VII. chapter: Delivering
When Abby entered Giselle's rooms in the morning she found her mistress seated in an armchair in the drawing room with her legs folded beside her, dressed in a white corset and a white, lacy gown over it. Her auburn locks were falling over one of her shoulders, and she seemed to be absorbed in a book she was reading.
"Good morning, milady."
The latter tore her gaze away from the book. "Good morning, Abby," she greeted calmly. "Would you like to try riding today?"
"Riding?" The maid was sincerely surprised. "Riding a horse, milady? Why, I would love to do so, but I'm afraid there's work to do. The Emperor is coming tomorrow …"
"We'll sneak out." Giselle closed the book and stood up, the edge of her gown sweeping around her bare feet. "Come."
"What do I have to do?"
"Help me get dressed, and grab a pair of trousers." The lady smiled at the look on Abby's face. "Don't worry, mine shall fit you."
Abby nodded silently, and simply watched Giselle with surprise written all over her face as the lady led her into the dressing room and pulled trousers out of a wardrobe.
XXXXX
Good twenty minutes later the two women were seated in a carriage.
"Where are we going, milady?" Abby asked.
"Out of the city. I know a farmer there, he'll lend us his horses. And please, just call me Miss Rayne, would you do that?"
"You are the most unusual person," Abby muttered.
"I know," Giselle agreed quietly, her voice surprisingly bitter.
They got out on a macadam country road amid countless meadows. There was only one farm close by, and Giselle headed towards it without a second thought. Abby waited patiently while the former talked to the farmer. After a few minutes they went into the stable where they changed into trousers and shirts, and Giselle saddled two horses so fast it was obvious she'd been doing it many times before.
"How did you get to know this man, Miss Rayne?" the maid asked meanwhile.
"I got to know many people," Giselle fastened the saddle-belt. "My survival basically depended on that."
"I still can't believe what you did," Abby shook her head.
"It happens," the lady shrugged. "Things we think of as impossible. They happen before our very eyes, yet sometimes we can still hardly believe."
No more was said about the subject. Instead the riding lesson began.
Abby learned fast. Soon she could manage a slow trot without difficulties, but Giselle's gallop was still something that lay beyond her abilities. The latter was quite an excellent rider. To Abby the way she broke into gallop was breathtaking.
"That's it for today," Giselle announced at the end, smiling slightly. "We had better return." Her mood had lightened up, and the ride left her comfortably tired. She politely thanked the owner, they changed again, and ten minutes later their carriage arrived (Giselle had promised the driver enough money that he was more than willing to return at the time she'd stated).
"Did you enjoy riding, Abby?" she asked when the hansom's wheels started to rattle over the city's streets.
"Very much so, milady." She quickly covered her mouth. "My apologies, I meant Miss Rayne."
"To me it feels … liberating." Giselle turned to look out through the window. "It can deliver me form all the bonds of society. And more importantly, from my own thoughts."
For a short while she'd forgotten the constant pain in her chest. Otherwise she pretended not to feel it, but she couldn't forget it, let alone run away from it. A barely audible sigh escaped her lips as her eyes absent-mindedly glided over the streets of London, people who were headed who-knows-where, and the lustre of the Thames behind them as they were driving along the riverbank. The hansom rattled past some sordid piers, and a lone figure came into her view, a black silhouette of a man on the green grey background of the Thames. He was standing still, wind playing with the end of his black cloak and dark hair.
Giselle narrowed her eyes. At that moment, as the carriage rattled past the man, she caught a glimpse of his profile, and twitched violently. Her opened palms clashed against the dirty glass, and she strained her eyes to get a better look at the guy. She couldn't have wholly distinguished his features before; they'd gone past too fast, way too fast! But she needed to see! Her mind was telling her to be foolish, but it was her heart she listened to when her hand closed around the doorknob. She had to be wrong, she knew. She had to be. It couldn't have been him … It couldn't. But still … What if … people were wrong? What if …
"Miss Rayne!" screamed Abby when the lady opened the door and jumped. She staggered some, but caught her balance and ran. Her heart wanted her to do so even if it was stupid and hopeless. She heard her name screamed by Abby one more time, but she only stopped when she reached the place where the man had been standing. He wasn't there anymore. No one was there. She should have known …
Giselle kept staring over the Thames with a distant look in her eyes until Abby arrived with the hansom.
"Miss Rayne," she said. "What has gotten into you?"
"It's nothing, I'm sorry," she said, her eyes still turned towards the river. "I thought I saw someone … Never mind, I was wrong."
Of course she'd been wrong! She really should have known better. He was dead. Still she was disappointed. Why? She didn't know. But she'd had a little hope – even if only for a moment – that maybe he was somehow alive. That hope vanished in a blink of an eye. There were thousands of men in London, surely at least one could be similar to him.
"That was dangerous," Abby remarked. Giselle only shrugged her shoulders. Little did she care. One last look across the Thames, then her face turned into an emotionless mask.
XXXXX
"A masked ball?" Roy's eyes lit with excitement. "Sounds great! You could be a maharaja again," he elbowed Chon, who smiled a not-really-over-excited smile. Roy went on, "And Lin the most beautiful princess. Not one woman in whole Britain can compare with her!"
"You might be exaggerating," remarked Doyle. He'd just told his two friends about the masked ball the Queen had decided to throw in honour of the Emperor's visit. They were invited, too, and Roy's head seemed to be filled with foolish ideas already.
"Please, spare us you antics this time," he added.
"Don't worry, I'll tell Lin to watch over him," Chon said. He was about to add some more when another voice cut in.
"It seems you intend to honour us with your presence at the ball?"
Heads turned towards the door. It was Giselle who'd spoken. She was standing next to the doorframe, and it seemed she was waiting for an answer despite the fact she already knew it.
"Yes," Chon said at last. "And you, milady?"
"It is my duty to be there. Just at is it his," she gestured towards Doyle, "to take care of security there. Successfully," she stressed, "since the Emperor also intends to bring the seal with him."
"The seal?" Chon gawked. "The imperial seal?"
"Yes, the very seal." Giselle smiled mentally. She'd just known what kind of reaction the news would cause.
"How the hell do you know that?" Roy raised an eyebrow suspiciously.
"The Queen told me," she answered swiftly. "Allegedly he's more 'careful' about it now, and didn't want to leave it in China in his absence since they don't have a real seal keeper. Not a very wise decision in my opinion. Especially when he already got rid of Wu Chow."
"Does the whole England know about that little Chinese bastard?" Roy looked at inspector Doyle, but the latter shook his head,
"We kept it as hidden as possible. I have no clue how our fair lady here came to know of Wu Chow."
Giselle almost bit her lip. Only now did she become aware Victoria hadn't noticed that she knew things she shouldn't be able to know. But these people had.
"Women have their ways of knowing things," she said cryptically. "We are not as helpless and tamed as some people would like to think."
"Excuse me, but what much can you do, huh?"
"You don't want to know, Mr. O'Bannon." Her voice was quiet, not much above a whisper, but with a slight scent of threat in there. "Also, look at Lin. She's a woman, isn't she?"
"Lin's an exception!" Roy waved his hand.
"Because she is Chinese, and I'm an English royalty? You are not amusing me. I've always thought heroes are nicer. Especially really great heroes such as you are, judging by the contents of Roy O'Bannon novels."
"You read them?" the fair-haired man asked with excitement.
"I've read one once. Hardly got through it, though. I must say I'm surprised you haven't written one about your last adventure yet."
Too late did she realise what she'd just said. Roy hadn't noticed anything – no wonder – but Chon had and he frowned.
"Why would you say that?" he asked suspiciously.
Giselle saw no point in lying or twisting her own words. "Because he wrote the first one," she simply said, hoping they wouldn't pry too much. To her relief, Roy smiled widely.
"I see you really do have your way of getting information. A point for you. But …"
He was interrupted by yet another newcomer, or better – two. Edwin and Lin appeared at the door; the former hurried towards lady Rayne immediately.
"Ah, Giselle, I've been looking for you all over the place!" he bent and kissed her hand. "I had the luck of meeting Lady Lin, who so kindly provided me the information of where else I could search for you."
"Kindly, yes," she repeated. "Edwin, aren't you mad at me? After all I said to you?"
"Darling," he shook his head, "of course I'm not mad. I'm sure you didn't mean it that way. You were upset over something, I think."
And it never occurred you I may have been upset over your behaviour? she thought, but only smiled.
Edwin went on, "Although I am a little concerned. You smile and you're kind, and surely you must like me, too, but your words are those of rejection. You must forgive me, my darling, I cannot help but wonder whether there is another man involved."
"What are you aiming at?" Giselle narrowed her eyes. She didn't like the way this conversation was going at all. Others watched quietly.
"I think I might have competition," Edwin replied. "I would very much like to have an answer to that, but I fear I cannot force it out of you. However, I assure you, no matter who that other man might be, I'll prove you I'm better. I'll do whatever it takes to clarify the matter. "
Giselle's heart increased its tempo. Her muscles tightened just a bit as she forced herself to retain control. What was this guy thinking?
"Edwin, please," she sighed. "I like you, but 'the matter', as you have called it, is no…"
"Ah, I knew you liked me!" he exclaimed before she could finish. "And I mean it, Giselle, I can find that man, I can challenge him to a duel, and I assure you I'll defeat him! I'll help you de…"
He couldn't finish. Giselle moved as fast as lightning, and only a moment later she slapped him across the face so hard he staggered back until his back hit the wall. His hand went up to cover his cheek, which was shining bright pink, and he slowly shifted his weight to stand properly again with an utterly shocked expression.
Everyone was staring at the lady, who was standing in front of him, her back perfectly straight, lips stubbornly pressed together, eyes sparkling with anger and hurt at the same time.
"Giselle," Edwin exhaled disbelievingly.
"Lady Rayne." Her voice was like ice.
"Why did you do that? Wait, so there is another man?" he seemed earnestly confused.
"Don't ever say such things again," Giselle asserted slowly but clearly. "Upset or not, I meant what I said. If you were to propose me, my answer would be no. I'm sorry if I hurt you, but that's just how it is."
"You hurt my face," he grumbled.
"Well, I'm not sorry for that."
"You slapped me!"
"Very well noticed," she sneered.
"But you're a woman! Women don't do such things!"
"Women, Edwin," she locked her eyes onto his, "learn how to survive. Raising a hand and striking through the air is one of the easier things to master."
With that she left without giving anyone so much as another glance. Edwin looked at everyone one last time before he, too, left, still pressing a hand to his face.
"At least this time it wasn't me who got hit," Doyle remarked to break the silence, remembering how Lin had kicked him last year.
"Dangerous little thing," Roy said through his teeth.
"She's not particularly short, you know, rather average," remarked Lin with a certain amount of sarcasm. "And slapping someone is really not all that hard."
"She seems to be a whimsical person," Chon said.
"Or just angry. No wonder she got mad if such an ugly guy wanted to propose to her!" Roy exclaimed.
"He was quite handsome, you know," Lin said. "And don't be jealous now."
"I have no reason. After all, I am way more handsome."
Chon just rolled his eyes. It was a wonder those two had even become a couple. That they managed to stay one this long was a miracle.
A/N: Edwin surely comes across as horibly annoying to you now, but he wasn't meant to be that kind of annyoing, stupid guy, so it'll get better. He's just ... too full of himself