Her Majesty's Necromancer (The Ministry of Curiosities #2)(72)

Seth smacked Gus's shoulder. "The price doesn't matter." He nodded at Lincoln who was now bandaging my foot.

"We can set up targets out back." Cook ran his hand over his shiny head. "One point if she hit a biscuit tin and two for a tea tin."

"If you turn the biscuit tins on their side, they present a narrower target." Seth rubbed his jaw. He hadn't yet shaved, and the pale bristles leant his face a ruggedness it was otherwise missing. "I propose five points for a small tea tin, three points for a biscuit tin on its side and 1 point for when its presented front on."

"You got something smaller than tea?" Gus asked Cook. "We could make that ten points."

Cook nodded thoughtfully. "Tobacco tins be small."

"None of you smoke," I said, laughing.

That didn't seem to concern them. They continued to discuss the best tins for target practice, and how many points each should be worth. They had quite a system arranged by the time Lincoln finished bandaging my foot.

"There are a set of crutches in the attic," he said, rising. "Gus, go fetch them."

Gus obeyed without complaint, and Cook headed out too in search of tins. Seth yawned and sprawled in the chair.

"You've been up all night," I said. "Go get some rest."

"So have you," he said. "You should rest."

"I slept most of the night away. I might have been unconscious, but either way I don't feel tired."

"Jesus, Charlie. You were unconscious? We should get a real doctor in to look at her," he said to Lincoln.

"I feel fine," I told them both.

Lincoln nodded at Seth, and Seth rose. "I'll fetch one now."

I sighed as he left. "I feel perfectly all right." I wiggled my foot as best as I could. "Thank you. It doesn't hurt nearly so much."

"Then why did you wince and tense every time I touched it?" Lincoln asked.

"I didn't think you noticed."

"I noticed."

"I suppose you notice everything." I bit my lip, aware of how that sounded. "I…I don't mean your instincts, your gift, I meant—"

He placed a hand to the side of my face. I was so shocked that I stopped talking. "I know what you meant." His thumb stroked my cheek before he lowered his hand and stood.

"Lincoln—Mr. Fitzroy—I need to get something off my chest."

He glanced at the door. Was he looking for an escape route or to see if anyone was nearby? He sat. "Go on."

I clutched the arms of the chair to anchor myself and sucked in a deep breath. "You had every right to be angry with me—"

"That matter is over. We won't speak of it anymore."

"We have to, or things will never be right between us."

"You're wrong. What's between us…it's not that. I don't want you to trouble yourself over it anymore, Charlie. It's not your fault."

I clicked my tongue and stretched my fingers then forced them to be still in my lap. "Let me explain. You don't know all of it." I waited and he nodded at me to go on. "A few days ago, after visiting the orphanages on the other side of the river, I stopped at the General Registry Office. I thought there might be a record of my birth, with Frankenstein listed as the father. I doubted it, but decided that since I was near, I might as well try my luck. While I was there, I realized I could also ask them to check for any records of your birth." I looked down at my fingers, twisted into knots in my lap. "I'm sorry," I whispered. "It was a decision made in a moment, and I regretted it immediately. But I couldn't call the fellow back, so I resolved not to ask him for the information when he returned. Unfortunately, he gave it to me before I could stop him."

"And what did you find out?"

"Nothing. There were no records under your name."

"And about yourself?"

I looked up at him and shrugged. "Also nothing."

"So it was a wasted effort and you tripped the trigger the ministry has placed on my name there."

I gawped at him. "What trigger?"

"The ministry has triggers set up on certain official files, not only within the General Registry Office but in other government offices too. When someone asks to look at them, a particular member of the committee, or myself, is notified. The General Registry Office trigger is set to alert Lady Harcourt. You're fortunate it wasn't Lord Gillingham."

"I don't feel particularly fortunate."

"I imagine not."

As always it was difficult to tell with Lincoln, but he didn't sound angry with me. Perhaps he was too happy to have me back and would never be angry with me again. A girl could hope, couldn't she?

"At least I now know how she convinced you to go through with it," he said.

"You were furious with me when you learned I'd summoned Gurry. Why aren't you angry over this?"

"I wasn't furious. You told me yourself that your investigation at the General Registry Office was hastily decided upon and you regretted it. The summoning was more planned, deliberate. I thought you and Julia had concocted it together. I should have considered the possibility that she'd blackmailed you," he bit off. "It seems so obvious now, but at the time… It was a bad error on my part, and I'm sorry."