Vow of Deception (The Ministry of Curiosities #9)(24)

"I see you trapped in a small room."

"Where?" I asked.

"I do not know." Leisl wrung her hands together, her handsome brow deeply furrowed. "I am worried, Charlie."

Lincoln remained unmoved as he stood by the fireplace. He didn't ask his mother any more questions, so it would seem it was up to me.

"What did the room look like?"

"Dark, damp, bare. The walls are dirty. I do not see the door or windows, if there are any, but my seer's senses know he cannot get out."

"Any idea how he got in there?" Seth asked.

"It doesn't work that way," David snapped.

"Then how does it work?" Seth snapped right back.

"She sees or senses only a moment in time, not the before or after."

Eva cleared her throat. "The visions act as a warning of what is to come."

"So they only reveal the bad?" Gus said. "Never the good?"

"Good too," Leisl said with a glance at Eva. "But not this time. This is bad. You must be careful, Lincoln."

Lincoln inclined his head in a nod but didn't speak.

"He will be," I told her. "I'll make sure of it."

Leisl looked expectantly at Lincoln. He studied the hearth at his feet. I could hear my own breathing and the tick of the clock on the mantel in the hush. Why didn't he reassure her? She only needed to hear a word or two from him telling her he would be careful, even if he didn't mean it. I almost scolded him then and there, but it was David who finally broke the tension.

"Don't you care, Fitzroy?"

"David, don't," Eva said.

"We came all this way to warn you," David went on.

"You didn't have to come," Eva hissed.

"Thank you," Lincoln finally said to Leisl.

It wasn't nearly enough but I knew it was all Lincoln would offer, and I think Leisl understood that. She smiled tentatively.

"Let's go," David said, rising.

"Won't you stay for tea?" I asked as Mrs. Cotchin and Doyle entered carrying trays laden with tea things and cakes.

"We can't," Eva said, also rising.

"We can," Leisl said. Her children exchanged glances then sat again.

"Do you think this vision is connected to the one you had about the queen, Eva?" I asked as I poured the tea. "Where you think she will be a danger to us?"

Eva shook her head and accepted the teacup. "I don't know. Mama sensed no regal presence in her vision."

"Too many bloody warnings and not enough information," Gus muttered. "Pardon me, ma'am, miss, but what're we s'posed to do with 'em? How can we be careful if we don't know what to be careful of?"

It was a question without an answer. We left behind discussions of visions and dire predictions and moved instead to talk of the wedding. Lady Vickers joined us, her mood still buoyant. I tried to imagine her having a rendezvous with Cook on the service stairs but only ended up giggling into my teacup.

Seth shot me a glare. I suspected he knew precisely what I was thinking.

Our guests remained for another half an hour, during which I could see the men growing increasingly eager to leave the drawing room. When Eva reminded her mother that she had a lecture to attend at London Hospital, Leisl finally agreed it was time to depart. David was the first to stand.

"Thank you for the tea," he said to me. "It was a pleasure to see you, as always, Charlie." He spoke just as nicely to the others, but was as brisk as ever with Lincoln.

Eva caught my elbow and held me back, allowing the others to go on ahead. "I'm sorry we all descended on you like this."

"Don't be silly," I said. "We're happy to see you."

"My mother insisted on coming and having me with her. David insisted on joining us."

"To see his brother again, perhaps?" I teased.

She grinned. "I do think he's thawing to the idea of having a brother."

"That was David thawing?"

"Oh yes. He didn't grumble once on the way here, whereas he used to. The real test will be what he says about Lincoln on the way home." She took my arm and squeezed it. "Don't worry. He'll thaw out altogether eventually."

"I'm not worried. He's exactly like Lincoln in that regard. They may not like one another by the wedding day, but I'm sure their greetings will move on from polite nods and graduate to grunts soon enough. Grunts are practically hugs in Lincoln's book."

She laughed and we strode toward the door arm in arm. Ahead, Seth placed a hand to Alice's lower back to steer her down the front steps.

"May I ask you a question about Seth and Alice?" Eva whispered, her head bent to mine.

"Of course."

"Is there an understanding between them?"

"He would like there to be, but she doesn't seem interested. I do think that will change when she gets to know him better and sees that there is substance behind his handsome face. Why do you ask?"

"No reason."

"Come now, Eva, you can share with me. Have you had a vision about them?"

She blushed and I knew I was right. "Not them," she said.

"Just Seth?"