Only in America: Skinner's Story
A TPDoEQ special edition
by Lady Norbert
14 May 1900
We're leaving St. Petersburg soon; three days, in fact. Before we go, the town is throwing some kind of goodbye bash for us. Well, it's really for Tom, but they're pretending it's for everyone.
Bess is beside herself. People keep asking her to tell the story of the marriage-that-wasn't "just one more time." It's been in the papers and everything. It's getting her upset; more than once, Tom or Nemo or I have had to stop someone from pestering her. She's tired of the whole thing, I think. Maybe she wants to forget it ever happened.
We still haven't talked, she and I. Don't really know what to say to her. She's asked me, once, whether I'm really all right after my little trip down the mine.
"Not to worry," I told her. "I'm as close to being all right as I ever was. Course, that's still a fair bit left of centre."
Not sure if that even made sense. But the point is, before all this Everett business, she would have laughed at that comment. When I said it, though, she kind of flinched.
Don't know what that bastard did to her, but dammit, I want my Bess back.
16 May 1900
They threw us that dinner today. Rather nice; long tables in the town square covered in tablecloths and tons of food. About halfway through the meal, those federal marshals showed up to haul Everett and his buddies off to state prison. Bess was asked to tell the story one more time, because the marshals hadn't heard it, and she gave in.
While she was talking, I had a word with Tom, and we went off to the jail to see Everett for one last time. Since I was with him, nobody argued when we said we wanted a little privacy.
He looked at me through the bars of his cell. "So," he said, "come to gloat?"
"Nah. Not my style. I just wanted to see you locked up like this."
"Go to hell."
"Already been there, mate. You should know; you put me there."
He just glared at me; that's one thing I miss about having visible eyes. When I glare at people, they can't tell. "Well," I said calmly, "thought you ought to know that you owe your life to Agent Sawyer here. See, if it was up to me, you'd be dead."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah." I put my face close to the bars and lowered my voice. "Nobody hurts my Elizabeth and gets away with it."
Either I didn't sound as menacing as I was trying to sound, or he just didn't care, because he snorted. "She was almost my Elizabeth," he reminded me coolly. "I guess after touring the world with you freaks, she was chomping at the bit for the chance to be with a normal man."
I reached through the bars as far as I could, trying to grab some part of him. I wanted to choke him again, with his bodyguards not on hand to stop me - but he was too far out of reach. He laughed at my efforts, and it was Sawyer who came and pulled me away from the cell. "Easy, Skinner, he's not worth it," he said quietly. He levelled a nice hard glare at Everett, who returned it. "Better to be an honest freak than a normal jackass," he added. "Have a good ten years."
Wish I'd thought to say that. About then, the marshals came in; it was almost time for them to leave. Tom and I left and didn't look back.
17 May 1900
Today we left St. Petersburg, and already I feel a lot better. I needed to get away from that place. Too many memories, too many of them bad. It was dragging me down. Glad to be on the train heading back to Virginia. Soon we'll be back on the Nautilus where we belong.
Kinda worried about Bess, though. She seems really down, not even writing much in that diary of hers. She just stares out the window a lot and doesn't say much. What, is she missing that clown?
21 May 1900
Got home last night, late. Never been happier to see this canoe. Back in our element, so to speak. Spent the night in my own bed for the first time in over a month, and actually slept well.
Spent a lot of time today with Mina and Henry. They never take a break, honestly; those scientific minds, always pursuing new knowledge. Bad as Nemo. Anyway, they're back to work on my antidote, think they're really onto something now. They always try to explain exactly what they're doing at a given moment with the thing, and I always nod and act like I understand what the devil they're on about, but the truth is that I don't really get most of it. So long as it works, that's all I care about.
Went down to the library around teatime and found Tom putting away Nemo's chess set. "She just left," he said, even though I didn't ask.
"Oh."
"She's not doing so well, you know."
"Yeah, I noticed. Been real quiet, hasn't she?"
"Well, she's confused, I think. What's going on with you two?"
"Nothing." Perfectly true. There's absolutely nothing going on.
"You ever gonna tell her? You were rarin' to go back in St. Petersburg."
"Yeah, fat lot of good that did me."
"All right, so that idiot got in the way. He's not here now."
"I dunno. Maybe after they finish the antidote."
"You're waiting on that? Why?"
I didn't answer, but he seemed to figure out what I was thinking. Have I mentioned Sawyer's too smart for his own good? "I hope you aren't thinking about what Everett said to you in the jail. You know she's not like that."
"I know. I just...I'm not ready."
He seemed to accept that. "Okay, but for her sake - and yours - I hope you're ready soon. It's way too quiet around here for my liking." He grinned. Good lad, he is.