Viridis - A Steampunk Romance

by Calista Taylor

  Their coupling seemed to have diffused his anger. “I did not hurt you too much, I hope.” His voice was hoarse, tainted with regret and apology.

  She shook her head no, unable to find the words to explain that he could never hurt her in such a way. It was not something he had in him. What he was inadvertently capable of, she was fully able to handle, for he never pushed things past what she was comfortable with.

  He pulled her in close, his arms holding her to him tight, keeping her safe and warm in their embrace. Burying himself in her curls, he kissed the top of her head, murmuring, “I do love you, a ghaoil.”

  Phoebe spun in his arms to face him with a look of surprise. “Those words—did you not say them to me the first time we met?”

  He laughed out loud, lines creasing the corners of his eyes, his sorrow now gone. “You remembered.” He gave her a quick hearty kiss and a smile. “I’ll never forget that day.”

  “Neither will I, let me tell you. You were such a mess,” she laughed, kissing the hollow in his throat, before she nestled back into his embrace.

  He pulled the blanket up over her shoulder. “I could not believe it. I was having one hell of a time with some tinkering or other, when you walked into my workshop. I thought I was hallucinating with you standing there between the piles of metal and half finished tinkerings—in a crimson dress no less. I don’t think I was capable of speech for the first couple of minutes after first laying eyes on you.”

  It seemed so long ago. A lifetime away. After speaking to several tinkerers about what she was trying to accomplish with the formula for Viridis, they had all pointed her in Seth’s direction. And so she had tracked him down, not without a fair amount of difficulty and more than a bit of coin.

  She had found him, covered in grease and grime, banging away on some tinkering and swearing so loud, he hadn’t heard her knock or let herself in. It was only once she’d turned the corner, calling out his name, that he had finally realized he had company. He had stood there, sweaty and shirtless, his hair disheveled and falling in his eyes, a tool in his hand and a look of shock on his face. She felt for sure she had turned the same shade of red as her dress.

  When he finally spoke, he had asked her, “With what may I be of help, a ghaoil?” She had been stunned into silence to see eyes so blue smiling at her, the sweet lilt of his voice striking right at her heart. She often thought of that day, but could not remember the words he had spoken in a tongue so unfamiliar.

  “So what does it mean? It’s Scottish, am I right?” She thought about it some. “I think that’s the only other time I’ve heard you say it.”

  “It is the only other time, though it’s how I’ve always thought of you.” The corner of his mouth turned up with a hint of a smile, his eyes looking lost in memories. “And, aye, ‘tis Scottish. It means my beloved, ” he said, playing up his lilting brogue. He let himself fall back to his more natural speech pattern, picking up a hint of a lilt, acquired during his childhood in the Highlands.

  He continued, “I knew from the moment I set eyes on you. There could never be another. You, a ghaoil, are the air I breathe, the blood in my veins, my heart and my very soul. And soon, you will be my wife.”

  His lips found hers, and he took her again, but with all the gentleness and care in the world, Victor forgotten, if only for now.

  Chapter Nineteen

  William knocked on Seth Elliott’s door, trying to push through the exhaustion threatening to cloud his brain. It had been one hell of a long night, most of it spent questioning Lilly, the rest of it having his wound stitched and bandaged. In the end, there’d been no reason to hold her, none of the evidence pointing to her as the killer.

  Though Niles was killed soon after Lilly had gotten off from work, she would have had to track him down in a hurry, no easy feat with the snow and ice coating the roads. She had also been more than happy to supply him with several names of girls she worked with who would vouch for her presence during the time in question. He had finally let her go into the night, with nothing more than her promise that she would not disappear again.

  Seth himself answered the door, welcoming William in and escorting him to the drawing room. “I hope you found the house with little difficulty?”

  “None at all, and with the cold finally breaking, it was an enjoyable ride.”

  Turning his attention away from Seth, William was surprised to find Phoebe in the drawing room, and even more surprised to see the cut and bruise on her swollen lip.

  “Lady Hughes. A pleasant surprise.” He had to look elsewhere as soon as was politely possible, embarrassed to have found her in such a condition, and wanting to spare her any further emotional distress.

  William faced Seth, biting his tongue to keep from speaking about a matter he could not bring up without insult and embarrassment to Phoebe herself. However, when he spoke, he could not keep the anger from tainting his voice, while glaring at Seth. “Mr. Elliott.”

  Seth’s eyes shifted to Phoebe for just a moment before returning to William. “Phoebe, my love, would you mind putting together a tray of tea and a bite to eat?”

  Phoebe gave them both a smile. “Not at all.”

  William nodded politely as Phoebe excused herself. But the moment she left the room, he whirled to face Seth, appalled that he’d been so wrong about a person’s character. “How dare you lay a hand on her?”

  “I’m glad I’m not the only one taking the assault seriously. I hope you believe me when I say I could never raise a hand to her, or any other woman for that matter. I’m no such coward, and would give my life to protect her. Now if only I could get Phoebe to take the matter seriously.” There were no signs of evasion as he held Williams gaze, his voice ringing true.

  William felt better to have not been so wrong about the man. “My apologies. Who then?”

  Seth just shook his head. “I’d love nothing more than to give you that information, however I do believe Phoebe would have my hide for it and if I were being completely honest with you, I want the pleasure of dealing with the man myself, especially now that Phoebe is my betrothed. I do hope you understand.”

  Another surprise. William nodded his understanding. “As much as I do not like the idea of you handling this yourself, I confess, I understand completely. My congratulations on your engagement. I hope you’ll excuse my saying, you are a very lucky man.”

  Seth gave him a disarmingly charming smile, and said, “Aye. Don’t I know it.”

  After Phoebe returned and they finished a light meal, they let Seth get to work tinkering with the module while William and Phoebe kept each other company to pass the time.

  Phoebe poured him another cup of tea and he thanked her, their initial unease now gone. “I wanted you to know that Lilly is still alive and safe for now.”

  “You found her?” A smile spread across Phoebe’s face, her eyes alight from within.

  “Actually, she managed to find me,” he said with a smile, and filled Phoebe in on the details of his meeting with Lilly. “Until this is over, I’m afraid it’s best she stay hidden, and she agreed. She mentioned staying with some friends, though I do not know the details.”

  “I do hope she’ll stay safe.” Phoebe took another sip of her tea. “Does her sister know?”

  “Lilly said she’d speak to her. She also wanted me to tell you she was sorry for any problems she may have caused and would be back to work when it was safe, if you would be so kind as to hold her position for her.”

  “Of course. I’m still terribly worried, though. If you see her again, please send her my way. Maybe there’s something I can do to help.”

  It was clear that her concern and willingness to help were genuine, and William could not help but like her even more. It made the attack to her person all the more difficult to comprehend, though he’d never seen any logic in the abuse of a woman.

  William had not expected to hear Seth speak, so quietly had he been working. “I’ve managed to get through the system’s secur
ity. I’m sorry it took so long, but each tinkering is a little different depending on its maker, and I haven’t had the chance to work with these information modules much. Though I still cannot say with complete certainty, I would indeed guess this module was created by the Secret Service.”

  Abandoning their tea, William and Phoebe joined Seth at the other side of the sitting room where he was working. The module lay open on the large oak desk, a notebook set to the side with Seth’s notes scribbled across the paper.

  William looked over Seth’s shoulder at the glowing screen. “Fantastic. So this is the information that Lord Niles kept on his work.”

  “Aye. It is. Ye see the module contains an internal brain of sorts that’s made up of aether. The information that is entered with these keys here, rides along a matrix and imbeds itself within the cells of aether, allowing the user to pull out the stored information when they need it.”

  William shook his head in wonder. “It is utterly amazing. I had not realized the complexities of such a tinkering.”

  Seth nodded. “Though the aether matrix was developed only a decade ago, it has revolutionized tinkerings, allowing us to develop far more complex creations than we previously thought possible.”

  William moved in for a closer as Seth shifted to the side and continued his explanation. “The information is usually categorized into books like you see here. In order to access them, you use this sphere here to move the corresponding sphere of light on the glass screen. Once it’s over the desired book of information, you tap this button here.” Seth pointed to a copper button, enameled in blue.

  He continued, “Now here is the interesting part. I managed to uncover a few books of information that he had rendered invisible. You would need to know where to look to find them, so I have transferred them to the main library of books to make it easy for you to access. There are three in total, right here.” Seth moved the ball of light around the screen, circling the books in question.

  “This is amazing.” William had never seen anything quite like it.

  “Here, sit down and give it a try.” Seth slid his chair back, vacating it. “This way, you’ll be familiar with the module once you get it home. I have not accessed any of the hidden books, not sure of the type of information it would hold. I looked through the books that were easily accessible, to make sure there weren’t any other security measures, but you may want to go through the remaining three to make sure you have access and will not encounter any difficulties once you’re home.”

  William sat down, spinning the seat back to the module. “I cannot thank you enough.” Placing his hand on the still warm brass ball, William moved it around to get a feel for maneuvering around the glass screen. It seemed easy enough, and he felt his heart race with excitement as he clicked onto the previously hidden books, one by one. But his excitement was replaced with a feeling of dread. Before anyone could see, he hit the red enameled button like he had seen Seth do previously in order to shut down the tinkering, and then closed the case.

  William stood, tucking the case into his bag. “I’m afraid I’ve eaten up most of your day. I cannot thank you enough for your help, Mr. Elliot. Lady Hughes, as always, a pleasure.”

  He knew he was being rude to leave so suddenly, but he needed to get home and take a closer look at what was in those books— for the first was on the Cause, the second on Special Services, and the third on Phoebe Hughes.

  Chapter Twenty

  After leaving Phoebe at her home, Seth went and paid Victor’s stable boy a visit, where a generous amount of coin bought him information and silence. Victor was a creature of habit, spending every Thursday evening at his gentlemen’s club, Browning’s.

  Walking down by the docks, Seth concentrated on the road ahead of him. Though the mild evening temperatures made it a comfortable walk, it also contributed to a blinding fog. He only hoped he’d manage to find Gavin without falling into the Thames.

  Tracking him down would be easy enough. After all, there were few airships of his design gracing the London skyline. But with any luck, Gavin would be holed up at The Spotted Goat, his usual watering hole when in the city. It’d be early enough to catch him there, before he moved on to more unsavory pursuits.

  With only a few wrong turns, Seth found The Goat, and Gavin within. Taller than anyone he knew, with hair black as a raven’s wing, broad shoulders, and looks one would sell their soul for, the Scotsman, was easy enough to spot, kilt and all.

  “Are you causing trouble?” Seth sat down next to his friend, shrugging out of his coat and ordering a whisky.

  “I sure as hell am trying. Maybe ye can give me a hand.” Gavin draped his arm around Seth’s shoulder, leaning his head in. “There are a few sweet lassies over by the bar, and I’m positive they’d not be able to resist the dazzling combination of my good looks and your dizzying intellect.”

  Seth looked at him with raised eyebrows and a smile. “My dizzying intellect, is it?”

  “Well they certainly aren’t going to fall for that scrawny body you’ve got holding up your head, although I will say ye’re scrappy enough in a fight.” Gavin gave him a conspiratory wink before continuing. “The way I see it, you go and talk circles around them ‘til they dinna ken which way’s up, and then I come in and stun them with my smile. ‘Tis really a plan of perfection.”

  Seth burst out laughing. “My dear friend, I realize you need all the help you can get when it comes to the fairer sex and I would love to help, however I am no longer a free man.”

  Gavin’s eyes widened with shock before he pulled his friend into an enthusiastic embrace. “Did Phoebe finally lose her senses and agree to marry you? My sincerest congratulations. A better match could not be had. I’m truly happy for you, mo charaid.”

  Seth couldn’t help but grin at the thought of spending the rest of his life with Phoebe. “Well, I’m glad to hear you approve, since I’ve a favor or two to ask you.”

  “All ye need do is ask, aye?” Gavin took a long pull from his glass.

  “You know Phoebe isn’t terribly traditional, and I do not know whether a priest would even marry us, neither of us being the god-fearing sort. So, I was wondering if you could perform the marriage. Since you’re a captain, you’d have the authority to do so.”

  “I’d be honored. Just tell me when and I’ll be there.”

  “There’s one more favor I must ask of you, though I’ll understand if you’d rather not get involved.” Seth wasn’t quite sure how much he should say and opted to say little, knowing his friend’s temper and his soft spot for Phoebe. “I just need your help while I take care of a misunderstanding. ‘Tis more of a precaution than anything else, since the man isn’t to be trusted.”

  Gavin looked at him, taken aback. “Must be serious. I dinna think I ever kent ye to bother with ‘misunderstandings’.”

  “Serious enough. I hate to do this to you, but I know his whereabouts for the evening, and I’d like to get this taken care of as soon as possible. I think I’ve got a plan that may work.”

  “No worries.” He threw some coin down on the table, and they got up to go.

  They took a coach and had the driver leave them a few blocks from Victor’s club. Seth casually walked the area outside Browning’s with Gavin at his side. It would not be so easy to get Victor alone, but he’d manage it with Gavin’s help. Having gotten a description of Victor’s carriage earlier in the evening, it was easy enough to pick it out amongst the others awaiting their masters.

  “There.” Seth gave a slight tilt of his head in the direction of one of the carriages, knowing Gavin would catch it, despite the road being lit by only the lamplights. They’d always had a way of being able to communicate with few spoken words, and it had come in handy on more than one occasion.

  The carriage itself was opulent to the extreme, pulled by two matching pairs of white steeds. Just what Seth would expect of Victor— always feeling the need to flaunt his wealth, a distraction from his many other shortcomings.

/>   Gavin approached the coach with his fuse gun at the ready, while Seth headed to the horses to grab the reins. “If ye’ll pardon me, sir.” Gavin flashed his weapon to the coachman, and then climbed up beside him before he had a chance to react. Prodding him with the fuse gun, he said, “I’d suggest ye keep quiet and take the carriage over to the alley just there.”

  Once Gavin had control of the reins, Seth followed behind the coach. With Gavin’s fuse gun and some discreet coercion, they were able to convince the coachman it would be in his best interest to cooperate. Together, he and Gavin made quick work of the man, binding and gagging him with little difficulty or harm. They left him in the baggage compartment with their apologies, and a promise to cut him free if he cooperated by keeping quiet. Gavin was quite convincing in relaying the consequences if the coachman decided not to cooperate.

  Gavin perched himself up on the driver’s seat, now wearing the coachman’s hat and jacket, his kilt covered by a lap blanket, while Seth climbed into the carriage. He was counting on the fact that a man like Victor would no more notice his coachman than he would any of his other servants.

  It turned out they did not have long to wait before Victor hailed the coach for his departure. Gavin pulled the carriage in front of Browning’s with an ease that made Seth wonder about his friend’s past times, and not for the first time.

  Seth was on Victor as soon as he climbed into the coach, grabbing him and placing his knife to his throat as Gavin sped them through the streets of London.

  Seth felt his anger coil within him, ready to strike, and it took all he had to keep it under control. He was not a violent man by nature, but he’d be damned if he was going to sit idly by and let this man assault what was most precious to him.

  “You!” Victor had the audacity to laugh. “Is this about that whore?”

  Seth’s fist connected with Victor’s face before he even had a chance to think about it. Blood spurted from Victor’s broken nose. With his free hand, Seth grabbed a handful of Victor’s coat, dragging him to within inches of his face. “Let me make this very clear. If you ever go near Phoebe again, I will make it so that you wish you were dead.” With one swift movement, Seth transferred the knife from Victor’s throat to his crotch, pressing the point of the blade in until he felt it puncture skin. “Do I make myself clear or do you need an example?”