Mr. Malcolm's List (13 page)

“So have
you firmly decided against Selene, then?” Malcolm asked.

“No, not
at all.
 
I just thought if there was
something ready made I would use it, but I have no objection to masquerading as
the moon goddess.”

“I only
ask because if you go as Selene, I intend to go as Endymion,” Malcolm
said.
 

“Who is
Endymion?” Julia asked.

“He was
the mortal love of Selene.
 
Selene caught
sight of him, fell in love, and begged Zeus to grant him immortality in the
form of eternal slumber.
 
According to
the myth, Selene showers him with kisses every night as he sleeps on a
hilltop,” Malcolm explained.

“How
romantic,” Mrs. Dalton said.

“It is
rather tragic if you ask me.
 
What good
does it do Selene to have an everlasting love when he is eternally asleep?”
said Selina.

“I
suppose she would rather have him sleep than die,” Malcolm said.

“What
does this moon goddess look like?” Julia asked.

Malcolm
shrugged.
 
“There have been some
paintings, including one by Nicolas Poussin.
 
In his painting Selene wears light, flowing garments and has dark hair.
 
However, Homer said she had golden-colored
hair.
 
It has also been said that she was
white of face and arms and that the moon reflected her glow.”

“She wore
a crescent moon on her head, too, I believe,” Selina said.
 

“Well,
that does not sound too difficult a costume.
 
We will just have to make a shopping expedition,” Mrs. Dalton said.

“What
does Endymion wear?” Selina asked Malcolm.

“Actually,
he’s usually portrayed wearing nothing more than a judiciously placed piece of
fabric, but that would not be appropriate for our ball,” Malcolm said, grinning
at Selina.

“Good
heavens, no!” Mrs. Dalton exclaimed.

Selina
said nothing.
 
She was desperately trying
to erase from her mind the image that his words had just created.

“So I
will have great latitude in arranging my costume.
 
I will carry a staff, so that everyone knows
I am a shepherd, but other than that, I think it scarcely matters what I
wear.
 
As long as it’s suitably rustic,
of course.”

Since
there was no need to search for any more costumes, Mrs. Dalton and Julia
collected theirs and started down the stairs. Selina remained behind for a
moment with Malcolm.

“Is that
why you wanted me to be Selene?
 
So that
you would have such an easy costume?” Selina asked him.

“I must
confess I wanted us to have complementary costumes, but like Cassie, I did not
want to be uncomfortable all evening, either.
 
And I thought it fitting that Selina should go as Selene.”

“So I am
to arrange my costume in order that you can be comfortable?” Selina asked,
before sighing dramatically.
 
“I have
been grossly misled.
 
I thought you were
a romantic, and now I find that you are merely lazy.”

“As
befits my character, Endymion,” Malcolm told her.

It took
Selina a moment to understand him, and then she laughed.
 
“You are not too sleepy, I see.
 
You are always quick-witted enough to offer
excuses for your conduct.”

They were
interrupted by Mrs. Dalton calling Selina’s name from where she was waiting
below.

“I am
coming, Mama,” Selina called back, and she and Malcolm proceeded down the
stairs.

For the
next week everyone was busy making preparations for the upcoming ball.
 
The ladies had volunteered to assist Lady
Kilbourne in writing out the invitations, and when they were finished Selina
and Malcolm drove around the neighborhood delivering them.
 
The ladies also took a trip to Tunbridge
Wells, where they purchased the items that were not available at the nearby
village.

Selina
had found an illustration in a book called “Costumes of the Ancients” in
Malcolm’s library and took it to the modiste.
 
Her dress was to be white, with silver cording that crossed between her
breasts and at her waist.
 
She had
thought at first that it would have been more fun to dress a little more
exotically, perhaps as a sultana or a gypsy girl, but now she was becoming
excited about dressing as Selene.
 
She
was having a crescent moon headpiece made, and she had also found a picture of
a coiffure in the same book.
 

Julia was
very interested in Selina’s preparations for her masquerade costume and
insisted on helping her.
 
Selina thought
Julia was trying to make up for her previous behavior and thought it was rather
sweet of her.
 
She had no idea that Julia
was making an exact copy of her costume.

For Julia
had not given up on her plan to humiliate the Honorable Jeremy Malcolm.
 
She had been indulged her entire life and
taught to believe that she was superior to all others, and it had mortified her
when she could not attract the notice of the prime catch on the marriage
mart.
 
Then when Selina came and seemed
to catch his notice so easily she had been even further infuriated, even though
she had planned for it to happen.
 
What
had disturbed her was that Malcolm had liked Selina even without the stratagems
Julia had believed to be necessary.
 
Julia did not like feeling herself inferior to others, and she had hated
playing second fiddle to Selina for the past few weeks.
 
When her new plan succeeded Selina would be
relegated back to second place, and Mr. Malcolm would learn what a mistake he
made in spurning her.

The only
flaw in her plan that she could see was that Mr. Ossory seemed to admire Selina
as well.
 
If a match between Selina and
Malcolm came to nothing, then it was entirely possible that Mr. Ossory would
offer for Selina, a thought which greatly upset Julia.
 
Julia wanted Mr. Ossory to admire
her
,
even though she would obviously never marry him.
 
He was a respectable match, to be sure, but
he was not good enough for Julia Thistlewaite.

Although
there were times Julia felt he was
too
good for her.
 
His character was so noble, so open and
honest, that when she was with him it made her ashamed of the deception she was
planning.
 
However, Julia did not allow
these rare pricks of conscience to deter her from her goal.
 
Once set on a course of action, she was not
the type to shrink back from carrying it to its conclusion, no matter what the
consequences.

Eleven

The night
of the masquerade arrived and Selina eyed her appearance in the mirror with
pleasure.
 
Her dress was very flattering;
the silver cording emphasizing her figure and the flowing white fabric rippling
when she walked, giving the impression of moonlight.
 
Her hair had been parted in the middle, then
pulled back in a roll on each side, with two long braids falling over each
shoulder.
 
At the top of her head lay the
silver crescent moon, and she had powdered her face and arms, then discreetly
applied some rouge, so she did not appear too pale.

Julia
came into the room and looked her over critically.
 
She herself looked very charming in her
milkmaid’s outfit, with its laced bodice and full skirt.
 

“You look
very nice, Julia,” Selina said.

“Thank
you.
 
You do as well,” Julia replied, but
she seemed distracted.

“Shall we
go down?” Selina asked and, after putting on her mask, they left the room.

Mrs.
Thistlewaite met them in the hall, and Selina wondered what it was she was
supposed to portray.
 
She was dressed in
a black evening gown.

“And who
are you this evening, ma’am?” Selina asked her.

“I am a
widow,” Mrs. Thistlewaite said.
 
“And
you, Selina?”

“I am
Selene, Greek goddess of the moon.”

“So that
is what the thing on your head is; I couldn’t quite make it out.
 
I hope it does not give you a headache,” Mrs.
Thistlewaite replied. Selina hoped that this
 
would not be the general reaction to her costume.

The three
ladies descended the stairs, meeting Mr. and Mrs. Dalton at the bottom.

“Selina,”
Mrs. Dalton said, before correcting herself.
 
“Excuse me,
Selene
.
 
You
look wonderful.
 
The costume turned out
beautifully.”

“Thank
you, Mama.
 
I am quite pleased with
it.
 
You look beautiful as well.”

“Yes,
well, at least she is not attired as a pagan goddess,” Selina’s father said.

“Thank
you, Richard,” Mrs. Dalton said, choosing to take his words as a
compliment.
 
He just rolled his eyes, but
Selina was glad to see he was smiling.

She was
beginning to understand his objection to masquerades.
 
There was something very liberating about
appearing under the guise of another.
 
The very air around them seemed to pulse with excitement, and she felt
as if anything could happen that night.

Selina
and her parents walked through the various rooms, marveling at the changes to
them.
 
When she’d first arrived she’d
thought Hadley Hall was grander than anything she had ever seen, and tonight it
surpassed even her initial impression.
 
There were flowers intertwined around the pillars in the entrance hall,
and satin hung on the walls of two of the rooms that adjoined the Saloon.
 
Wax candles shone throughout the house, and
every item had been cleaned and polished so that their light was reflected from
every surface.
 

She
entered the Saloon, which was being used for dancing, and was so distracted
looking at her surroundings that she collided with another guest.

“I beg
your pardon,” she said, turning toward the person.

“It is I,
a mere mortal, who should beg pardon from the illustrious Selene,” the man
said.
 
It only took Selina a moment to
recognize the figure as Malcolm, even though he was masked.
 
He was wearing some sort of robe, fastened at
one shoulder, and belted at the middle.
 
Selina noted with fascination that it left one shoulder completely bare,
and hoped her father was not as shocked as she was.
 
He was carrying a shepherd’s staff and
wearing sandals, and Selina thought that if Endymion really had looked like
this, it would have been perfectly understandable that Selene had fallen
desperately in love with him.

“You are
pardoned,” Selina said majestically, once she’d recovered from her surprise.

“Then
perhaps I might request the honor of this dance,” Malcolm said, and led her
onto the dance floor, after propping his staff against a wall.

They were
playing a waltz, and Selina was so relieved that she would be able to take part
in it without humiliating herself as she had the last time, that it took her a
moment to realize that her hand was resting on his bare shoulder.
 
She jerked her hand back, but Malcolm reached
for it and placed it back on his shoulder.

“Surely
the moon goddess is not frightened of a man of flesh and blood,” Malcolm said.

“It is
not your blood that frightens me,” Selina said, and Malcolm laughed.

“You are
forgetting that you are not Selina Dalton tonight,” Malcolm said, and pulled
her a little closer.

“And you
are forgetting that my parents are standing by that column, watching us,”
Selina said, putting the appropriate distance between them.

“I was
trying to, at any rate,” Malcolm said irritably.

They
waltzed in silence for a few minutes, and Selina began to feel sorry that she
had destroyed the flirtatious mood between them.
 

“So,
mortal, how are your sheep?” she asked.

“How are
my sheep?” Malcolm repeated.

“Pardon
me, but I am trying to pretend you are Endymion, and I do not know how to
converse with a Greek shepherd boy.”

“Forget
that I am a Greek shepherd boy, and remember instead that we are lovers.
 
How would you converse with me then?” Malcolm
asked.

“I have
as little experience with lovers as I do with Greek shepherd boys,” Selina
said.

“I am
glad to hear it,” Malcolm said, smiling. “But can’t you pretend?”

“No,”
Selina said.

“I see it
is up to me then.
 
My goddess, the moon cannot
compete with your radiance this evening.”

Selina
was quiet a moment, before erupting into a nervous giggle.

“What is
so amusing?” Malcolm asked her.

“I am
sorry, but is that really how lovers speak to each other?
 
It sounds like the most arrant nonsense.
 
I do not think I can say that sort of thing
with a straight face.”

“How you
can look the epitome of a seductive temptress and yet be so totally lacking in
romance, I cannot understand,” Malcolm said, shaking his head in mock
disapproval.

“Do I
look the epitome of a seductive temptress?” Selina asked, pleased by the
remark.
 
“No one has ever told me that
before.”

“Well, I
should hope not.
 
It is not a typical
compliment in polite society.”

“You look
rather tempting yourself,” Selina said shyly.
 
“Seeing you tonight, I almost began to believe the myth.”

“I
thought you believed it to be a tragic story.”

“I
do.
 
I meant the first part of the myth,
where Selene falls so in love with the beautiful young shepherd that she
requests he be given immortality.
 
I
would change the ending, so that he did not sleep through eternity.”

“Well, I
do not think he slept the entire time.
 
He and Selene supposedly had fifty daughters together,” Malcolm told
Selina, and she could see the mischievous gleam in his eye even through his
mask.

“It is
just a story,” Selina said.

“That is
true.
 
But for this one night, I want to
believe it,” Malcolm said.

Selina
did not reply, and the rest of the dance was spent in silence, as Malcolm
whirled her in dizzying circles around the dance floor.
 
Selina did not waste her time thinking about
a pair of fictional lovers, not when there was a very real man only inches
away.
 
When the music ended, she and
Malcolm walked from the floor as if in a trance.
 
They were met by Julia, who effectively broke
the spell by requesting that Selina come with her to her chamber.
 
Selina reluctantly excused herself from
Malcolm.

“When you
return, I would like to dance again,” Malcolm said.
 
“Tonight we are in costume, so if we dance
more than two dances no one is likely to know.”

“I think
everyone knows who you are, Malcolm,” Selina said.
 
“But I will dance with you at least once
more,” she promised, before leaving the room with Julia.
 
She was a little irritated with Julia for
interrupting her and Malcolm.
 
However,
she was so happy she found she could not remain angry for long.
 
She was sure that had been love shining in
Malcolm’s eyes as they danced together, and she began to wonder if he might
propose to her that very night.
 
If he
did, she had no doubt what her answer would be.

“Why are
we going to your room?” Selina shook herself out of her reverie to ask, as she
and Julia started up the stairs.
 

“I need
you to help me with my costume.
 
I think
that something has come undone.”

“Have you
seen Mr. Ossory?” Selina asked, sparing a thought for her friend’s romance.

“Yes, we
danced the last dance together.”

“Did he
like your costume?”

“I
suppose so.
 
He didn’t really say.”
 
Julia said, her resolve strengthening when
she realized all his comments had been about Selina’s costume.
 
When they reached Julia’s bed chamber, she
allowed Selina to precede her into the room, and then closed and locked the
door behind her.

“Julia?”
Selina called from the dark room.
 
She
did not at first suspect her friend of any evil intent, merely wondering why
Julia had shut the door and left them in the dark.
 
After repeated calls went unanswered and
Selina tried the door and found it locked, she realized Julia had locked her in
the room.

“Why,
that little brat!” Selina exclaimed.
 
She
went to pound on the door, calling loudly for help.
 
She did so for about ten or fifteen minutes
and received no response.
 
The music from
the ballroom masked her cries, and all the servants were downstairs for the
evening, waiting on the guests or working in the kitchens.
 
She felt about for a tinderbox, and finding
one on a nearby table, she lit a candle.

With the
room lit, she saw another door that led to an adjoining chamber, probably Mrs.
Thistlewaite’s, and she tried that door.
 
To her surprise, it opened.
 
“Stupid girl,” Selina said, walking into the other chamber and out the
door.
 
She could not wait to tell Julia
what she thought of her immature prank.

Julia, in
the meantime, went into her mother’s room, where she had hidden the Selene
costume earlier that evening.
 
She
hurriedly changed into it, putting on the wig she had fashioned into a copy of
Selina’s coiffure, and topping it with the crescent moon headpiece she had paid
to have duplicated.
 
She looked at her
reflection in the mirror and thought she could pass for Selina in a room that
was not too bright.

She could
still hear Selina yelling for help as she left the room and went down the
stairs.
 
She would have to work quickly,
just in case someone heard Selina.
 
She approached
a footman and handed him a slip of paper.
 
“Please give this to Mr. Malcolm.
 
It is urgent that he receives this immediately,” she told him.

Then she
walked quickly to the library, where she had requested in the note that Malcolm
meet her.

She did
not have to wait long.
 
She had just been
about to leave, having decided this was a very bad idea after all and that she
should go release Selina, when Malcolm walked into the room.
 

“Selina,”
he said, and Julia was struck by the admiring expression on his face.
 
When she compared it to the expression of
near contempt he had always displayed in her presence, she began to feel that
she was justified in her actions after all.

“This
reminds me of our first meeting,” Malcolm said.
 
“Except I was the one holding a piece of paper in my hand.”

He
approached her where she stood in the darkest corner of the room.
 
“Do you remember what you said to me?”