The Apothecary's Poison (Glass and Steele #3)(79)

I gave up trying after an hour and dressed in a skirt, chemise and a waistcoat, without a corset. It seemed a little too difficult to manipulate my body into one with all the aches and pains. I threw my new shawl around my shoulders to hide my state of dishabille and went downstairs. I found Matt with Willie, Duke, Cyclops and his aunt in the sitting room.

"India!" Miss Glass held her hands out to me but Willie intercepted me before I could take them.

"I'm a little sore," I warned her before she could embrace me.

She looked me over, her hands hovering, searching for somewhere to touch me. I clasped them in mine and smiled at her. She smiled back, only for it to wobble. Tears filled her eyes. She pulled away and dashed the tears against her sleeve. To my surprise, she said nothing.

Miss Glass patted the sofa beside her. "Come sit by me, India. You look terrible. Your poor face." She inspected the cut on my cheek with a frown. "It will heal without a scar, so the doctor told Matthew."

"You saw the doctor?" I asked him.

He nodded. "Are you in pain?"

"Not overmuch," I lied.

Duke handed me a cup of tea and Cyclops offered me a scone. I accepted both and nibbled and sipped before setting them down.

"Can you please all stop staring?" I said. "And fussing," I added when Miss Glass removed the cushion at her back and passed it to me.

"You've had an ordeal," she said briskly. "And so have we. You must allow us to fuss or…" Her voice cracked and she sucked in her lower lip.

I leaned forward and she settled the cushion at my back.

"Are you injured?" I asked Matt, knowing full well that he'd suffered grave wounds. He seemed unaffected, however. He moved easily and didn't so much as wince.

"I appear to be unharmed," he said. "A slight scratch on the back of the head that gives me no trouble.

A slight scratch indeed.

"Matthew has a strong constitution," Miss Glass said with pride. "It takes more than an accident or illness to knock him off his feet."

"Aunt," he chided gently. "That's enough."

"India, too," she said, patting my arm. "Look at her! She's up and about already. Your cousins take to their beds for a week if they get so much as a sniffle."

"And Bryce?" I asked.

Matt lowered his heads and dragged both hands through his hair. "He died at the scene. I paid a call to his family while you rested. The other servants are upset but refused to take the rest of the day off. Mrs. Bristow says they'd rather be here for us during this difficult time."

I pressed a hand to my chest as a lump clogged my throat. There was nothing to say that could ease anyone's sorrow. Poor Bryce.

"Why did the horses startle like that?" Miss Glass asked after a weighty silence. "The neighbors claim they heard a loud noise. What do you think it was?"

Matt and I both sipped our tea.

"I heard someone say a gunshot," she went on. Cyclops, Duke and Willie all turned to her. "You must be careful, Harry," Miss Glass went on, her voice thin. "It's the Wild West, you know. Be sure to come back to England soon. It's much safer."

"I think you should rest, Aunt," Matt said, taking her arm.

Cyclops fetched Bristow and Polly.

"Thank you, Harry. Veronica? Where's my maid?" Miss Glass spied me and smiled. "There you are."

"I'll be with you soon," I told her gently.

Matt escorted her out and came back a few minutes later. He took the seat she'd vacated beside me. "Perhaps you should retire too," he said. "You look pale."

"As do you, although considering you died in that carriage, you could look much worse."

My response brought down a barrage of questions from his three friends. He scowled at me, but I didn't regret informing them. They ought to know.

He finally held up his hand for them to cease. "I used my watch," he said. "Or India put it in my hand, I suppose."

I told them what had happened in the carriage, not leaving out any of the details. "You seem to suffer no ill effects, Matt," I finished. "I didn't realize the watch would work on other injuries and illnesses."

"Neither did I, at first," he said. "Dr. Parsons suspected it would cure me of anything, but this is the first real test."

I touched his chin and turned his face away so I could inspect the back of his head. The wound had completely closed, leaving only a scar. He cleaned away some but not all of the blood. "It would seem he was right," I murmured. "Thank God."

"Amen," Willie added.

"But…" I bit my lip. I felt odd asking him my next question.

He arched his brows at me. "I know what you're going to say. Am I immortal? The answer is no. Dr. Parsons said I'll die one day. The watch won't stop my organs from aging. My body will change with time, as is natural."

"But until then…you will continue to live no matter what illness or accident befalls you."

"Unless the watch stops working or I can't get to it in time. There is only so long I can survive without blood pumping through my veins or air reaching my lungs."

The pronouncement weighed heavily on my shoulders. I couldn't help thinking of what might have happened if I hadn't got him to hold the watch in time, or if it had broken in the accident. I lifted a shaky hand to my lips and blinked back tears.