to the ballroom where we will visibly be seen together. When Morgan finds you were here, he'll know better than to come looking for you."
Memories of her vision assailed her, memories of her death to save his. Which choice could she make? She would die with him or she would die without him. Looking at him there was only one choice.
"You expect me to go with you, to be your mistress?" she asked scornfully. "I'll go with you Alex, if it must be that way, but my nights will be spent in my own bed. I won't give my body to a man I hate. I may be a prostitute, but even I have standards."
She could see his eyes darken with pain at the words she threw him. Words that were calculated to hurt him, calculated to make him leave her. He didn't though; instead he simply swallowed her callous words and extended his hand for hers.
"We'll see." Alex told her, giving her his signature smirk. She watched him for a moment as though calculating something before placing her hand in his.
"What makes you think you can change my mind?" she asked as he casually tucked her arm within the crook of his. "I don't remember the last time with you. Now I can say I've slept with many men over the years since, and I remember quite a few, but you. No, I'm afraid I have no recollection of you. Your reputation I believe is greater than your actual performance."
Alex moved so swiftly she had not time to react. Her back against the wall and her arms pinned on either side of her head before she knew what was happening. She cringed expecting his kiss to be brutal, a punishment for her attack on his pride. As his lips closed over hers she found she could not gage it against any other kiss she had received from him. It was not sweet and gentle, nor was it brutal. It could only be described as a kiss born from intense passion and desperate emotion. A kiss she was lost in before she even knew it had begun.
In his arms she came alive, for the first time in seven years she felt passion. For the first time it was not a kiss filled with calculation or the exchange of money. It was not filled with skill, but empty of any emotion. Alex was a living flame that had sparked the dry kindling that had been languishing for so long. He wanted to crush her against him, but refrained as she moved closer of her own accord. She slipped her wrists free of their shackles, her lips fused to Alex's as he continued to brace himself against the wall. As her arms slipped around his neck and a soft moan filtered through the kiss he knew he could press her down on any flat surface that was available. He didn't feel the smugness that would have followed with any other woman, instead he felt relief. She couldn't respond to him as she did if she truly hated him.
His hands slipped to her shoulders and under the coat, moving it from her shoulders to slide to the floor in a heap. His knuckle brushed the top of one corseted breast making her gasp and shudder. His heart pounded in his chest and he gave into the need to hold her. His arms slipped around her crushing her to him. She felt a stirring in her chest and a wealth of emotion that brought tears to her eyes with their shear intensity. Like the phoenix her heart renewed itself it the heat of his kiss and rose from the ashes it had been to beat in time with his.
"It appears you remember plenty Jul." Alex whispered, his breathing ragged. "You can't tell me you felt nothing, the beating of your heart would betray your lie. When the time comes, if I decide to use your services, you won't tell me no."
Her brain slowly began to function as he stepped away, his eyes joined to hers for a moment before he turned and strode from the hallway into the ballroom. She slid to the floor tears brimming in her eyes, her hand clutched protectively over her heart as if she could keep it within her instead going with him. It was no use, she could deny it, but she couldn't change it. She loved him, had always loved him, and always would.
Elyse: Thank you, my stories to tend to get complicated for all involved, it's my muses. I'm glad you like my story it's always nice to know my stories are appreciated. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Dreamer: Wow, really the Highwayman, perfect timing since it appears again in this chapter. Like you can't do the same. HP has gone for months at a time without updating and it flows perfectly (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). Spot Conlon is nothing if not arrogant in the story. Most men with any kind of presence in life tend to be rather arrogant. Love ya honey!
Zorrina: Thank you! I'm glad you've enjoyed them. I don't know about gifted, but I do have a bit of talent it seems. At least enough I amuse myself and others. I hope you continue to enjoy it, please feel free to tell me when I mess up. Thanks again!
Clover6776: I updated (does the newly created updation dance.) I'm not certain that is even a word. Spell check certainly doesn't agree that it is, so I guess I am now making it one. Anywho, thank you, I really enjoy hearing that people like my work. I hope you continue to read. Thanks again!
Evahyoung: Sorry I'm not certain where to begin with this S.O. I guess I'll say thanks. You've given me quite a few very sweet compliments. I'm so happy you've enjoyed this story.
Racetrack's Girl: He's really one of my favorite characters too. I'm sorry I kept you up, yet at the same time I'm not. It's nice to know I can get someone hooked on what I'm writing. Thank you, I'll keep updating, you keep reviewing!