Page 104 of Affair

The weight of Juliana grew heavier. The parlor was a sea of blood. The door was the entrance to hell. A monster waited on the other side of the threshold.

It’s the incense. The incense. I must keep going forward.

One more step. Just one more little step, she promised herself. Then she could take a breath.

She pulled Juliana through the doorway to Hades …

… and found herself on a cool tile floor.

She tore the handkerchief away from her face and sucked in the less tainted air of the hall. A violent fit of coughing overcame her.

“Bloody hell. Charlotte.”

“Baxter. Baxter, I’m here.”

The sound of his voice was more invigorating than any tonic. She took another gasping breath and wiped her tearing eyes. She blinked several times and saw Baxter striding toward her through the light haze. He had entered the house via the kitchens, just as she had.

“What has happened here?” he demanded in a soft and terrible voice.

“Thank God, you came. I am so glad to see you. It’s Juliana. I do not know if she is still alive.”

She could not focus properly on Baxter. As he came toward her he appeared to shift and re-form in some subtle fashion. It was as if he were transmuting back and forth between two different states of being, one human and one … something else. Something dangerous. His alchemist’s eyes burned too brightly in the incense-tainted haze.

Baxter searched her face. “Get out of here. Quickly. I shall attend to Miss Post.”

“There is so much of this strange vapor.” Charlotte frowned. The hall did not look quite right. The staircase had slid several feet to one side. “I fear there is a fire in the parlor.”

“I’ll check after I get you and Miss Post into the carriage. Move, woman. No, not the kitchen stairs. For God’s sake, use the front door. It’s closer.”

“Yes, of course.” She could not think clearly. Everything was wavering, turning different colors, changing shape. She felt as though she were moving through a dream, a nightmare.

She swung around and lunged for the doorknob, which was floating in the fog. She barely managed to grab hold of it before it took flight. She struggled with it.

“Open it,” Baxter ordered in a voice that cut through the crimson haze.

Summoning all of the willpower she possessed, she wrenched at the doorknob. To her infinite relief, it turned in her fingers. The door opened.

Fresh, crisp air rushed into the incense-laced hall. She breathed deeply as she staggered down the steps. The world steadied a little. She saw Baxter’s carriage on the street in front of the house.

She tried to move toward the cab door but it seemed to shift position and size when she reached for the handle.

“Here, now, Miss Arkendale, I’ll handle that for ye.” The coachman jumped down from his box and grabbed the door from her fumbling fingers. “There ye go.”

He put a firm hand under her elbow and propelled her into the carriage. Charlotte fell onto the seat. She glanced through the window and saw that Baxter was right behind her. He had tossed Juliana over one shoulder.

“What’s happenin’ in there?” the coachman asked. “House fire? Shall I summon aid, sir?”

“I don’t think there’s a fire.” Baxter dropped Juliana onto the floor of the carriage. “Hold a moment. I’ll go back and take a closer look.”

Charlotte’s head was beginning to clear. She leaned out of the carriage window. “Baxter, be careful. That incense is most unwholesome.”

He did not respond. She saw him jerk a handkerchief out of his pocket as he went back through the front door of the house. She waited anxiously until he reappeared a moment later.

“No fire. Just a brazier heaped with incense. Nasty stuff. It will soon burn itself out.” Baxter glanced at the coachman as he vaulted into the carriage. “Miss Arkendale’s house. Kindly do not waste any time. I don’t want to loiter about in this neighborhood.”

“Aye, sir.” The coachman slammed the cab door and leaped up onto the box.

The vehicle set off down the street at a brisk clip.

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