The Dark Between

by Sonia Gensler

  She wasn’t afraid, not really. Certainly she’d done wilder things than break into the old lab. And yet this plan was more dangerous than their earlier forays into detecting. At least two people had died, and they knew who’d killed them—now it was a matter of gathering evidence. They had moved past proving Elsie’s abilities. Now they were going to prove a murder.

  A strange excitement quickened her pulse, but it was nothing like the giddy pleasure of anticipation. Rather, it was a charge to her senses that came from doing something important, taking a risk to achieve a good thing, a right thing. She’d never felt this way before. For so long she’d allowed herself to slip into drowsy avoidance whenever conflict reared its head. The only effort she’d made was to attract a man. One who would solve her problems just by loving her. It seemed ridiculous now.

  A soft knock came at the door—Kate and Asher were ready for her. She set the clock down and quietly rose from her chair. She could barely see their faces in the hall, but she sensed the tension in their bodies and knew they felt the same excitement. Her heart warmed to them.

  No one spoke until they were within sight of the old lab.

  “I just need one glimpse of the lock and then I should be able to work it,” Kate said. “Elsie, can you shine the light when I tell you to? Asher can stand behind you and provide cover.”

  Elsie did as told, grateful for Asher’s reassuring presence. Kate studied the lock, then slipped a leather-wrapped bundle from her pocket and ran her fingers over each slender tool. “This one should do.” She eased one pick into the lock and then inserted a second one over it. “You can shut off the light. I’ve got the feel of it now.”

  After a moment Elsie heard a faint click, and Kate grunted in satisfaction.

  “Is that all it takes?” Asher whispered.

  Kate opened the door. “Nothing to it.”

  Once the door was shut behind them, Kate and Asher checked that all the drapes were tightly closed. “You can switch the torch back on,” Kate whispered.

  Elsie pointed the light in the nearest corner. “Let’s start here and work our way around.”

  They scanned shelves, cabinets, and small equipment, none of which looked particularly menacing to Elsie. It was a dusty, stale-smelling building, with a frightful number of cobwebs. Finally the beam of her torch alighted on something that made Asher gasp.

  “That’s it. I’d wager that box contains an induction coil.” He opened the lid to reveal a substantial metal cylinder. “It’s larger than Dr. Spring’s.” He lifted a paddle that attached to the cylinder with a wire. “If you apply this to the chest and flip the lever, you deliver a shock so powerful that it can stop the heart. But apparently if you shock the heart again, you restart the beating. Dr. Spring told me it had been done on a dog, but I think Marshall’s been trying to figure out how to do it on a human.”

  “And killing old men and children in the process,” said Elsie bitterly. “It took lightning to stop my heart. How can they harness that power in such a small apparatus?”

  “Can you take a photograph of it?” Kate asked.

  “Asher, you take the torch,” Elsie said, handing it to him, “and shine it directly on the induction coil. I must hold the camera very steady, or else the photograph will be blurry.” She lifted the camera strap over her head, but after a closer look at the coil she couldn’t resist reaching toward the metal cylinder—it was simple, and yet so menacing.

  The instant her hand touched the cool metal of the coil, the air began to shimmer and contort. A tremendous shudder coursed through her body and the camera fell to the floor.

  “Elsie, are you all right?” asked Kate.

  Elsie heard the words, but she couldn’t answer. Already the pull of the dark between overwhelmed her. All she could do was grit her teeth and endure the fall.

  When she felt steady enough to risk opening her eyes, she saw a young man. He stared down at the induction coil, his dark hair flopping into his eyes. His shirt sagged loosely over a thin frame. He lifted his chin and met her gaze. She saw now that he was near her age, and that his blue eyes, framed by dark brows, were handsome. They widened at the sight of her.

  “Has he sent you to fetch me?” he asked eagerly.

  “What?”

  “I’m scared, miss. It’s not right me being here. It’s too far away, and I’m afraid I’ll never get back.”

  No spirit had ever spoken to her like this. She’d seen confusion and fear—anger even—but not this particular sort of desperation.

  “I’m afraid I don’t know how to help you. What happened?”

  “Same thing as happened to Billy, I think, but Billy’s gone for good. The gentleman said it would work this time. But, miss, I fear I’m stuck here.”

  She took a breath. “Tell me your name.”

  He frowned. “It’s Thomas.”

  The poor boy didn’t understand. She had to tell him, but gently. She took a deep breath. “Thomas, you have died. As soon as you realize that, you will be able to move on.”

  He shook his head. “But, miss, I ain’t dead. And I don’t want to be stuck here no longer!”

  He lunged forward, forcing her to step back. His urgency was alarming—all she wanted in that moment was to be far away from him. With that thought she felt the familiar pulling, spinning sensation. It was almost a relief to fall.

  She woke to find herself on the dusty floor, cradled in Asher’s arms. Kate crouched next to them, clutching Elsie’s camera.

  “Elsie!” Kate laid a cool hand on her forehead. “Are you all right? I never expected another seizure.” She turned to Asher, as if seeking confirmation. “The last two times we were near the old lab, nothing happened.”

  “This is the first time we’ve been inside it, though,” said Asher.

  “Did you see Billy?” Kate said.

  Elsie allowed Asher to help her sit upright. “No. This vision was … so very strange.” She shivered. “The spirit I saw seemed unusually aware, and yet more vulnerable than any other I’ve encountered.”

  “Another victim of Marshall’s experiments?” Asher asked.

  “Yes. A recent one, I think. Otherwise I would have felt him before, wouldn’t I? He was tall and thin with unruly dark hair. Close to our age, I think. He said his name was Thomas.”

  “No!”

  Elsie turned to Kate. “What is it?”

  “I just saw him yesterday,” Kate moaned. “He can’t be dead.”

  “Who?”

  “Tec. My friend in Castle End—I took you to his house. His real name is Thomas.”

  “I thought you said he was rough with you.” Asher pointed at her lip. “He did that, didn’t he?”

  “He must have been trying to get me as far away as possible.” Kate slumped against the table, her eyes glistening in the torchlight. “Maybe he knew something terrible was going to happen.”

  Elsie took both her hands. “I’m so sorry, Kate.”

  “Was he scared?” Kate finally asked. “Did he know what had happened?”

  “I don’t think so. He said he wasn’t dead, and that he thought I was coming to fetch him.” Elsie shook her head. “I’ve seen other spirits who weren’t yet aware—Billy was that way—but this boy was different. He said the same thing that happened to Billy happened to him, that Billy was gone for good, but he was stuck. I don’t know. I can’t quite make sense of it.”

  “He can’t be gone,” Kate whispered. “I never got to … I mean, there never was a chance for me to say …”

  Kate began to cry, and Elsie pulled her into an embrace, stroking her head until the shuddering and sniffling eased. She’d assumed Kate cared for Tec as a friend, but clearly it ran deeper than that. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, drawing a handkerchief from her pocket and gently wiping Kate’s face.

  Asher stood. “That makes three deaths now.” He helped Kate to her feet, holding her until she was steady. When he extended his hand to Elsie, she took it gratefully.

  “What
do we do?” she asked.

  “We break into Dr. Marshall’s rooms tomorrow night,” said Kate with grim determination.

  Elsie looked to Asher, almost wishing he would say no, that after this night, these revelations, he wasn’t willing to risk it.

  “Tomorrow night, then,” he said.

  Chapter 32

  Kate looked up from her sewing to glance at the sitting room clock. “Four more hours.”

  Since they’d settled on their plan, she’d lost her nerve at least a dozen times. The scheme was preposterous, after all. Breaking into a college? What did they expect to find—a signed confession? But then she remembered Billy’s pale corpse, and her last encounter with Tec, and she regained her resolve.

  “I hate waiting,” Asher muttered. “Wish we could just get it over with.”

  “It’ll come soon enough,” said Elsie. “I’ll hate staying behind while you two do your sleuthing.”

  Kate turned to her. “Surely you didn’t want to go.”

  “I can’t. Millie will be hovering—Aunt has given her orders—and there’s no way she’d keep silent if I left the house. I’ll have a hard enough time explaining your absence.”

  “It’s difficult imagining two of us sneaking into Trinity,” Asher said. “Three is just asking to get caught.”

  They fell silent again. Kate gave up watching the clock and turned back to the trousers she was hemming. Once worn by the gardener’s young assistant, they’d been consigned to the ragbag when he outgrew them. Elsie had fished them out that morning, arguing that Kate couldn’t well enter Trinity College wearing a skirt. Kate warmed to this immediately. She rather liked the idea of trousers—much easier to sneak about that way.

  All of this would have been much easier had she been a boy.

  She’d thought to be gone by now. Gone to London with coins in her pocket from Mrs. Elizabeth Gardner. Gone with Tec to find a new scheme in the biggest city in all of England, far away from Robert Eliot.

  Had he learned her name yet? Perhaps he’d already reported her to the police.

  “I think I should tell you both something,” she said quietly, keeping her head down. She could feel their eyes on her.

  Elsie’s voice was gentle. “What is it, Kate?”

  Kate set the trousers aside. “Do you remember the night I didn’t go to dinner because I heard Robert Eliot’s voice?”

  “Of course. You seemed very frightened of the man.”

  “I told you he was Martineau’s patron. He was her lover, too, I think. His behavior during séances was often … unseemly.”

  “In what way?” asked Asher.

  Kate swallowed before answering. “He couldn’t keep his hands to himself. There were other male sitters like that, of course, but there was always something especially rough about him. And when I was sacked, Martineau threatened to have him punish me if I didn’t leave right away.”

  “He certainly seemed like a beast that night at dinner,” Asher said. “He mentioned you. Not by name, of course, but that he wished the police to get hold of you. Mr. Thompson betrayed nothing, however.”

  “What is it you wished to tell us, Kate?” Elsie prompted.

  “That day by the river—when I said I’d seen someone I knew?”

  “And you ran after him in the rain. Yes, I remember.”

  “It was Tec. I never could catch up to him, but I ran into someone else instead.”

  “Eliot?” asked Asher.

  “Yes. And he threatened to drag me to the police right then and there. He was still angry with me for ruining things with Martineau and making him look a fool. I tried to break away from him, but I couldn’t get free. I was frightened, and I didn’t want to be locked up as a fraud and a thief. So I … well, I had a knife that Billy gave me, and I was just so scared—”

  Elsie gasped. “Kate, did you kill him?”

  “No! I’m not sure I could have even if I’d wanted to. But … I stabbed him.” Her voice pitched higher. “Just enough to make him let me go.”

  “Good Lord,” said Asher.

  “He never knew my name, but it wouldn’t be that hard to discover it. What will happen to me? I’m an orphan, a swindler, and a stabber of gentlemen—for the last few days I’ve been plotting to run away to London.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us?” asked Elsie.

  “Thought I could manage on my own, but I’ve just made things worse.”

  Asher straightened in his chair. “Well, no one’s going to drag you off to prison. We won’t let that happen. We’ll get you a lawyer if we must.”

  “And perhaps Eliot will let the matter drop.” Elsie’s eyes brightened. “Or we could have Aunt Helena speak to him. I’m certain he’s quite intimidated by her.”

  “If Eliot was fool enough to take a fraudulent medium as mistress, we can figure out some way to get around him,” Asher said. “Even if it comes to blackmail.”

  “Blackmail can prove a deadly scheme,” said Kate.

  Asher closed his eyes. “Of course. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t worry about Eliot. We’ll get that sorted later.” Elsie rose from her seat. “I’ve finished this jacket, but you’ll need braces if you’re to keep the trousers up. I’ll go poke about in Uncle’s things. He’s grown so thin he’s hardly bigger than you, Kate.”

  Once Elsie was gone, Kate found it hard to concentrate on sewing, especially with Asher staring at her from across the room.

  “What is it?” she finally asked.

  “I’m just thinking.”

  “About?”

  He frowned. “Robert Eliot.”

  “That’s a waste of time, unless you’ve discovered a way to make him vanish from the earth.”

  “No, I’m thinking of him and Martineau. Wondering why a gentleman would lower himself like that.”

  “I rather thought of it the other way around. He’s a disgusting brute.”

  “So is Martineau.” Asher’s voice was harsh. “She’s yet another example of why I detest Spiritualism. It’s a con game, and half the time the medium uses her beauty to seduce her patrons.”

  “You talk like someone who’s been conned,” said Kate.

  Asher was silent for a moment. “Not me, exactly.”

  Kate leaned forward, interested. “Who, then?”

  Asher shook his head and picked at his fingernails.

  “Does this have something to do with your father? The day we met you mentioned a quarrel, and since then you haven’t read any of his telegrams.”

  Asher stared at the floor in silence.

  Kate took a breath, striving to gentle her tone. “Your father was conned by a medium?”

  “Seduced more than conned,” he finally said.

  She waited for him to elaborate, but he continued to stare at the floor.

  “Tell me, Asher. Unless you wish to hold on to this anger until it burns you up.”

  He rolled his eyes. “I hate to even think about it … much less talk about it. But you deserve to know. Father’s been collecting data on a Boston medium for years—a Miss Letitia Smith.” He laughed bitterly. “An unassuming name for such an accomplished schemer.”

  Kate nodded, trying to keep her expression open.

  “Father’s certain she has legitimate ability, but documenting it has been a trial. He’s worked so often and so closely with her that even Mother complains.”

  “So he spends too much time with her?”

  He shook his head. “He’s in love with the woman. She told me so.”

  She read betrayal in his expression, but not that of a child’s disillusionment over a father’s failings. Something else fueled this anger, and she’d have to prod him further to learn what exactly.

  “Do you feel badly for your mother? Is that why you’re so bitter?”

  He glanced at her, and she was surprised to see a glaze of tears in his eyes. “I hardly care what Mother thinks. It’s a terrible thing to say, but it’s true.”

  And then Kate knew. Strange
ly enough, it pained her. “This Miss Smith … you cared for her, didn’t you?”

  He closed his eyes. “She encouraged it, and I was a fool.”

  The anguish in his voice took her by surprise. She could think of no appropriate response. He was a fool, and yet her heart went out to him.

  “As you might imagine, Father proved the worthier target. Once his obsession became apparent, Letty dropped me like a piece of trash. In fact, she mocked my feelings to my face, and I’m sure she made a joke of it to Father.” He rubbed his eyes. “I can’t believe I’m telling you this.”

  Kate clenched the hands in her lap. “What a wretched woman. If she were here, I’d … I don’t know. I’d pull her hair out.”

  He grinned faintly. “I’ve no doubt you could do her some damage.”

  Asher’s grin brought a strange flutter to her heart. “Is that why you came to England? To get away from this creature?”

  “Yes … mostly.”

  She turned to face him again. “Was there some other reason, Asher?”

  He returned her gaze evenly. “You already know Father sent me away—I admitted that our first night here.” His tone was light. “He sent me to stay with my uncle in Rye, which is the same thing as being sent to the edge of nowhere, as far as I’m concerned.”

  “Why was he punishing you?”

  He looked away. “I don’t want you to think ill of me.”

  “And yet clearly you wish to speak of this. You’ve been angry about something ever since I met you. There must be a reason you refuse to read your Father’s messages.”

  After a moment his stony expression crumbled. “I stole from him.” He glanced at her. “A great deal of cash. I arranged for passage to England. And do you know why? Even after she betrayed me and made me look an utter fool, I hoped Letty would come away with me … if I had enough money.”

  Kate imagined the beautiful young lady—she rather disliked the way he’d said Letty—smiling seductively at him. So seductively that he’d betrayed his own family to have her. It really was very childish. But also bold … and strangely passionate from gruff, scornful Asher.

  She cleared her throat. “So your father found out and banished you to Rye.”