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So far, the evening had been very good, the music was excellent, the
food thus far had been tasty, and the champagne superb, chosen by her
father. And as Olivia followed her guests slowly into the dining room,
she kept an eye on them, seeing that people were finding their seats
easily, and were comfortable where they sat. There were four large,
ample, exquisitely set tables. The crystal and silver glimmered in the
candlelight, almost as handsomely as the jewels on the ladies.

And it was only when she saw Victoria sit down that Olivia realized what
her sister had done. She gasped, fearing that she had wrought havoc with
all her seating, but in fact, she had changed only her own seat with one
other guest, to allow herself to sit next to Toby.

Olivia signaled angrily to her, but Victoria was wiser than that, and
wouldn't come. Olivia was furious at what Victoria had done to her
seating. But a quick glance around the room showed her that other people
were sitting where they were supposed to, with the exception of the
rather plain woman who had been intended for Victoria's seat.

Olivia had done that on purpose. And that woman was now sitting with the
two attractive young men meant for her twin, and she seemed very happy
about it.

Resigned to her sister's outrageous behavior, but determined to deal
with her for it later, the foolishness of letting herself be pursued by
a married man, let alone one with his reputation, put Olivia in a
dreadful humor as she went to her own seat, and then found someone else
in it. And then she realized what other trick Victoria had played on
her. She had improved Olivia's seat as well, and put her very kindly
next to Charles Dawson. Olivia blushed as she realized it, and then
quietly took her seat beside him.

"What an honor, " he said politely, staring at her, obviously unsure
which one she was, and he leaned close to her as he whispered, "Are you
the jailbird or the rescuer? I'm ashamed to admit that I can't always
tell the difference." She laughed at his optimism. She couldn't imagine
that he could "ever" tell the difference, let alone "always." And he
made her laugh just enough to free her somewhat from her earlier ill
humor due to Victoria's appalling behavior.

"Do you think you could ever tell us apart, Mr. Dawson? " she asked,
teasing him. For an instant, she was tempted not to let him know which
one she was, and see if he could guess it, but she felt too guilty to
play with him for very long, and it really wasn't like her to do that.

He stared long and hard at her, wanting to know for certain who she was,
but unable to tell her, and it seemed too cruel to keep it from him,
though Olivia let the game go on for a few minutes longer.

"Your movements are even so incredibly similar. The looks in your eyes
are different at times, but I'm still not sure which is which.

One of you sometimes has something wild there, " he said carefully,
having observed it both in Croton and the Fifth Precinct. "It's
something in your eyes that will probably allow you to go to lengths you
will regret .. . but then whichever one it is who is wild, the other
sister will tame you. One of you has a quiet, peaceful soul, the other
seems somewhat restless, " he said, looking at her with interest,
already beginning to sense which one she was, and relieved to be sitting
next to Olivia, and not her sister. Victoria unsettled his soul, and was
much too full of unbridled passion for him to be comfortable near her.

But Olivia was intrigued by what he said, and had to admit he had
observed them well. "You have identified us correctly, sir, " she said,
smiling softly at him, and he was almost sure now which one she was,
though he didn't say it. "You're a very observant man, " Olivia said
quietly, and he nodded.

"I try to be. It's part of my profession, " he said simply.

"And part of who you are as well, " she said, having observed him
carefully too.

"And will you tell me now who you are? " he asked, "or will you keep it
a mystery all night? " He seemed willing to play if that was what she
wanted. Victoria would have let him suffer, but Olivia couldn't.

"I don't suppose that would be fair. I'm Olivia." She smiled at him as
she said it, and although she was still furious at her twin for her
antics over the seating, and with Tobias Whitticomb for his behavior
with her, she was suddenly grateful for her seat beside Charles Dawson.

"You are the rescuer, the one with the quiet soul, " he said, and she
felt somewhat less so than his description, though she certainly didn't
look it. She was every bit as beautiful as her sister. "Are you truly
both very different? It's hard to see at first, though I must admit I've
noticed something unsatisfied in her, something searching.

You seem much more at home in your own skin than she is."

"I don't know why that is. Perhaps because she thinks she killed our
mother." It was an odd confession to make to him, but he seemed to be
someone one could talk to and trust, and she knew she hadn't misjudged
him. He had already proven himself trustworthy by not divulging their
secret, after helping to pick up Victoria at the Fifth Precinct.

"Our mother died giving birth to us, and Victoria is the younger twin.

It was her birth that seemed to do it, although one can't help but
wonder what difference eleven minutes would make. I'm afraid we did it
together." She had felt the same guilt too, but not to the same degree
that Victoria had suffered from it.

"One can't see things that way. There's no way to know why something
like that happens. You were both a great gift for her, it's a shame she
could not live to enjoy it. I'm sure your father has derived great joy
from both of you over the years. I think being or having twins would be
wonderful. You're very lucky." She knew that they had touched on the
death of his wife as well with what he had just said, he must have
questioned often in the past year and a half why she had died, and there
could be no real answers.

"Tell me about your son, " she said very gently.

"Geoffrey? " He smiled at her. "He's nine years old, he is the light of
my life, and I love him very much. We're alone, " he said, not sure if
she knew that. "We lost his mother a little over a year ago ..

.

on the Titanic." He seemed to choke on the word, and she barely touched
his hand unconsciously with her own, and he looked at her and nodded.

"It was very difficult for a long time. I went back to Europe with Geoff
to stay with her family. It was a terrible shock for all of us,
especially Geoff. He was with her."

"How awful for him, " she said sincerely, deeply moved by the way he
looked as he said it.

"He has some terrible memories, understandably. But he's better now.

" He smiled ruefully then, feeling as though he'd made a friend.

She was surprisingly warm and easy to talk to. "Better than I am. I
never go to evenings like this anymore, but John and your father
insisted."

"That's not fair to you, is it? You can't keep to yourself forever."

"I suppose not, " he said gently, looking at her, and admiring her.

It had been easier talking to her than to anyone in the past year and a
half, and it surprised him.

"You'll have to bring your son to visit. Children love coming to Croton.
I loved it there when I was a child too. I was about his age when we
moved there."

"And now? " He was curious about her, she seemed to have an unusual
depth of understanding. "Do you still love living in Croton? "

"I do.

It's my sister who doesn't. She'd rather be here, or in demonstrations
somewhere, or in England with the suffragists, starving in prison."

"That's what I said, " he smiled at her, "restless."

"Actually, " she laughed, "I owe her an unexpected debt tonight.

I am not directly responsible for our seating."

"I thought you were the one who handled everything like this for your
father." Edward had raved about her, and her invaluable assistance in
running all his households, and even putting together every detail of
this party.

"I do, but Victoria changed her seat tonight, and mine. She didn't like
where she was sitting."

"Well, I'm very grateful to her." He smiled at Olivia, clear on who she
was now. "Perhaps you should let her do the seating more often." He
asked her to dance then, and they moved circumspectly around the drawing
room, with his hand barely upon her. And as soon as the dance was over,
he brought her right back to the table. It was hardly a sensual
experience, but it was pleasant being with him. He was intelligent and
nice to talk to, and it was easy to understand now why he kept his
distance. She sensed from what he'd said and the way he behaved that he
had obviously been very much in love with his wife, and had no intention
of getting close to anyone else at the moment. Olivia understood that,
but it didn't stop her from feeling attracted to him, or thinking that
if life had been different for all of them, he would have been
everything she wanted.

But there was no chance to think of that now. She couldn't have left her
father anyway, and didn't think she ever would.

And Charles Dawson had no intention of opening his heart to anyone, not
even for the sake of his little boy, Geoffrey.

The ladies withdrew and went upstairs briefly at the end of the meal,
and it was then that Olivia spoke to Victoria again and warned her not
to continue pursuing Toby.

"I'm doing no such thing." Victoria looked highly annoyed by her
sister's warnings about him. He was charming, intelligent, danced
brilliantly, and was even more outrageous than Victoria had ever dreamed
of being, and she saw no harm whatsoever in a little mild flirtation.

What she didn't understand was that with Toby there was no such thing.

And he always got what he wanted.

"I absolutely forbid you to spend the rest of the evening with him, "
Olivia said to her in an undervoice, just as his wife happened to walk
by. But Victoria was not going to give in to her sister.

"You have no right to say that to me, Olivia, " Victoria shot back at
her. "You're not my mother, and he's not the man you think he is.

He's kind and decent, and I enjoy talking to him. That's all this is,
Olivia.

It's a party, an evening, a conversation. I'm not running away with him.

He's not having an affair with me. This is just a little talk and
dancing. There's no harm in it. I think it's very sad if you are unable
to understand that."

"I understand a great deal more than you think I do, or you seem able to
discern yourself, " she said, still in a furious whisper.

"You're doing something very dangerous with him, Victoria. You're
teasing a lion." But the phrase only made her laugh, and Victoria
repeated it to him the moment they went downstairs again, where she had
been quick to find him. No one seemed to have observed what was going on
between them.

And Victoria and Toby disappeared into the garden and even went beyond
the tent. He stood with an arm around her in the warm September air, and
shared a cigarette with her while he told her something he said he had
never told anyone else before, outside his marriage. But as crazy as it
sounded, after only one evening with her, he said he thought he loved
her. He told her too that he had nothing more than an arrangement with
Evangeline, that he had been so lonely for years, he thought it might
kill him. Their families had forced them into it, and their marriage was
hollow, meaningless, and meant nothing to him. It was a loveless union,
and he had been starved for true love for so long that meeting Victoria
tonight had changed everything for him. Had Olivia heard his speech, she
might have killed him.