Chapter Five

Julia pushed Daphne aside into her brother Samuel's slack arms and immediately sought out Leonetta's pulse. It was there, but quite elevated, as though something had frightened her into her current state. Red wine was spilled on her chest. She checked to be sure there were no injuries, no blow to the head other than from connecting with the floor when she fell.

Nothing obvious. She looked again at the poor unconscious woman. It wouldn't surprise me if it weren't her own shadow that frightened her, Julia churlishly thought.

"What have you, doctor?" William knelt by his wife, falling easily into well-worn habits.

"She's fine. That is wine on her gown. Just fainted is all," Julia reassured everyone. "Can someone fetch me some smelling salts?"

"Of course," Thelma replied and hurried out.

William assumed a natural control of the room, herding the onlookers to one side to let them whisper and chatter to each other out of the way. He saw that Daphne was still shaking and Samuel just stared at Leonetta's figure on the floor, so William collected Daphne and steered her to a chair. He was sympathetic to the idea the woman might have been startled and upset, initially believing her friend was dead when she came upon a still figure lying on the floor.

William considered Leonetta. But what could have frightened a woman enough to cause her to pass out?

He surveyed the room for anything out of the ordinary. It was hard to see much in the dark gloom of the room even with several oil lamps glowing. A grand piano graced one corner of the room, French doors sat along the outside wall, and the far wall contained a built-in bookcase bracketed by two tall mirrors positioned to reflect and amplify light. Nothing appeared to be amiss. Unlike Samuel's behavior which seemed odd; the man looked like he was beside himself.

"Mr. Wilmont?" William tried to get the man's attention.

"Was anything else moved? Did you find anything with her? Move anything to get to her?" Samuel asked Julia, ignoring William.

"No, everything is as you see here," Julia replied.

Perhaps he was just being protective of his younger sister, but Samuel Wilmont was most upset and showed far more emotion than one would expect. Clyde Harrington made a darkly humorous quip which sent his companions into nervous laughter; that seemed to galvanize Samuel.

"It's not a joke anymore," Samuel bellowed. "It's not funny, stop it at once," he yelled to everyone and no one in particular.

Thelma came back in the middle of that with the smelling salts and handed them to Julia, who waved a pinch of the granules under Leonetta's nose. The woman came up abruptly, sputtering and coughing. Thelma helped Julia and William get Leonetta off the floor and onto a small couch.

That done, Thelma immediately confronted her brother's outburst. "Samuel, you are not helping! What is going on?"

Shaking his head at his sister, Samuel only looked embarrassed. "N…Nothing," he replied, eyes stuck on the floor where Leonetta had been, a red wine stain ruining a fine Turkish carpet. "I must humbly apologize. My worry over Daphne and the shock of seeing Leonetta got the best of me," he mumbled.

William had interviewed hundreds of witnesses and suspects over the years; he knew that Samuel was lying. What he did not know was: Why?

There were indistinguishable murmurs of "don't worry about it," and "perfectly understandable," from the others. Samuel collapsed next to Leonetta, who was now turning a handkerchief over and over in her hands.

In the meantime, Keziah Atkinson asked where Robert Fairweather was, and Philomena Murray cheekily replied by asking if all the servants had been accounted for.

Julia walked over to assess Leonetta. She still looks affright, but her eyes are equal and reactive, her pulse is a more normal rate. Julia did not think there was any danger. "Leonetta, how do you feel?"

Leonetta began to cry and shake. "That Gypsy woman! She cursed me! I saw…it!"

The group erupted in gasps, groans and a derisive laugh. "Ladies and gentlemen," Julia stood and said briskly. "I will take care of Leonetta. Now please move off and give us some room." Hands bunched at her waist, she stared until the group took their lamps and disbursed.

Julia then turned to her hostess to ask, "Thelma, will you and Grant get Daphne upstairs? I will bring a tonic up to her shortly." She looked at her husband, rolling her eyes over the room to encompass Leonetta and Samuel as well. "Do you suppose you can get to the bottom of this?" she whispered.

When William nodded, she left to rummage in her luggage for a soporific for Daphne and to wait impatiently for whatever William was going to discover.

I know that look on his face…he can ferret out a lie better than anyone I know. There is definitely something going on.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Mrs. Fairweather," William offered another handkerchief, "this has been quite an ordeal for you. We will get you to your room in a moment." He brought up a chair to sit closely, but not crowd the woman. "If I may, what did you see…exactly?" She looked up at him reluctantly. "Please start from when you came into this room."

Leonetta sniffed. "It was horrid I tell you. That woman cursed me! What was she doing here amongst respectable people?"

William knew a deflection when he heard one. "Mrs. Fairweather. You came here into the music room after supper with one of the oil lamps. You told us you saw something. What was it exactly?"

Leonetta's mouth worked and she swallowed. She pointed to the right of where the piano stood, to the far wall with the mirrors and the book cases. "I came in to see if perhaps we could have piano or singing for after-dinner entertainment. Daphne was going to help me choose. I came over to the bookcase to look for sheet music. I had my wine in one hand and a light in the other…" Her voice broke when she whispered: "Right there! I saw a monster I tell you. One moment I saw my own reflection in that mirror and then my reflection dissolved into a grotesque figure." Leonetta started gasping for breath, reaching out to clutch William's sleeve. "You heard her," she insisted, "that Gypsy looked right at me with those blind eyes and said my true self would be revealed. And I saw it! A hag. A deathly hag…I think it means death…" Leonetta's sobbing prevented her from going on.

Out of the corner of his own eye, he saw that Samuel Wilmont did not budge; he was hanging on every word of Leonetta's tale.

"Was anyone here when you entered the room? Did anyone touch you? Or speak to you?" William inquired.

"No. No…Please, Mr. Murdoch. I just want to go to my room and change clothes. My poor frock…" She said weakly, patting at the stains on her dress then wringing her hands again, and blinking, the world coming back into focus a bit. She wiped her eyes. "Where is Robert?

"Mr. Wilmont…Samuel? Will you please go find Mr. Fairweather and tell him his wife has had an episode? She will be in their room shortly." William hoped to push Samuel out of his mood by making a demand on him towards action.

William saw Samuel's conflict clearly on his face. Reluctantly, the man nodded and left to search out Leonetta's husband. He had one question for the woman he wanted to ask in private. "Mrs. Fairweather. Why would someone wish to particularly frighten you?"

William watched as Leonetta became so still it stole her breath. Her voice was small when she answered. "No person was trying to scare me, Mr. Murdoch. Now I'd like to join my husband."

William did not think he'd get any more from Leonetta tonight. "Thank you," he said simply.

After having settled Daphne into bed, Julia and Thelma returned downstairs as William was wrapping up questioning Leonetta about what she'd seen.

Reminding herself to be gracious, Julia offered to give Leonetta a sleeping draught as well, but she declined; in fact she declined all assistance and saw herself out.

"Nothing too serious, is there Mr. Murdoch?" Thelma asked as soon as Leonetta had left. "I'm sure it's just Leonetta's weak constitution. She's always been quite the scaredy-cat…do you remember the time she fainted when she had dissect a frog?" Thelma asked Julia.

"Remember? How could I forget? I still can't believe that her family ever harbored ambitions for her to become a physician. What did she think was going to happen?" Julia laughed nervously.

Rolling her eyes in acknowledgement, Thelma went on. "She never had a strong stomach. Between us, I never thought she was going to finish McGill let alone go on to study medicine," she explained. "She'd wanted to marry her sweetheart after secondary school but her father forbade it. She never stood up to him."

Julia shook her head and sniffed. "As for tonight, perhaps combined with being predisposed to fear from the house noises last night, she had a little too much wine with dinner to calm her nerves and it lead to flights of fancy. What do you think, William?" Julia asked. "Is there anything going on here, or just Leonetta's overactive imagination once again?"

William was disturbed by her comment as he prowled the room. "I observed Mrs. Fairchild drank only water or cider at dinner, as did I. She only took a glass of wine after the séance. Considering how much was spilled, I doubt she drank much. Furthermore she seemed genuinely frightened by what she thought she saw." He held his oil lamp up, seeing nothing but his own reflection in the windows behind the curtains. The floor and carpet are dry. No one came in this way.

"I certainly don't think there's any paranormal activity. There are no curses, certainly no 'Lakeside Lasher'." William pronounced flatly as he finished looking around. Human activity was far more likely, but had anything criminal actually been done? He decided not. "I don't see how the Gypsy woman could have caused any of this. She was still with us when we heard Daphne scream.

"No doubt one or more of the boys having some fun and trying to scare us as they used to back in the day," Thelma supplied. "I don't think it's anything to be concerned about," she concluded, "so let us not ruin a nice week-end." She chuckled. "The weather is doing a fine job of that all on its own!"

"Mrs. White, with your permission. I'd like to look into this more carefully," William asked.

Thelma paused, as if this never occurred to her. "Later, perhaps?"

"Indeed," Julia sighed. "I'd like to retire myself."

As he escorted Julia upstairs, happy to escape the drama for the evening, William wondered why everyone seemed so eager to retire for the night. Not everyone could be as socially inept as I am, surely…

"I really do wonder what could have frightened poor Leonetta so. Even if it were imagined, it seemed real enough to her, I reckon," Julia continued as she took off her jewelry once they were back in the safety of their room. "I am glad to be here with you. The weather, the séance, Leonetta's swooning is grating on my nerves."

William was still bothered by Samuel's demeanor and Leonetta's answers. He asked about Mr. Fairweather's whereabouts, concerned about imposing additional distress on the woman. "Did Samuel locate him?"

"Oh, don't worry, he wasn't carrying on in their room, he's using one of the spare bedrooms," Julia told him with a small shrug to his shocked look. "Oh, Leonetta might be prone to the vapors but she is not naive. She is merely tedious."

William knew it was unlike Julia to be petty, so he assumed there would be a story involved. "I see. It seems that many of you don't seem to harbor the greatest affection for her, why is that?" William's curiosity overtook him.

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with her, I guess. It's just that while perhaps her family had the most money, marriage prospects for her still weren't the greatest. She always meant to please others, and tried her best, but she wasn't the brightest or most capable girl. I don't even think she particularly wanted to attend university; she did it because her father wanted her to, and hardships were all the more cruel for her because she didn't particularly want it. She initially studied biology at her mother's behest if you can believe it! It was quickly decided that she didn't have the aptitude for it, and she switched to languages instead," Julia explained, turning her back to him as a silent request to help her undress.

"But if you were such serious students and she was not, why have her as one of your group?" he wondered aloud as he helped her disrobe.

Stepping out of the gown, Julia shrugged as she bent over to pick it up and laid it across an upholstered chair. "Because we were it, William. We were the only women there, she was one of us simply by being one of the few. The pioneer women ahead of us blazed the trail and had their hands full. Leonetta went through the hardships with us, and therefore we see her as one of us, even if we didn't always get along or see eye to eye."

"Is that all?"

"She is the only one of us who did nothing with her degree. She married Robert Fairweather, handpicked for her by her father and 'retired'. I suppose we judge her for all of that."

William's curiosity swung towards the male friends she made at school. "Samuel became part of the cohort because of his sister I assume. And the other gentlemen?" He paused, cautious about this next part. "Donald Harvey….?"

Julia stiffened. "William, please. Let's not discuss him. He was a horrid man who was in our circle but not my friend. We women individually and collectively put him on notice we were not open to his advances and not to cross the line…"

"Or else you would have stabbed him with a fork, yes?" he laughed, kissing her hands.

"Yes, amongst many other things," she said, turning away.

William thought Julia laughed a little too brightly, and wondered once again if she was hiding something from him. Perhaps Donald Harvey also attended Bishops…? Perhaps Julia's bitterness has something to do with having more than a passing acquaintance with Mr. Harvey…?

Julia saw his face frown. "Oh William! I was so happy to see the pride on your face when I did that this evening," she giggled.

"I was quite proud! How dare he try to assume such liberties with my wife, and shame on him for thinking that you would tolerate such things!"

"I must admit, I think I would enjoy seeing you punch him," Julia smiled, untying his bowtie and throwing it across the room.

"I restrained myself solely because I didn't want to embarrass you." William's smile faded. "I still find it had to imagine Leonetta not feeling humiliated by her husband's behavior…well his presumed behavior."

"No. Scandalous liaisons are a common feature of a house party. They've hurried up to bed or made other alternate plans so that they can meet up with their intended."

"You seem to know a great deal about these affairs." William said before realize the inadvertent double entendre. He blushed. "I assume you and Darcy must have attended house parties such as these."

Julia grinned slyly. "Why yes. But the only person I ever wished to conduct an affair with, was with you. Did I not propose just such a thing?" She sent him a look. "The real question is who is meeting up with whom? I just hope that some poor servant girl isn't being forced into something she doesn't want. I have informed Thelma who promised me that she would make sure that only male servants would be available for the rest of the night," Julia stated.

William picked up his tie and smoothed it out. "Inspector Brackenreid tried to warn me about illicit, er… pursuits at country house parties. Julia…." William asked as he doffed his jacket, "You and I grew up differently I suppose, but I must admit I am uncomfortable with the whole notion of liaisons so openly conducted. I take love and marriage very seriously and prefer some discretion and privacy."

Julia heard the emphasis and smiled at her collection of memories where she had challenged William's sense of propriety. "Not everyone enjoys what we have. Many of my friends didn't necessarily marry for love, William. For some, marriage is a business arrangement of sorts. Once a child or two is produced, it's not uncommon for many to find companionship elsewhere, so long as it's discreet. This weekend is such an opportunity, I suppose," she replied, loosening her hair and brushing it out. "I am sure it is not the first time Leonetta or Dorcas has turned a blind eye."

William recalled Donald Harvey's earlier name calling incident and cringed internally. Pot calling a kettle black. "It's still adultery, which leads to jealousy amongst other things, and you know as well as I what that is capable of producing. I am cognizant that conducting an affair usually requires discretion so as not to humiliate one's spouse or one's self. To conduct one so blatantly, such as what appears to be happening this week-end, is monstrous," he replied as he hung his clothes on his valet. "I am glad I don't have a marriage like that. Will we be the only couple not engaging in these escapades?" he winced slightly at the need for such speculation.

"Oh, I doubt it." Julia tossed off lightly. "I doubt Caroline or Daphne would be so bold. A married woman is an acceptable lover as she is protected and experienced, but only a true cad would attempt to seduce an unmarried woman…But if either Caroline or Daphne ….well, it's possible, I suppose. Neither is particularly young, although they are both still quite beautiful. So maybe it is possible…" Julia rambled as her chemise slipped to the floor and she stood naked in front of William, noting how his eyes darkened with passion.

William's questions about Leonetta and Samuel barely registered in his consciousness, as his total awareness was centered on Julia and his rising desire for her. "Will we be needing our nightclothes tonight, Mrs. Murdoch?" William's voice dropped suggestively.

"I believe we have a rigorous schedule to maintain, Mr. Murdoch, provided you're not unable to perform your duties," she giggled.

"And what if I said I wasn't? Would you find another suitor down the hall?" he teased.

Shaking her head with a smile, Julia demurred. "No, Mr. Murdoch. This is not that kind of marriage and no such escapades are necessary," she reassured him as she pulled his undershirt over his head and ran her hands up and down his chest looking at him for permission to continue.

He locked his lips on hers, letting his hands caress her skin as her hands located the remainder of his underwear to push them off his hips. "We'd best get to it, the night is wasting," he said as he picked her up, stepped out of his drawers and carried her over to the bed.

As Julia landed on the covers, she giggled. "I am relieved that I won't have to seek the services of another man tonight," she teased in between kisses.

"Hmm, then I'm relieved to tell you that I will be exercising my husbandly right to bar you from leaving the room," he breathlessly whispered, "at least not until I am finished with you."

"And I with you." Her lusty laugh was swallowed by a fervent kiss.