Vow of Deception (The Ministry of Curiosities #9)(31)

Buchanan tugged on his jacket cuffs and strode out of the library. He flung open the door and almost walked into Seth, who was about to enter. Seth took one look at Buchanan then Gillingham, rubbing his jaw, and grinned.

"I missed all the fun," he said.

Buchanan slipped past him, deliberately bumping his shoulder against Seth's and snatched his hat off Doyle.

Seth rolled his eyes. "Charlie? What happened?"

I led him to the parlor on the other side of the entrance hall and told him about the meeting. He chuckled through most of it.



* * *



Lincoln, Seth and Gus went out for the rest of the day. Alice and I occupied ourselves in the attic, but I left her there when Whistler informed me Lincoln had returned and wished to see me. I looked forward to sneaking in some kisses in the privacy of his rooms, but he wasn't alone. Seth and Gus were with him in his office.

"Why are you pouting?" Gus asked me.

"No reason," I said on a sigh.

"Where's Alice?" Seth asked.

"In the attic."

"What's she doing in the attic?"

"Practicing her penmanship. How did you go this afternoon?"

"We spoke with all of the men and women in Gawler's pack," Lincoln said. "We asked them whether they were involved in the recent murders. They all denied it. Two definitely told the truth."

"And the others?"

"My seer's senses weren't strong enough to know for certain."

I perched on the edge of his desk. A pile of newspapers sat on the corner, all ironed by Doyle and ready for Lincoln's perusal. He liked to keep up with the news, but it was no more important than now. I picked up the pile and went through them. The Star was not among them. I glanced at the clock on the mantel. It was an evening paper so ought to arrive soon.

"I asked Doyle to bring me The Star as soon as it's delivered," Lincoln said, reading my thoughts. "No ironing necessary."

"He won't like that," Seth said. "He lives to iron newspapers."

The knock on the door couldn't have been more timely. Gus answered it and accepted the newspaper from Doyle. He closed the door again and handed the paper to Lincoln. It was The Star's latest edition.

Lincoln moved the inkstand, books and notebooks to the edges of his desk and spread out the newspaper. He tapped his finger on the main article on the front page.

"Damn," he muttered.

Seth, Gus and I crowded around his chair and read over his shoulder. No. Oh no. Once again, Mr. Salter's article mentioned werewolves being responsible for the attacks, but that wasn't the worst of it. He wrote about the Ministry of Curiosities and our role in controlling supernaturals. As if that revelation weren't enough, he then went on to claim we were an inept, corrupt, and biased organization.

"Fuck," Gus said. "This is bad. Really bad."





Chapter 6





There was nothing to be done about the article. It was already printed and a retraction would come too late. No sooner had the ministry been revealed to the public than our reputation had been ruined. A denial couldn't fix it. We'd begun our public life on the back foot. I thanked God Lincoln wasn't named in the article.

"I propose we kill the journalist," Seth said. At my glare he put up his hands in surrender. "A joke."

"I don't think Salter is entirely to blame for this." I leaned into Lincoln's back as he sat, and indicated the newspaper on the desk in front of him. "Someone is behind it. Someone has fed him the information about the ministry and is urging him to write this nonsense to destroy us. My money's on Swinburn."

"And mine's on the Duke of Edinburgh," Lincoln said.

"Since we're casting votes, I pick Julia," Seth added.

Gus shrugged. "Could be any of 'em. Or none."

"Thank you for your insight." Seth drummed his fingers on the desk. "We need to do something about this. Any ideas, Fitzroy?"

"We continue on as planned," Lincoln said. "Our priority is to protect the public and find the murderer."

"And what if the public don't want us to save them?"

"Aye," Gus chimed in. "Or what if we're shut down? We can't help no one if we shut up shop."

"No one will shut us down based on a newspaper article," Lincoln said.

I placed my hands on his shoulders and absently massaged. "We'll simply move our operations underground. Plans are already in motion."

Gus studied the floor beneath his feet. "Someone's digging tunnels under Lichfield while we were out?"

Seth thumped Gus's arm. "Idiot. She means metaphorically underground." He looked to me. "Don't you?"

I smiled. "I do. We're making a copy of the archive files. Now get to work. I suspect the only way to salvage our reputation and remain in operation is to find the killer and stop him or her."

"And find out who is leaking information to Salter," Lincoln added.



* * *



Seth watched Swinburn overnight while Gus remained in the Old Nichol slum to spy on Gawler. Lincoln didn't specify where he would go, but I suspected he would travel between the two and speak with his own informants in an attempt to gather information.