Vow of Deception (The Ministry of Curiosities #9)(3)

"It's all right," I said. "I promise not to raise any bodies while I'm here."

Jack released the saucer. "We appreciate it."

"Anyway, it may not have been a ghost." I described the man I'd seen on the stairs.

"That's Mr. Bollard, Jack's uncle's friend," Hannah said. "He can seem rather ghostly at first but he's quite the gentle giant. And alive."

"Will we meet Mr. Langley, your uncle?" Lincoln asked.

"I doubt it," Jack said, taking a seat near his wife. "He doesn't like visitors."

"I hear he's brilliant. I'd like to discuss his pathology research."

"It's complicated, and he doesn't like explaining his theories and experiments to laymen. I'm sorry, but that's just the way he is."

I spoke up before Lincoln said something cutting. "He wouldn't have to explain much to Lincoln. He was tutored by a physician when he was younger and has quite a thorough knowledge of all medical and scientific things."

"That may be so," Jack said. "But my uncle prefers not to meet strangers. He has a low tolerance for people he doesn't know well. I hope you understand."

"Oh, I do," I muttered, keeping my gaze averted from Lincoln.

Alice cleared her throat and dropped her teacup heavily onto the saucer. "To the matter at hand," she began crisply. "Tell us what you know about portals, Jack. Lincoln says you have one here that leads to the demon realm."

"Perhaps we should discuss that after tea," Seth said quickly. "We ought to get to know one another first."

Alice didn't seem to care about manners or the proper order of things. It was most unlike her. But I did understand. We'd come all this way to Hertfordshire so she could learn more about herself. Idle chit chat didn't interest her. I knew it didn't interest Lincoln either.

"It's all right," Hannah said, passing the plate of cakes to me. "We don't mind discussing it now. The only problem is, where to start?"

"Start with the portal," Lincoln said. "Where is it?"

"Down by the abbey ruins." Jack told us about the ancient abbey that had once stood on the site. The abbots had been guardians of the portal and of the book of spells in their possession. When the abbey was destroyed, only one page was saved—the page that told how to open and close the portal.

"What's beyond the portal?" Seth asked.

"Wonderland," Alice murmured.

Everyone looked at her. "What is Wonderland?" Hannah asked.

Alice shook her head. "It's a place. I…I'm not entirely sure where."

"Another realm?" Jack asked. But Alice had no answer for him. "It's likely," he went on. "There are many realms, apparently, although I suspect the shape shifting one is closest, as they appear to be the most common supernaturals here. The portal is our doorway to those realms."

"May we see the portal?" Gus asked.

"There's nothing to see," Jack said. "It looks quite normal until it's opened. And no, I won't open it for you."

"Where's the page with the spell kept?" Lincoln asked.

"Somewhere no one can find it. We're the guardians now, along with our friends."

"Is it wise for others to know about it?"

"I trust them," Jack said icily.

Lincoln's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "You can trust me, too."

"Not yet."

"Tell us about the ministry," Hannah cut in before an argument erupted. "It's a secret organization, is it not?"

"Not all that secret," Gus said. "You'd be surprised how many know about us."

Seth told them about the ministry's function and some of the supernatural problems we'd faced in recent times. He told them about the records of supernatural bloodlines that we kept and how the committee had acted as guardians through the centuries when the ministry lay dormant.

"So you have people you trust too," Jack said to Lincoln.

"I only trust Charlie," Lincoln said flatly.

"And us." Seth waited for Lincoln to agree. When he didn't, he added, "He does trust Gus and me, he just doesn't like admitting it. He considers it a weakness."

Lincoln shot him a flinty glare. "Have you traveled to any of the realms through the portal, Langley?"

Jack nodded. "Just one. It was much like our world. A friend of ours is somewhat more knowledgeable about other realms than we are, however."

"Why?"

"You'd have to ask him that."

"He's not here," Lincoln said. "I'm asking you."

"His story is not ours to tell," Hannah said, handing a plate to Lincoln. "Cake?"

He took the plate but did not eat the cake. Perhaps I could sneak it onto my plate and no one would notice.

Jack set down his plate, his slice of cake also going uneaten. What was wrong with these men? The cake was delicious. "Your letter mentioned that you think Alice might be a portal," he said to Lincoln. "How can that be? She's a person."

"A seer called her a door to other realms," Lincoln said.

I expected Seth to clarify that the seer had been Lincoln's own mother, but he did not. It was just as well. I doubted Lincoln wanted the Langleys to know he was also a seer, although a less powerful one than Leisl.