Chasing the Green Fairy: The Airship Racing Chronicles

by Melanie Karsak

  Byron looked at me one last time, his clear, beautiful blue eyes roving my face, then turned and walked away from Robin and me. When he passed the outer ring of the trees, he turned and looked back at me—at us. He lifted his hand then faded.

  I looked up at Robin who smiled softly at me.

  “Mommy?” a small voice called out. I turned to see a little boy with a wide smile, perhaps two or three years of age, rushing from the forest toward me. “Mommy! Daddy!” the boy called. With the carelessness of a child, he slammed his little body into us, hugging us both with his little arms. When the child finally leaned back, he stared into my face. His black hair shimmered almost blue in the sunlight. And his steel gray eyes shone with pure love as he looked up at me.

  I awoke with a start. I was still in the tub, but the water had grown cold. My whole body was shaking. I didn’t know if it was the withdrawal, the chill of the water, or the child wearing Sal’s eyes that had me so upset.

  “Lily?” Phineas called from the bedroom.

  “Yeah. I’m here.”

  “I’m going to leave you a robe. Dinner is ready, but the dining room is . . . unusable. Come to the kitchen.”

  “Okay.”

  Still shaking, I climbed out of the tub and wrapped a towel around me. I sat in the chair, clutching the vault key, my teeth chattering. Forcing myself to get up, I went into the bedroom where a fire burned brightly. I sat down in front of the flame and tried to get warm. The dream haunted me. After several minutes, the shaking subsided. I got up and went to the bed. There, Phineas had laid out a black silk robe with a stitched dragon design. I pulled it on then went to the mirrored dressing table to look for a comb. The reflection staring back at me was a ghost of the woman who had left London en route to Greece. I had lost my glamour. I combed my hair, pulling it back into a simple braid, then lay my head down on my arms. It was just a dream, I reminded myself. It was just a dream.

  I stowed the vault key in my bag then headed down the hallway to the kitchen. The smell of meat and butter wafted through the house. I was grateful. All I wanted was something to eat and a soft bed.

  “Sit down, sit down,” Phineas called excitedly then dropped into the seat across from me.

  Kent, who looked as exhausted as I felt, set plates before Phineas and me. Two massive cuts of beef, sautéed mushrooms, black bread, and berry compote heaped the platter. “Anything else, Sir?”

  “No. No. I’ve got it from here. Head back to bed, man. It’s late.”

  “Actually, it’s quite early,” Kent replied absently then wandered out of the room. Poor man.

  “Eat, Lily. My god, you smell a lot better.”

  “I feel better too. I got into some poison oak. Do you have anything for that?”

  “Sure, sure. Poison oak? Where have you been roving?”

  “If I told you, you wouldn’t believe me.”

  “I’ve been roving a bit myself these past weeks since you left. I can tell you, it does not seem to be Grant who went after your ship, at least not directly,” he said then stuck a hunk of beef into his mouth.

  “By dumb luck, I leaned the same. What do you know?” I asked, taking a bite of bread. I hoped my body would tolerate the food.

  “First I investigated the burning of the Ruby,” Phineas said, referring to Mandy’s ship, his mouth full of food. “From what I could see of the burn patterns, it was accidental. There was no connection to what happened with your ship,” he added, stopping to sip some red wine, then he continued, “after snooping around a bit, I also learned that someone for hire went after the Stargazer. I tracked him back to Dublin.”

  I then told Phineas about Iris and the information the scoundrel had shared with me. It was not like the man was even a bit trustworthy, but I did believe he had worked over the Stargazer. The rest, I wasn’t sure about.

  “Largoët,” Phineas repeated. “But you’re practically a national hero in France after that stunt with Etienne. Whose team do they back?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Then that is what we need to find out. You need to know if they were after the technology or after you.”

  I nodded.

  Phineas then turned the conversation to his algae distillation and how he might reconfigure the burners on the Stargazer to use his heating source: “. . . it seems the noxious gas emitted from the algae . . .” he was explaining when I tried to focus, but I failed. While I was intrigued, at some point I must have fallen asleep because I woke with a start when my fork fell from my hand onto my plate.

  “Bloody hell, I’ve talked you to death,” Phineas said with a laugh. “Let me see you to bed.” Taking my arm, he led me back through this maze of a house to the guest bedroom. Exhausted, I climbed into the bed. Phin pulled up the covers.

  “I don’t suppose you want any company?” he asked with a grin.

  “Seriously?” I replied, half laughing, my eyes already closing.

  “Oh, one other thing,” he said. “I found the grave for that woman from Southwark. I can take you, if you like.”

  I opened my eyes and looked up at the ceiling. After everything that had happened, after the trauma I had just lived through, my mother’s death felt so distant. “Sometime . . . later . . . but thank you for looking into it.”

  “Anything you need, Lily. Get some rest,” Phineas said then left, taking the lamp with him.

  The room became saturated with an aura of gray as the first light of day glowed just below the horizon. The little finches woke and began to sing softly as I slowly drifted to sleep.

  REGRET. BYRON SAID HE WAS awash with regret. His death had taught me that I’d loved him far more than I realized. Not having realized it sooner was my regret. As I thought about regret, I realized two things: it was in my hand to mend some things for Byron and that I didn’t want to live as Byron had, with a lifetime full of things unsaid or undone. What would I regret if I died tomorrow?

  When I woke, the sun was just beginning to dip below the horizon. Night had come again. Orange light poured through the curtains and shone on the palm plants. Their green leaves shimmered in the light. The image made me think of Robin. I sighed. The soft sound of cello music filled Phin’s house. I gazed out the window. The clouds were ablaze with pink and orange. I always loved to fly into a sunset like that. The feeling of the last light of day falling on you was magical. I needed to get back in the air.

  On the dresser, someone had left two packages. Forcing myself to get up, I investigated. Therein, I found a change of clothing and, thankfully, a pair of boots. I stared at the garments. It was almost like someone had given myself back to me. I pulled on fresh undergarments and a pair of tan and black striped trousers. I also donned a loose silk blouse and a tan vest with pockets inside and out. I slid on a pair of thick stockings then tried the boots. My feet were still a little swollen, but the boots fit well. From inside my bag, I dug out my cap and tossed it on. I felt entirely more like myself.

  I remembered Phineas giving me an injection earlier that day, but I’d felt too exhausted to move. Physically, I still felt terrible, but not as terrible as I usually did when coming off an opium binge. My muscles hurt, my head ached, and I was nauseous, but overall, Phin’s injections had worked. I picked up my bag then followed the sound of the cello to Phineas’ study where he sat playing.

  “Did I wake you?” he asked, stopping when I entered.

  “I needed to wake up,” I said then sat on the settee. “You’re getting good,” I told him.

  “It relieves tension . . . in a productive way,” he said with a laugh then eyed me over. “Now you look like the Lily I know,” he added with a smile.

  “Thank you. And Kent.”

  “It looks like I should call for a carriage,” he said.

  I nodded.

  Phineas rose. I could hear him talking to Kent. He then joined me on the settee.

  “Thank you,” I said, putting his hand in mine. “Thank you for your friendship, for helping me.”

&nb
sp; Phineas smiled. ”Kindred spirits.”

  “Phin, I have one more favor to ask.”

  “Of course.”

  “There is a property in Cornwall . . . I want to know who owns it.”

  Phineas looked curiously at me.

  “That woman in Southwark . . . the man in Portugal. They were my parents . . . my home is in Cornwall.”

  He nodded solemnly. “I’d guessed but didn’t have the heart to ask. Just give me the address, I’ll know in a day or two who owns the place.”

  “And the grave. We’ll go. Soon,” I said, inhaling deeply.

  Phineas picked up my hand and stroked his finger across my knuckles. “I don’t know what you lived through, but I know the woman you are now. Maybe you don’t need that past, Lily. Maybe it doesn’t matter anymore. Maybe you should just let it go.”

  “Regret,” I whispered, “I live in the shadow of others’ regrets. I’ll put my own ghosts to rest then be done with it.”

  “Then I will help you, if I can.”

  “Thank you,” I whispered.

  He squeezed my hand.

  I looked at him, lost for a moment in the kaleidoscope of his hazel eyes, and thought about Duncan’s words. Had Phineas loved me as Duncan had? Had he been wounded by that broken part of me than ran scared from him? “Phin, I don’t think I ever told you how sorr-”

  “No, Lily. Just, no,” he said, cutting me off. He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close. “There is nothing to regret here,” he said, but there was an odd tremor in his voice that told me he was not being entirely truthful.

  “Miss Stargazer, your carriage is here,” Kent called from the door.

  “Carriages,” I sighed ruefully. “Why don’t you fashion a vehicle to run on algae?” I asked as I made my way to the door, stopping at Phin’s desk to jot down the address in Cornwall.

  “Send your tinker by. He and I can build it together.”

  With a wave, I made my way out of Phin’s odd little house and back onto the streets of London.

  SOFT LIGHT GLOWED FROM THE windows of the loft above The Daedalus Company. I stood on the street and looked up. A lamplighter was whistling as he worked his way down the lane, setting the gaslamps aflame with an orange glow. Overhead, the first stars of the night had begun to twinkle in earnest. A cool breeze blew off the Thames. After all the despair and confusion, I stood there basking in a deep sense of relief.

  I quietly unlocked the door of the factory and made my way toward the loft stairs. The machines sat still and ready. The entire factory was tidily arranged. I walked up the steps, noiselessly opening the trapdoor. I did not want to wake Sal if he was already sleeping. I crept into the loft, silently setting down my belongings, then turned.

  Sal appeared from behind the bedroom screens. He looked as though he had been weeping. He stared at me as if he was looking at a ghost.

  My emotions so raw, I burst into tears.

  “Lily?” he whispered. In a heartbeat, he rushed across the room and crushed me into his arms. “Lily,” he rasped.

  Pressed against him, I could not hold back. I wept bitterly, my whole body shaking. Sadness mixed with relief. Sal was my friend, my lover, and my partner. He was the man I had chosen to be with. Maybe my timing hadn’t been right, maybe Byron and I should have been more honest about how we really felt about one another, but the decision to love Sal was not the wrong one. As I felt Sal’s arms around me and realized that he too was weeping, all my doubts fled. After Byron, things were a mess. But I still loved Sal, and I knew that would never stop. The magic of Aphrodite had sewn us together, but there was something more: choice. I had chosen to love and to be loved.

  Sal picked me up and carried me to our bed. He gently lay me down and wiped the tears from my eyes, kissing me tenderly. He looked tired, like the time that had passed had aged him. I brushed away his tears, smiling gently at him, then kissed him again. My hands were shaking as I was overcome with intense emotion. I pulled Sal onto the bed with me. I felt the desperate need to be close to him. Our hands moved gently, removing one another’s clothes, and we fell into an embrace, our warm flesh pressed against one another. How sweet it was to smell him, to feel his warmth and the curve of his body against mine. I felt so loved. We made love gently. I wrapped my fingers in his and kissed his wrists, his neck, and his face. I loved Sal. I truly loved him. After tonight, everything would be different. I would never regret my life with him.

  I SAT ON A RUG in front of the fireplace and stared into the flames. Sal joined me, setting a tray in front of us. He poured me a cup of tea, stirring in two lumps of sugar, then handed it to me. I took the cup, then on second thought, set it back on the saucer. I took Sal’s hands in mine. He saw the ring on my finger, but he said nothing. I gazed into his gray eyes. The memory of the child in the dream came to mind, but I pushed it away. “Sal, I want to marry you. Not a year from now or even someday. Tomorrow.”

  He lifted my hands and kissed them. “Then let us be married. Tomorrow.”

  I stroked his cheek. “But first, there are some things I want to tell you. There are some things I want you to know. I want you to know the truth about everything,” I said.

  He nodded and looked as if he were bracing himself. It was not what he feared. Not really.

  “I was born in Cornwall . . . my name was Penelope Temenos. My father disappeared when I was very young. My mother went mad. She tried to kill me when I was just a girl . . .” I began, then unpacked the whole story. I told Sal about the charity school and what I lived through with Nicolette and Mr. Oleander and Mr. Fletcher. I told him about my chance meeting with Byron that had led to me to owning my ship and being called Stargazer. I shared the missing piece from Knidos, the prophecy that had involved my family line that had prompted me to chase Aphrodite, and of the vision I’d had of Nicolette in the waters near the Aphrodite shrine. And I told Sal how Byron had died so painfully and in regret and how much it had broken me. He listened carefully, not interrupting, simply pouring me cup after cup of tea as he let me exhaust the secrets of my heart. I spoke of the vault and Arcadia and the deal Ianthe had offered and of Robin. But I protected Sal, not sharing with him the grief-driven almost-moment Robin and I had shared. It was, after all, just a fleeting moment. I then told him how I’d awoken in Cornwall and about the trail of my life Phin had been chasing and about Iris. And when I was done, very early in the morning, the man who would be my husband asked me only one question.

  “Your future is yours to define. Who is it you want to be?”

  I shook my head. All my life, I had lived with a sense of double self. I had come to accept that Penelope had drowned in the Thames. While Lily had been a name dubbed on an unwanted child, that didn’t mean I was an unwanted woman. I would no longer hold back the things that were best for me. I did not want to live with regret. “Lily . . . Colonna.”

  “YOU MUST WAIT FOR THE bank president. Tell him the message is from Lily Stargazer. Don’t give the message to anyone else and don’t leave until the message is delivered,” I told Henry, Sal’s most reliable apprentice, as we stood on the platform outside the Falstaff.

  “Yes, Miss Stargazer,” Henry said, then boarded the Falstaff with her other waiting passengers. I waved to Bigsby as his crew pulled up anchors and set off on their morning transport to Edinburgh.

  “We are meeting the king this afternoon?” I heard Jessup ask Angus once again. “This afternoon?”

  “Aye, that’s what she said,” Angus replied.

  “But Lily,” Jessup complained. “Look at me and Angus. What the hell are we supposed to wear?”

  “That’s why she is here,” I said, motioning to Helena, one of Sal’s seamstresses. She smiled sweetly at Jessup.

  When Jessup caught sight of her lovely expression, he blushed and looked down. Helena’s pale-colored cheeks burned red as well.

  “It’s just a suit. Look, we’re lucky enough to catch King George at Windsor. And we’re even luckier that he agreed to see us at th
e last minute. Just let Helena get some measurements so she and the girls can get underway as quickly as possible. We already have the bloody suits, we just need them cut to fit your stick figure so you’re presentable before his majesty.”

  “Trim. I’m trim,” Jessup corrected.

  “Aye, trim as broomstick,” Angus said.

  “Listen to you. You’re getting paunchy.”

  “That’s not paunch, its muscle.”

  “Gents,” I said with a sigh. As usual, they ignored me.

  Standing on the other side of Stargazer, Sal grinned knowingly at me, shaking his head.

  “I don’t know how you race like this,” Mandy, the captain of the ill-fated Ruby, said as she leaned against the rail of the Stargazer. The wind rising from the Thames blew her long, red locks all around her. “They’ve been giving me a headache all week.”

  “Why do you think I have an opium problem?”

  Mandy laughed a thick, hearty laugh, her green eyes crinkling at the corners.

  “Thank you for helping while I was gone.”

  Mandy shrugged. “We gals need to stick together. Besides,” she said, turning her back to Angus and Jessup so they could not hear, “once I got a look at Duncan, I couldn’t think of anywhere else I wanted to be,” she added with a wink.

  I chuckled, patted her on the shoulder, then turned my attention back to Jessup and Angus. “Helena will be back with the suits in about an hour. I’ll be back by noon to pilot to Windsor. After we have our audience, we’re going to meet back at Rose’s Hopper.”

  “Wait, where in the hell are you going now?” Angus asked.

  That morning, Angus and Jessup had scolded me for probably twenty minutes straight without taking a breath when I’d arrived at the Stargazer. It was only after Sal had insisted they let him show me the new galley modifications that they finally had given up. I’d held back giving them the news until they’d gotten their crabbiness out. Now it was time.