Page 67 of The Journal of a Thousand Years
I hadno idea what time I awoke. The room was dark, but that didn’t mean it was still nighttime. The curtains were so thick, and covered the window so fully, that no light would have crept in even if it was sunny outside. The house was quiet, so that was no help either. I rolled over and glanced at the bedside clock. Ten past nine! Why didn’t the alarm go off?
I flung off the covers and picked up the clock. Perhaps the time was inaccurate because Sally hadn’t wound it recently since this was a rarely used room. But surely the clocks belonging to the world’s strongest horology magician kept perfect time regardless of when they’d been wound. I looked closer and groaned. In my exhaustion, I’d mixed up the minute and hour hands and instead of setting the alarm for a quarter to five, I’d set it for twenty-five past nine. It was due to go off in fifteen minutes.
My plan to leave while the household slept was scuttled.
As I dressed, I considered whether to leave during the day while no one was looking or wait until nighttime, when everyone was in bed. Leaving later would give me the opportunity to find my cases.
I decided to see how the day progressed. If an opportunity arose to slip away unnoticed, I’d take it.
The one good thing about a delay meant I could see how Gabe fared. Hopefully after a solid rest, he was feeling stronger. The spare bedchamber was on the same floor as Gabe’s room, but I passed it without knocking on the door. I didn’t want to wake him. Indeed, I didn’t want to speak to him. The fewer opportunities there were to surrender to my heart’s desire, the better. This was a time for my head to rule.
I met Murray on the landing. He directed me to the dining room where breakfast had been laid out. He also informed me that Gabe was sleeping peacefully.
I found quite a crowd in the dining room. Joining Alex and Willie at the table were Nurse Tilda, Daisy, Petra, Huon, and Professor Nash. The sideboard was full, some of the serving dishes still covered to keep their contents warm. The smell of coffee beckoned me.
Daisy intercepted me on my way to the sideboard and embraced me in a fierce hug. “Thank goodness you’re still here. I was so worried you’d sneak off in the night now that you know Gabe will be all right.” She didn’t whisper. Indeed, her voice was rather loud.
I glanced past her to see everyone looking at me, yet not a single brow arched in question at her words. Only Petra, Huon and Daisy knew I had planned to leave. I’d not informed Alex, Willie or the professor.
“We told them,” Petra said, answering my unspoken question.
“And we’re not sorry about it,” Huon added. “Not even a little bit.”
Daisy squeezed my hand. “We won’t let you leave, Sylvia. While it’s a good idea in theory?—”
“No, it ain’t,” Willie said. “It’s a bad idea. A real bad one.”
Tilda, seated beside Willie, cleared her throat. “I’m glad to see you heeded my advice.”
Willie sniffed. “I’m used to Sylvia now, and I can’t be bothered getting to know another girl.”
“What about my father?” Perhaps it was foolish of me to bring him up, but I wanted to test if she truly had accepted me. “Are you no longer worried I’ll attract Melville Hendry into Gabe’s life?”
Willie fished what appeared to be a bullet out of her pocket. “I’m ready for Hendry. If he comes here and creates a paper storm, I’ll use this.” She unscrewed the top of the casing to reveal a small wheel. “An injured soldier I drove to a field hospital at the Somme gave me this pocket cigarette lighter. He made it from a used shrapnel shell when he was waiting around in the trenches.” She spun the small wheel with her thumb creating a spark that ignited the fuel inside the shell. “Fire beats paper. I win.”
Daisy squeezed my hand again, but before she could ask me if I still planned to leave, I asked Tilda how Gabe was. I wanted a professional opinion.
“He awoke briefly in the night, disoriented but well enough to tell me he was thirsty. Hopefully he’ll eat something this morning. Mrs. Ling is preparing him a steak. Red meat is what he needs now, and a lot of water.”
I released a breath. “That is good news.”
Daisy gave me a little push in the direction of the sideboard. “You need to eat, too. There aren’t any steaks, but there seems to be everything else. I haven’t eaten such a hearty breakfastsince visiting my mother’s cousin before the war. His estate was enormous, and he had triple the servants we had.” She laughed, only to suddenly stop when she caught sight of Alex. “I never liked him much,” she added quickly. “His children are as dull as a muddy puddle and his wife likes to remind my mother how much better off they are than my parents. I wouldn’t care if I never saw any of them again.”
Without looking at her, Alex got up and joined me at the sideboard. He took a long time searching for the perfect rasher of bacon. I’d poured myself a cup of coffee, and spread butter and marmalade on my toast before he placed a single rasher on his plate.
I took the serving fork off him. “You can’t ignore her forever.”
His jaw firmed.
“You love her and she loves you. Being together is what matters. Whether you decide to cut her family out of your lives or educate them, it’s a decision you should make together. You can’t decide what’s best for her without consulting her.”
“Is that so,” he said with a heavy dose of sarcasm.
“My situation is different. Gabe’s life is at stake.”
He put out his hand, asking for the serving fork back. “You’re going to go through with it, aren’t you?”
I pressed my lips together.
