Possession (2 page)

His chest
inflated, but not for an intake of breath as he no longer required air in his
lungs. I'd learned there were some things the ghostly body did naturally out of
long habit rather than necessity.

"Of
course," he said, rising. He leaned down and kissed the foreheads of his
mother and sister, but neither made any sign that they knew it.

If only he would
kiss me. I'd even settle for him looking at me, but he didn't do that either. Was
he going to ignore me the entire visit? That might be difficult, as I was the
only one who could communicate with him.

We'd parted
awkwardly after we'd sent the shape-shifting demon back to the Otherworld. I
hadn't wanted him to go, not until we'd solved the puzzle of his death, but he
no longer wanted to be near me. He thought he would put me in danger because he
wanted to be with me, always, and my death would secure that.

He stepped
around the furniture to the mantelpiece and picked up the framed daguerreotype
of Celia's father as he always did when he was in our drawing room. I say
Celia's father and not "our" father because he wasn't mine. He'd died
a year before I was born. My parentage was a mystery, as my mother hadn't
remarried after her husband's death and there didn't seem to have been any
lovers.

"Oh, Jacob."
A wide grin split Adelaide's face. She shook her head and shrugged. "There's
just so much to say...where do we start?"

Lady Preston
smiled at the picture frame, blinking rapidly. I didn't think any questions
would be forthcoming from her quite yet.

"Jacob?"
I prompted. His gaze flicked to mine then back to his sister. He nodded,
understanding he must carry the conversation until they regained their wits.

"Ask them
if they are well," he said.

I did.

"Oh
yes," Adelaide said. "Quite well." She touched Lady Preston's
hand. "Mother was...out of sorts for quite some time but regains more vitality
every day." There was no need to elaborate. We all knew Lady Preston's ill
health had been caused by her son's sudden disappearance and her inability to
accept his death.

"Father is
well too," Adelaide went on, her enthusiasm spilling out of her as she
grew more comfortable. Unlike me, she didn't sense Jacob's mood darken at the
mention of his father. They'd not been close during Jacob's lifetime, and the
son's dislike of his father had only increased after he witnessed the cruel way
Lord Preston had treated me.

"Ask her if
she's attended many balls," he said, leaning against the mantelpiece,
looking very much like the man of the house. "How many gentlemen have offered
for her hand already?"

I asked Adelaide
if she'd attended any Society events and she launched into a list of balls,
dinners and even breakfasts she'd been invited to since Lady Preston announced
the end of their self-imposed seclusion.

"Your
sister is going to have a ball for her coming out," Lady Preston said. She
twisted her fingers in her lap and delicately chewed on her bottom lip. "It's
not that we've forgotten or have set it behind us..." Her voice trailed
off and she pressed her hand to her nose again. "I will wear full mourning
of course."

"I
know," he said quietly. "Emily, assure her this is what I want. It's
time Adelaide enjoyed herself."

"That makes
Jacob very happy," I said to his mother and was rewarded with a small
smile from her. "He wants Miss Beaufort to attend parties."

"Oh, I
shall," Adelaide said. "But I'll miss him. It won't be the same
without him there to introduce me to his friends and other people whose names
he can't remember but pretends he does." She smiled sadly.

"She knows
me too well," he said drily.

It was certainly
no laughing matter as Jacob's inability to notice people outside his immediate social
circle may have inadvertently led to his death. We'd connected his murder to a
boy from his Oxford year, known only as Frederick. The boy had thought Jacob
was avoiding him, when in truth Jacob hadn't really noticed him. This perceived
slight had led Frederick to set upon Jacob, only to come off worse in the fight.
Although he'd gotten up and run away, Jacob's murderer had later made it known
that Jacob was "responsible" for his—or her—son's death. Jacob assumed
the killer was speaking of Frederick and the boy must have died some time after
the fight.

But it was all
speculation. No one really knew why Jacob had died.

"We want to
find your body," Lady Preston blurted out. We all looked at her. She
looked at the daguerreotype in Jacob's hand. "And to do that we must ask
your...your..."

Killer.
"Yes!" I said, perhaps a little more enthusiastically than
was polite considering the circumstances. "I agree, Lady Preston." I raised
an eyebrow at Adelaide.

She nodded. "I
told Mother and Father about that Frederick boy and how his parent might be
involved. Father said...well, never mind his exact words, but he's not
interested in following that line. He says his detectives are being paid well
and will discover who the murderer is without your...our intervention."

Lady Preston
winced. "However, I think you might be right about this Frederick, Miss
Chambers."

"It was Jacob
who made the connection. I'm just his voice," I said.

"Don't disregard
your role, Em," he said. It was the first time he'd spoken directly to me
since his appearance and it caught me off guard. I couldn't think of anything
to say.

"Do you
mean you will hire detectives of your own, Lady Preston?" Celia asked.

Lady Preston
shook her head. "I came here to speak to Jacob, to urge him to think very
hard about who precisely Frederick is, or was."

"He has
tried," I said. "He can't recollect him. Perhaps if we made discreet
enquiries, someone at Oxford may know of him."

"My
thoughts exactly," Adelaide said.

"No." Celia
spread her fingers on her lap, a sign she was trying very hard not to raise her
voice. "Absolutely not. You are not to get involved, Emily. This is a
matter for others, not young ladies."

"Agreed,"
Jacob said with all the coldness of mid-winter in his voice. I wrenched my gaze
from his but shivered nevertheless. I didn't want to argue with him over the
point, but I would if I had to.

"I'm not suggesting
your sister be involved at all," Lady Preston assured Celia. "Just
that she communicate with Jacob and learn as much from him as possible. I'll
write to his old friends and see if they know of any Fredericks. If that fails,
I'll write to the university itself and obtain a list of all Fredericks in Jacob's
year."

"A sound
idea," Celia said, relaxing.

No, it wouldn't
do. Not at all. Letters would not suffice, and I would not be shunned. The
investigation was too important. "I'm not sure letters are quite personal
enough for this task." I turned to Jacob. "Is there one friend in
particular who might know about this Frederick fellow? Someone popular with a
wide circle?"

He narrowed his
eyes. "What are you getting at, Emily?"

"Just that
a visit to one person might be more appropriate and discreet. In fact, I'd go
even further and suggest that you be the one to visit him, not your mother or
sister."

"Ah." He
crossed his arms and his lips tilted in a sardonic smile. "I see now. If I
agree then that means
you
have to attend too as my medium. A good try,
but the answer's no. I'll not involve you."

"Because
it's not my business?" I spat.

"Because I
don't want you to get hurt."

A little late
for that. My heart hurt like the devil ever since he'd suddenly appeared in my
life then just as suddenly disappeared.

Celia coughed
politely and I apologized for my one-sided conversation. "But I do think
it's a good idea," I added. "And yes, it necessitates that I go too,
but it's just a simple visit and will be one time only."

"I don't
think it's wise," Celia said, but she was wavering. I could tell by the
way she studied her teacup and didn't meet my gaze.

"I'll chaperone
her," Lady Preston said quickly.

"I'll go
too, of course," Adelaide added. "It'll be quite safe. As Emily said,
it will be very discreet this way. No one will ever know we're making enquiries
and I do think Jacob's guidance will be invaluable."

"Ha!" Jacob
barked. "Bloody female logic. I don't suppose I have any say in
this."

"Jacob
agrees to the scheme," I told them.

Another harsh
laugh from Jacob's direction. I ignored him. It seemed the best course of
action while in public. Now if I could get him alone...

"Excellent."
Lady Preston rose and smoothed her black basque jacket over her hips. "Come
tomorrow, Miss Chambers. In the mean time, if you could tell her which of your
friends will best serve our purposes, Jacob, that would be most helpful." It
seemed our new endeavor had indeed brought Lady Preston back to life, and I
found I liked her very much. I could believe this forthright woman was the mother
of two charming, remarkable people better than the shadow I'd met over a week
ago.

Our guests—the
live ones—said their goodbyes. Celia and I walked them to the front door like
old friends. Jacob remained behind in the drawing room, or perhaps he'd already
vanished back to the Waiting Area. At least he would return to give me the name
of someone to contact. It would give us a chance to finally talk. Alone.

I opened the
front door and the familiar feeling of being watched returned. I tensed, looked
left then right. At the corner of the street, peering back at us from behind
the red-brown bricks of the largest house on Druids Way, was a little girl. It
was too far to make out much except that she had black hair, a black coat, and
couldn't have been more than about ten. It was the same girl whose bootlace was
being retied by the man earlier.

"Excuse
me," I said, moving down the stairs past Adelaide. "I must speak to
that girl."

"Emily!"
Celia scolded. "Our guests are just leaving."

I held my hand
up for her to wait and began to run, but before I reached Mrs. Norstrop's house
two doors down I saw the little girl's mouth move, uttering words I couldn't hear.
An edge of something black—a coat?—flapped beside her, but the rest of it was
out of sight around the corner.

Behind me, someone
grunted.

"Adelaide!"
Lady Preston cried out.

I spun round to see
Celia supporting Adelaide and Lady Preston flapping a hand at her daughter's
white face. Jacob hovered anxiously nearby and I knew he wished he could help.

"She almost
fainted," he said, pacing around her.

Adelaide shooed
Celia and her mother away, but she swayed unsteadily. "Bloody hell,"
she muttered, pressing both hands to her temples. "My bloody head
hurts."

"Adelaide!"
Lady Preston gasped. "Language."

Celia coughed
politely and looked away. Jacob stopped pacing and stared at his sister as if
she were a creature from another world.

Adelaide put a
hand over her mouth. "Oh! Oh, I can't believe I said that. I'm so sorry,
Mother, really. I don't know what came over me." She closed her eyes and
groaned loudly.

"I think we
should go home," Lady Preston said. "It's been a draining day."

"Would Miss
Beaufort like to return inside and rest?" Celia asked.

"No." Adelaide
sliced her hand through the air. "Let's go."

I suddenly
remembered the little girl. I looked up the street, but she was gone. Curses!

"Until
tomorrow, Miss Chambers." Lady Preston took her daughter's arm. Adelaide's
face screwed up and she regarded her mother with disdain. With a snort and deep
laugh that made my spine tingle, she marched down Druids Way with long,
purposeful strides. Lady Preston had to trot to keep up.

Jacob watched
them go, a frown cutting across his forehead. "Strange," he muttered.
"Very strange."

"Did you
see her?" I asked. "That girl at the corner? Did either of you see
her standing there? I think she's the one who's been watching me."

"Someone's
been watching you?" Jacob asked, his full attention on me. "For how
long?"

"Ever
since..."
you left.
"For about a week."

"Why didn't
you tell me?"

I thrust one
hand on my hip and stalked across to him so that we were close enough to touch.
Dear God, how I wanted to touch him, but he'd made it clear there would be no
more intimacy between us. My frustration made me speak harsher than I meant to.
"If you'd come when I summoned you, I might have."

He had the
decency to look away. "Well, I'm here now," he said softly. "Tell
me about the girl watching you."

"There's
nothing to tell. Today is the first time I've seen her. She was just a little
girl, only..."

"Only
what?"

I shook my head.
"Nothing. She was too far away to see clearly." And I might have
imagined the dark, wild curls and the darkish skin, so like my own.