The Private Diary of Elizabeth Quatermain, vol. IV: Only in America
by Lady Norbert
A/N: I hope you don't hate me too much. This chapter is dedicated to Minion #3, Mazikeen, with thanks.
10 May 1900
The "happy hour" draws very near. I am all dressed, except for my hat and veil, and am awaiting the coach which is to take Mina, Nemo and myself to the church.
Tom was not at breakfast, nor was Henry. Mina says Tom is ill, that he had too much to drink last night, and Henry is staying home from the wedding as well to look after him. I hope it is nothing more serious than that; my nerves are already frayed by my anxiety over Rodney.
11 May 1900
My wedding day was a very long day; it is now nearly two in the morning. In many ways it was longer than I realized, and I am only now getting the chance to put it all to paper. I find I'm still quite dazed by all which has transpired, so this diary entry may not be terribly sensible to me when I read it in the future. In order for me to keep the events chronological for my own understanding, it is necessary to jump between what I was doing at a moment and what was happening elsewhere at the same time. My poor friends had to tell me the story numerous times before I could fully comprehend everything which occurred; even now it all seems thoroughly unreal. I think I finally understand, however, so I will attempt to record it all.
We arrived at the church precisely on time. Mina made her apologies to Everett for Henry and Tom's absences; he seemed largely unconcerned, though he went through the motions of saying he hoped Tom would recover in time for the wedding banquet to follow the ceremony. I removed my gloves and handed them and my small bouquet to Mina, and the wedding began.
Unbeknownst to me, the League members had held a conference last night while I was trying to sleep. Becky, while not completely betraying my confidence, had hinted to Tom that things were going very ill with me. So when Everett and I were closeted in the back parlour, he took advantage of the absence of bodyguards to eavesdrop at the keyhole, and he heard everything.
"Well, no wonder the poor girl looks as though she's lost her best friend," said Henry, once Tom had related all he had heard. "If she says a word to anyone, she will."
"That - " Tom called Everett a word I shall decline to record, though I agree with the sentiment. "He's making her miserable. If Skinner were here, Everett wouldn't be breathing."
"We must find him," said Nemo, gravely. "He may be injured. The danger to his life may be greater than we realize."
"Trouble is, I think the only time we can do it without attracting Everett's notice is during the wedding itself," said Tom. "Nemo and Mina, you have to be there with Elizabeth. It's going to be real obvious if none of us go to the wedding, and you two are supposed to be in the ceremony. Henry, it'll be up to me and Hyde to get him out of that shaft."
Nemo offered to send some of his men to assist them, but they decided against it. "Nobody knows where he is, so he's probably not real heavily guarded," Tom reasoned. "And a crowd leaving town would attract someone's attention. It'll go easier with just us two."
The coach picked us up at half past twelve, and as soon as it had rolled away, the rescue party sprang into action.
Henry and Tom borrowed a pair of horses from the hotel stable and rode out of town. "Do you know where we're going?" Henry called.
"Not exactly," Tom shouted, "but there aren't very many mine shafts around here, and a couple of them are still in use. I only know of two which could be considered abandoned. I haven't been through these woods in a long time, but I think I remember where they are."
"I hope you're right!"
Reverend Miller welcomed those in attendance to the wedding - almost the entire town showed up to witness the marriage of their deputy mayor - and then began the service by leading us all in prayer. He read several Bible passages regarding the issues of love, marriage, and fidelity. I felt very uneasy, and almost ill with fear. I could hear my blood pulsing in my ears; I half-wondered if I might faint, and in fact almost hoped I would for the delay it would cause.
When asked, Nemo said that he was the one giving me in marriage to Everett. He gave my hand a friendly squeeze before placing it in Everett's, then stepped back and took a seat in the front pew; Becky was seated in the pew behind him, the only other person I felt was there for my benefit. In my somewhat bemused state, I noticed that Everett was wearing Father's cufflinks. It did not improve my disposition.
Henry and Tom galloped full-tilt along the riverbank, about a mile outside of town. "I think we're getting close," Tom called. "I remember fishing in this area with Huck, and -"
His horse screamed and bucked as a gunshot hit the ground.
Reverend Miller is an elderly gentleman, slightly doddery if I can write frankly. He spoke very slowly and deliberately as he delivered the wedding sermon, almost in a monotone. Twice, I think he nearly fell asleep standing in the pulpit.
Once he finished the speech, Everett and I moved forward to the kneeler to receive a blessing. Candles were lit. I clasped my hands and gazed up at the image of Christ; in my mind, I begged Him to keep Rodney alive and return him safely to us.
"Tom, watch out!" Henry yelled as another gunshot rent the air. They reined in sharply and looked around. No one was in sight, but there was a visible path branching off into the trees.
While Tom tethered the mounts to a low branch, Henry swallowed his formula and wrenched off his tie. Yet another shot was fired as Edward began to emerge.
"He's not trying to kill us," growled the half-Henry, half-Edward voice. "He's just trying to scare us. He'd better try harder."
When Edward had fully taken form, and Tom had his Winchester rifle at the ready, they began stalking into the forest toward the source of the gunfire.
"Have you the ring?"
Everett's best man - whoever he was - pulled a small gold hoop from one pocket and passed it to the minister. This too was blessed, then Everett took it and pushed it onto my left hand. I stared at it; I was that much closer to being married.
"Do you, Benjamin Franklin Everett, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, to love and to honour, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, from this day forward until you are parted by death?"
"I do."
There were, in fact, three guards hiding in the trees near the mine shaft. All were armed, and taking turns shooting at Tom and Edward.
"I'm an officer of the United States government!" shouted Tom. "Don't make this any harder on yourselves than it has to be!"
"Get out of it, Sawyer, and take your monkey with you," called one of the men. "We have our orders to keep everyone away from the shaft."
"Oh, you're acting on orders, are you? Under orders to guard the hostage in the mine?" Tom squinted at the men and saw the startled glances they exchanged. "Yeah, I know all about it, so just give yourselves up!"
This was answered with yet another gunshot.
"Enough words," Edward grumbled. He began to advance on the nearest guard, who raised his rifle defiantly. Quite calmly, Edward reached out and jerked the gun from his grip, then bent it cleanly in half.
"Anyone else want to play?" he asked.
"And do you, Elizabeth Grace Quatermain, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, to love and to honour, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, from this day forward until you are parted by death?"
I noticed that this sentence seemed to take Reverend Miller about five minutes to say in its entirety, he spoke so slowly.
"I...I..."
Everett raised his eyebrows meaningfully.
"I..."
"I think she's a little nervous, Reverend," he said politely. He drew me a step away from the minister and hissed, "I can send one of my men to kill him right this minute. Remember that."
I glanced at the 'groom's side' of the church, where indeed, a pair of burly men seemed to be sitting for the express purpose of reminding me of what was hanging over my head. Fearful, I swallowed and nodded.
"That's my girl," he said in a normal voice as we stepped back. "Go on, dearest."
With the surrendered guards tied securely to trees, they next turned their attention to finding Skinner. The entrance to the mine was not big enough for Edward, so it was Tom who had to climb the ladder down into the blackness. Only the faintest beam of light shone down the ladder from the daylight above. "Skinner!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the walls. "Skinner, where are you?"
"T...Tom?"
The voice was weak and confused, as though the speaker thought he was hallucinating. Tom moved in the direction from which it came. "Keep talking, Skinner, so I can find you."
"I'm here...over here...is it really you, Tom?"
"Yes, it's me. Hyde and I are here to get you out."
"Oh, good. I'm interested to know if my eyes still work." The voice was getting a bit stronger. Rodney was lying in a corner some twelve yards from the ladder. He reached out to grip Tom's ankle.
"Can you stand? Are you hurt?" Tom asked, pulling Skinner to his feet.
"I'm not hurt...but that bastard Everett told whoever's outside to shoot me if I came out. Couldn't even go out invisible because I'm filthy with coal dust - probably why he decided to throw me in here."
"But you're all right?"
"I've got a pounding headache, but otherwise, yeah, I'm fine."
They emerged into blazing sunshine, which hurt Rodney's eyes; his customary dark glasses had been broken. Edward gave him a grin. "You're a sight for sore eyes, Henry says."
"Lovely to see you too." Skinner brushed futilely at his leather coat, trying to beat off some of the dirt. The white greasepaint on his face was smeared with black. "How much time do we have? Can we stop the wedding?"
"We don't have much time, but we can still make it. You know Everett's forcing her?"
"Yeah, I figured as much."
"Basically, if she didn't marry him, he was gonna kill you. He's up to something...I don't know all the details myself just yet, but we've got to get back to town fast."
"I'll kill the bastard. Where are the horses?"
"I need to sit down," I said, very quietly.
"Are you ill, my dear?" asked Reverend Miller.
"Nervous, that's all, I'm sure," said Everett. He still held my hand, and he squeezed it painfully to make his point.
"Please, I feel very dizzy." I really did.
"Sit down, my child, we're in no rush." The preacher guided me over to a seat on the front pew next to Nemo, and sent Everett to get me a glass of water. Mina came to sit on my other side.
"Nice stall," she whispered.
"Forget stalling, I think I'm going to faint. I can't do this, Mina, I just can't."
"You can, and you will, for as long as you have to. Everything is going to be fine," she said emphatically. Leaning forward, she breathed in my ear, "They've gone to find him."
I looked at her, startled. She gave me one of her enigmatic little smiles as Everett returned with the water. I sipped it, shaking and breathing deeply. I believed her, of course, but would they find him in time? Or was he already...?
The horses tore back up the riverbank, Edward very nearly keeping pace with them. A mile on horseback is not too far, but the journey still takes time. And time, as Tom had said, was running short.
"My formula's nearly done," Edward shouted. Skinner and Tom brought their weary mounts to an abrupt halt while the transformation completed itself. Henry, garments torn and breathing heavily, climbed up behind Tom on his horse.
"You all right?" Tom asked over his shoulder.
"Fine! Let's just go!"
"I'm all right now," I said, handing the glass to the minister and standing up again. "I'm sorry for the disruption, let's continue."
"We can't have you being ill on the happiest day of your life, now, can we?" He gave me a very kind smile and reopened his Bible. "Where were we...oh, yes..." He coughed. "Do you, Elizabeth Grace Quatermain, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, to love and to honour, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, from this day forward until you are parted by death?"
I took a deep breath. Forgive me, I thought.
"I...I do."