 |
| Augusta departs London |
The next morning the storm seemed to intensify over our home in that little corner of London called Holland Park. There was a sense of urgency floating around the room that wasn't connected to Albert's illness, too. Augusta Stoddard, the match maker, was returning back to America early and ordering Jacob and my father around like servants with her various trunks of clothes to be set on the text outside that was to take her to the train station headed for Liverpool.
"Careful with that one, Jacob. And that one Richard! Please! Those are expensive." She hollered.
They both rolled their eyes and went out into the rain to the awaiting taxi while Sebastian and I watched from the mezzanine above the stairs.
Rebecca crossed her arms and held herself. She was about to be alone in the terrible situation. Despite my mother and Aunt Marissa's presence, Augusta felt like Rebecca's only confidante.
Augusta reached for Rebecca's elegantly shaped hands and uncurled her arms.
"Its all going to be alright, Becca. Trust me. Once this silly flu leaves Albert you'll get back on track. I Promise this."
Rebecca sighed "What if you're wrong? What if things get worse and Albert gets sicker?"
"You know better than anyone else that a positive mind sets the course right. Think better of your husband, she's strong. He's healthy and he'll get over this." Augusta said.
Rebecca smile and pulled her friend into a hug just as Jacob and my father came back into the house. Jacob made eye contact with Sebastian who quickly grabbed my hand and pulled me off into my bedroom away from Jacob's eyes.
"You're all set Augusta." My father said. "Have safe trip and thank you."
"Take care of her." Augusta said of Rebecca who had tears in her eyes.
"Mother, are you really that worried? We've seen sickness before. We've seen how things can go. This seems different. You said yourself." Jacob said.
"I don't know what this is." Rebecca shot back. "No one does."
"Dr. Rothschyld is doing his best." My father added.
"Yes of course he is." Augusta noted turning to Jacob, her words attempting to cool Jacob off before he got too hot. "We all think so, don’t we Jacob. We all know Dr. Rothschyld will take good care of Albert. I don't think anyone believes otherwise."
Jacob stopped cold. He’d wade no further into those waters, he would not push Rebecca in either.
"I should go upstairs and be with Albert." Rebecca replied. "Please, be careful and bon voyage." She added hugging Augusta.
Augusta then hugged my father and turned to Jacob. No hug. Only a casual nod which he returned. Rebecca flew back up the stairs in a cloud of her black skirts not even giving Augusta enough time to close our front door behind her. Jacob followed his mother and my father quickly went to find my mother.
As they approached the bedroom where Albert was, Sebastian and I took turns peeking through the key hole of my bedroom rood as Rebecca and Jacob were standing just outside.
"Why do you always have to act like that?" She asked of her son. "When there's a family tragedy you make light, you ignore and push things aside as if they don't matter. The last time I saw any real emotion from you was when your baby sister died." She whispered.
"I was 10." He replied equal in quietness.
"Exactly."
"How would you like me to comport myself, mother? Hysterical? Out of hand? We have to remain calm. All of us."
Rebecca scoffed and turned away from him. He put his hands on her shoulder and patted her. He had a cold streak, everyone knew, but he could feel that his mother was truly frightened of what was to come. We all were.
It was my turn to look out of the keyhole and Jacob was gone. Just Rebecca stood there now. I saw her reach into the sewn-in pocket of her long dark skirt and remove the box she was given at the shoppe in Queen Anne's Square. The box of Tarot Cards. She opened the box and slid several of the cards out on to the palm of her hand. I could see her thinking, reading the top card that popped out and being unsure what to do with them -- but it was clear she was intrigued.
I turned to Sebastian and whispered "What did she mean? Baby sister? Do you have an aunt too?"
"She was just baby." He replied.
"Was?"
Sebastian nodded "She died."
My stomach felt like the storm in the air was now inside me. Death surrounded this family more than I truly knew.
"Just a baby." I whispered as Sebastian nodded back. "Just a baby." I repeated.
In Albert's bedroom Dr. Rothschyld, with assistance from my Aunt who had been there all night, tended to the sick made who tossed and turned in the bed as his fever raged. Rebecca entered and she saw Jacob standing in a darkened corner watching -- waiting. She narrowed her eyes at him wondering just what he was hoping would happen -- or worse -- plotting to do should that unsaid reality happen.
"How is he doctor?" Rebecca asked hoping for good news.
"Still fighting." The doctor said.
Rebecca smiled. Then, Albert stirred in bed.
He began to shake his head back and forth. First it didn't seem worrying but then, as my Aunt Marissa would attest to us later, he would not stop turning. Side to side. Faster and faster. Lifting his arms up and down and slamming them back on to the mattress. His head went back and forth now more violently.
"Doctor, what -- what is happening?" Rebecca yelped.
"He's convulsing!" Marrissa shouted.
"He's having a seizure. Turn him over, quickly!"
Marissa and the doctor rushed to Albert's side and as soon as they reached him his eyes snapped open, he stopped shaking and beating the bed and looked the doctor dead in his eyes.
In a weak voice Albert asked "What's happened to me?"
"ALEBRT! DARLING! You've been so ill!! We've been here by your side watching over you!" Rebecca shouted kneeling by the bed and taking Albert's hand in hers.
Jacob stepped out of the darkened corner astonished as Albert's sudden turn.
"How do you feel Mr. Lord?" The doctor asked, equally as astonished.
"I -- I don't know. Tired." He answered.
"Yes. I would say so. You're still quite warm and ..." The doctor did not know how to even to understand how he came out of a seizure so quickly and unscathed. "...you seem ok."
 |
| The wooden scarabs |
This was a new day, of course, and the woman at Queen Anne's Square opened the box of wooden scarabs and found the five left. She picked one up and held it in her lace gloved hand. She caressed it and felt it's smooth surface. Then she cupped it in her hand and pushed down crushing the wooden scarab and smashed it to smithereens. Although made of wood -- the witch's powers were stronger.
Albert's eyes went dark. And it was noticeable.
"Albert? Albert, darling... what...doctor???" Rebecca shouted jumping to her feet.
"Mr. Lord? Mr. Lord!!" The doctor replied passing his hand over the sick man's face. "Mr. Lord!?"
Jacob's eyes fixed on the doctor's hands. Albert began to sweat; he began to feel the fire under his skin like the molten lava under the volcano just before an eruption. The curse had been placed so deeply into his body, into his soul, that he could not function normally mentally or physically for more than a minute.
As the doctor reached over to his bag to take his temperature, Rebecca began to try and relax Albert and have him sit back in bed, but he swatted his wife away and turned his face towards the window where my aunt Marissa was standing. She was moving the drapes closer together to keep the room dim.
Albert's eyes narrowed. Something in his head kept pulling him towards the small strip of gray light coming from between the draped that Aunt Marissa was attempting to cure. He kept staring at the floating rectangle of light from the outside world as if it were calling to him by name.
"Father?" Jacob finally asked, his fine face reflecting the light on his skin.
Albert got up from bed, the doctor objected but Albert, barefoot and in his sweat drenched bed shirt, walked over mumbling something no one could understand. He grabbed Aunt Marissa's busy hands. She gasped, they stared at each other for what seemed like forever, and he yanked her away from the window with a force that threw her to the ground.
"FATHER!" Jacob shouted, as he helped my aunt up from the plush carpeted floor.
Albert tore back the drapes, a glow of light gloomy like ash seeped into the room. He flicked the window lock and pushed the pane that caught a gust of wind blowing it open allowing the storm to burst in. Albert screamed into the wind that wet his face with cold rain. His body shook. Veins in his temples bulged. The scream felt as if it shook the entire house. Then Albert got up on the box-seat just below the window and attempted to go out.
Rebecca screamed and the doctor ad Jacob jumped to grab him back. The three men had a scuffle but ultimately Abert was brought back in and put on to the bed.
"HOLD HIM! HOLD HIM!!" The doctor shouted as Albert writhed on the bed to break free from Jacob and Marissa holding him down.
Then Dr. Rothschyld used another syringe to sedate Albert.
My mother and father burst into the room.
"WHAT HAPPENED!?" My father shouted, my mother close behind. "WE HEARD SCREAMING!"
No one said anything.
As Albert returned to his sleep, resting under the curse meant for Jacob by the woman at Queen Anne's Square, the doctor shook his head and untied his bow tie and the top button of his shirt.
"I've never seen anything like this. Albert's gone mad." The doctor said. "He's gone mad, I say, MAD!"
Rebecca burst into tears and Jacob reached for her. Outside he was the picture of son in pain over his father's sudden madness -- inside he was thrilled for a possible change of the guard.
**
 |
| Sebastian shows Evie the scarab |
That afternoon, I was in my brother's room. He sat on my lap happy as could be. I felt a twinge of jealousy that he was so oblivious to the strange things happening to Albert Lord just above us on the third floor.
Nikky giggled as he reached for the gold chain around my neck as he put the tiny gold crucifix in his mouth slobbering all over it. "No, Nikky." I whispered kissing his little hand.
When I looked up Sebastian was entering the room. He seemed lost in thought. How could he not be? The two of us were witnesses his grandfather go mad in real-time. I could tell Sebastian too was hardened by what we heard the grown-ups talking about in whispers all over the house.
"Are you alright?" I asked.
He nodded his head "Just worried."
"The doctor can help him; he's just got to."
"Look." He said pulling a heavy object out of his jacket pocket. I knew it was heavy by the way he had to use both hands to remove it. He held it out to me the palm of both hands.
It was the golden scarab, the solid gold beetle the woman had given to Jacob at Queen Anne's Square that Jacob then gave to Albert.
"It's so strange." I said, I'd never seen anything like it.
Nikky too seemed interested and reached for it. Instinctively I took back his hand but reached for it myself and I felt its cool wings of gold.
"Where did you get it?"
"I took it from Grandmother's room. It was in this box on the dresser and -- I don't know why -- I just took it." he said.
"Take it back."
"It's...there's something about it." He said. "It's so shiny."
"Sebastian, you should take it back." I ordered.
Just before Sebastian could put it back into his pocket and sneak to sneak the golden beetle back into Rebecca and Albert's room he started to warm in his hands. It got heavier, it got hotter, it got darker and deeper in color of gold. The heat became too intense, and the beetle turned the color red that I had only seen in burning embers.
Sebastian screamed as it burned his hands and dropped the beetle in a thud rolling only a few feet away under Nikky's crib. His scream that sent shivers down the spine of my mother and Rebecca who were in the upstairs study resting as Dr. Rothschyld examined Albert again. The two women slammed down their coffee cups and ran down the small staircase that dropped into the second-floor hallway and dashed into Nikky's room.
"What is it!??!? What's happened???" My mother asked as Aunt Marissa and Jacob entered the room too.
"Sebastian, are you alright?!" Rebecca asked having recognized the scream as coming from her grandson.
Sebastian didn't answer. He was frozen in fear. His eyes were tearing. He could not speak, but the burns on his hands told the story.
"Evie? Tell me what happened." My mother asked.
"Go, on, tell us girl!" Jacob shouted to my mother's irritation.
I didn't know what to say, perhaps I was just as frozen with fear as Sebastian was. All I did was look towards where the scarab had fallen and point. Everyone's eyes followed and the golden artifact almost glowed as it caught the light of the lamp just over it.
Sebastian finally moved and went and reached for it and held it up. It was ice cold now and soothed his hands.
Rebecca snatched it from his hand. "What were you doing in my room? If you wanted to look at it you didn't have to go and take it without asking, Sebastian. You know better than that."
"Alright, alright that's enough. Just leave him." Jacob said rolling his eyes realizing, incorrectly, that nothing was truly the matter.
"Is that the scarab you bought when you went to town?" Marissa asked, all of us turned to her.
"They didn't buy it, the shoppe keeper gave it to Albert at the Square." My mother answered.
"She gave it to me, I gave it to father." Jacob corrected.
"But it's real, isn't it?" Marissa asked.
"What do you mean?" Rebecca wondered. "She said it was."
"Marissa, what is it?" Mother could see the color drain from my aunt's face.
" This --" My aunt said, revealing The Times newspaper tucked under her arm. "The paper calls it Cleopatra's golden coleopteran. It was taken from The British Museum and replaced with a fake."
Rebecca yanked the paper from Marissa's hands and read it over quickly. She wasn't about to keep some sort of stolen artifact in her family's belongings. But as she continued to read something in the text caught her and choked her very soul. Something that lingered in the scarab's legacy and history that Marissa had not gotten to when she herself read it over.
Talk of curses. Talk of death. Talk of madness to whomever possessed it no matter how it got to them.
"This -- this isn't -- no, it can't be true." Rebecca said.
Marissa furrowed her brow and took the paper back "What?"
I looked over at Sebastian looked over at me and Nikky. He felt strange, something had changed in him over the course of those very long minutes of silence between us. His gaze at me told me he was frightened as if he knew something, something no one else new. He tried to speak to me while our eyes locked, but Nikky reached for him, which surprised me, and Sebastian took my little brother in his arms. The fear on Sebastians face melted away slightly as Nikky's innocence helped ease his worry but not fully. I could still see the fear drifting in and out of his eyes like a shadow passing through the room.
"You don't believe this, Rebecca, do you?" Aunt Marissa asked.
"What else could it have been? Albert was totally fine in all aspects of his mind and body before he got this thing and now look at him! He tried to jump out of the window." Rebecca replied.
Jacob read the article too. His mind wondered realizing his mother was following a path of superstition of curses and strange dealings. She had often shown this style of thinking at home in Welshport especially after his baby sister Viviane Victoria died: speaking with charlatan psychics, a woman known in the village as some spiritual healer who could raise the dead, books on the spirit world. But all of that had slowly dissipated in the year or two since the child's death, the child that would have been about the same age as my brother Nikky.
"Alright, let's be rational here, we don't know what is causing Albert's illness, but it can't be -- " My mother began before Jacob interrupted.
"You're right Mrs. Jordan -- we don't know what is causing it. It could literally be anything."
"But not a curse!" My mother said.
"Why not?" Jacob replied. "Like my mother said he was fine before he got that thing."
"That's right." Rebecca added.
"I didn't mean to take us in this direction, I only meant to bring this up because this is stolen, surly we have to return it." Marissa added.
"YES! To that woman! That woman is responsible for all of this. I'm back there right now and giving this god-awful monstrosity to her. Curse or no curse." Rebecca said.
"I meant back to the museum Rebecca!" Marissa shouted at Rebecca as she headed towards the hallway to leave.
"No, this thing is going back to the viper who sent it here. Whatever she's done and whatever she believes she's accomplishing by giving Albert this sickness, this cursed thing, she'll get it right back to her. I won't have anyone tell me different. Aurora, can you please call a cab for me?"
My mother sighed and said she would and followed Rebecca out. Sebastian handed Nikky back to me and followed too leaving just me, Nikky, Aunt Marissa and Jacob in baby's room.
"Jacob, you should go with her!" Marissa shouted.
"My mother has never needed an escort to fight her battles. She'll be fine." He replied coldly.
"You don't actually believe any of that do you? I didn't mean for Rebecca to go off accusing this woman of curses and spells. It's outlandish. Rebecca will only humiliate herself." Marissa asked taking Nikky from me.
Jacob smirked realizing he'd played Rebecca into her own paranoid superstitions. It was a game to him in hopes that at some point both his parents would be lost in that world of shadows, and sorcery, tarot cards and psychics. To him, the further they drifted away from reality the closer he got to his ultimate goal: total control of the Lord family empire.
"Let her be her own hangman."
Marissa looked over at me hoping to see a face of a girl unfazed by the drama around me, by the grace of god she hoped this. But I was still in silent shock to help ease the her worry. She sat down and grabbed my hand with her free one and squeezed it.
"Its all going to be alright." She said. "I promise."
We hugged as the wind kissed the branches just outside of Nikky's room. They scratched the glass and the two of us turned to look almost believing it was someone's fingers dragging across the pane. Aunt Marissa wanted me to believe in promises, hers especially -- but I had no true way of knowing what to believe.
 |
| Rebecca returns to the Spirit Shoppe |
That evening Rebecca's taxicab pulled up in front of The Spirit Shoppe in Queen Anne's Square. The driver dashed out of his seat and reached for the back door. It's sleep metal shined like onyx in the dull of the overcast sky as a sprinkling of rain began to trickle down.
Rebecca's umbrella popped out of the taxi first and she quickly stepped out under its black canopy that looked like wings of a bat.
"Unfortunately." She replied coldly handing him his fair with a black laced glove. "Can you come back in an hour?"
He nodded and walked the wealthy American to the door. "Thank you." she said. The driver tipped his bowler hat and dashed back to his cab.
"Who are you?" She asked the man.
"Were you expecting someone?" he asked as he stacked books on the world of seances.
"The woman -- there was a woman here a few days ago when I came in with my family. She gave my husband this." Rebecca said revealing the beetle.
"My husband was given then, I took it from him and brought it back. Its stolen!" She shouted.
"You were not gifted this yourself?" Kadir asked, Rebecca scoffed in frustration.
"NO! I'm telling you, a woman here gave this to my husband and I read it was stolen. I don't know if I believe in what I read but the paper says this thing is cursed. My husband has fallen ill quite suddenly, sir, and if anyone is to understand the power this thing has over him it would be you, would it not?" Rebecca said, her eyes gazing around the room as if to point out she was standing in a shop full of things that dealt with curses.
"Jacob is not your husband." The woman said in a low voice. "How did he come to gain access to this?" She asked.
"It's the truth." The veiled woman replied. "Now sit."
"Then you are a seer too."
The woman said nothing and put the tarot deck on the table between them and asked Rebecca to cut the deck in two "Past and present" she said.
The woman then asked Rebecca to flip the top two cards from each deck so that four cards were spread out, face down in a perfect row in front of them. Then one by one, she asked Rebecca to flip the cards.
"What will happen to Albert?" Rebecca asked.
"Flip." The woman instructed, Rebecca obliged.
"The Kight of swords. There is danger, Rebecca. But not how you think. There is a shadow the looms greatly over the house of the Lord. Someone has a deep desire to take what they believe has always been theirs by any means necessary and they wear this desire like the armor of a knight. It is cold like iron. It is hard and impenetrable like it too. This person will battle until the death to have what they desire, and no one can stop them."
"I cannot stop them?" Rebecca asked as Kadir peeked from the back door.
The woman pointed to the last card. "Flip."
"Is it death?" Rebecca asked.
"I refuse to accept that -- any of this! Whatever you've done - whatever you will do, you will reverse it now. Do you understand? Reverse it now!"
Then a break in discussion Rebecca fixed her gaze at the woman, she tried to make out her eyes, the shape of her face through the veils but she could only see a blur of soft pale skin, a perfect nose and two lips the shape of a perfect archer's bow.
"Who are you? Show me your face." Rebecca asked, her eyes narrowing to make her out.
The woman did not speak and only collected the cards, her coming words made to change the subject of her identity by shining a ray of hope Rebecca's way "There is one thing you can do."
"Anything!" Rebecca replied with tears streaming down her quickly moving on from the woman's mysterious face.
"You lied to her." Kadir said.
"Sebastian's future is at stake." Eliza said of her nephew. "As is my future grandchild's."
**
 |
| Rebecca has a surprising announcement |
The next morning as the blue sky cracked through the gray clouds in a moment of rest from the stormy, Rebecca and one of our housekeeper's rushed through the house preparing for something. My mother and father came down the stairs, alarmed at the loud movement, and saw Rebecca paying a cabby at the door.
"Rebecca? What's happened? Is it Albert?" My mother asked meeting Rebecca in the foyer.
"Aurora, Richard, thank you both for everything during our stay and Albert's illness but we've decided to go." She answered as Jacob came down the stairs with a butler and their bags.
"Rebecca, I don't know if you should be so hasty. Albert is still very ill." My father added.
"Dr. Rothschyld has been kind enough to accompany us on the journey." Rebecca informed.
"For a pretty penny." Jacob chimed in as he passed my parents in the doorway.
"And the doctor thinks Albert can make the trip all the way back to America -- ill?" My mother wondered.
Rebecca took a breath and when she exhaled it felt like a thousand pounds had lifted off her shoulders. Knowing what she knew -- that the illness, the madness on her beloved Albert was not an illness we all knew to be but a curse from some god forsaken heavy and gaudy golden beetle.
"He'll be fine." she said softly. "For now."
"Rebecca, I really do wish you'd reconsider." My mother said feeling that Rebecca was moments away from cancelling everything that was to happen with Sebastian and me. The idea of my future and education suddenly felt further and further away, not to mention the hopes that whatever money was tangled up in this future marriage would vanish too and my parents' debts would remain.
"There's nothing to reconsider. Albert and the doctor are already in one of the cards waiting for us. My husband is sedated and will mostly sleep on the way." Rebecca replied as she reached for my mother's hand. "And I mean that. Nothing. Evangeline is a lovely girl and none of what happened will weigh on our decision. One day, we will be family."
My mother's eyes welled up. My father reached over to hold her. And Rebecca smiled kindly. It was a rare break from her cold exterior stiff upper lip. My mother reached and pulled Rebecca into a hug.
"I hope we get to see each other again." My mother said.
"I have no doubt we will." Rebecca replied.
Upstairs I came out of my room and found Sebastian standing near the end of the hall with his hands behind his back seemingly awaiting my exit. I felt silly, he had been waiting the patiently. And blushed and walked over to him unaware of the Lords eminent and hasty departure but I could see it -- whatever it was -- written on Sebastian's face.
"What is it?" I asked the sinking feeling it had to do with Albert's health getting worse.
"We're leaving." he replied quielty.
"Leaving? But you've only been here a few days."
"My grandmother has decided we should get back to America for my grandfather's sake. There's a ship leaving for New York this afternoon and my grandmother made arrangements to get on it last minute." He explained
"Oh." I said softly as I looked down at my feet.
"I hope that -- um -- I hope that can, you know, that we can you know, umm..."
Sebastian stammered unable to get out his goodbye, so I leaned in and kissed his cheek.
"Oh!" he smiled.
"Will you miss me?" I asked.
"I will!" He replied. "Will you miss me?"
I blushed and looked down but nodded my head.
"Evie we won't see each other for a very long time. Years maybe. When we do, it might be the actual day of our marriage. Isn't that strange?"
"It is!" I giggled.
"Whatever happens, promise me you'll write. I will do." He asked.
"Of course!" I replied
He smiled and took my hand and kissed it, I blushed again and he vanished down the stairs. Foolishly, I stood there for a second not sure what to do. I just thought of him and what it meant to meet him and know that one day that boy would be my husband. It was the strangest thing to think about considering none of my schoolmates had to do this, neither did my mother or Aunt Marissa. Yet - here I was betrothed at 11-years-old to a rich handsome American boy.
I went followed the hallway and met my Aunt Marissa who had stayed the night. She had her coat on and was leaving, she had to get back to little Roman, she said. As the two of us descended the stairs and Aunt Marissa exited through the back door as not to disturb anyone, I saw my mother and father standing at the front door. I squeezed in between them, and watched as everything suddenly changed. The mood of the house, the sky slowly brightening as the storm passed.
My mother and father held on to each other as we waved to the Lords leaving in two cabs they'd hired drove off down our tree lined street. My mother sighed "That's it then." She said.
My father shrugged. "Hope old Albert will make it home alright."
As my mother and father went back into the house, I kept watching as the two cabs got smaller and smaller and the leaves from the ground lifted up into their in a swoosh of air as the cars drove over them.
And just like that -- Sebastian and the Lords were gone from my life.
For now.
**
 |
| Unveiled Eliza in her guest room |
Later that afternoon Eliza sat in the upstairs bedroom she was renting from Kadir above his shop while she was in England. She paced back and forth awaiting her coconspirator. A person who had helped her with the idea to finally give Jacob a taste of his own medicine. She worried too that Rebecca would make a mistake and somehow keep the beetle for herself or hand it to someone undeserving. The entire situation felt out of hand.
Eliza felt guilty for Albert. This curse she reignited was never meant for him. She was thinking of her daughter Mary and the child she was carrying that Jacob had fathered in such a twisted way. He lied about his relationship with Mary and mistreated her. Told people of Welshport Mary was an uncouth woman, a mere barmaid obsessed with his family and their wealth.
None of that true. Mary was poor, yes, but not obsessed or uncouth. She was just the unfortunate victim of Jacob's disgusting behaviors who fell for a man that never truly loved her back. She was also a scapegoat -- the daughter of Eliza, a woman misunderstood because of her powers, plagued by rumors of Blackmagic, thanks to Jacob's acid tongue and exiled to her own little safe haven. Mary was just guilty by association.
"Now what do I do?" Eliza thought to herself as she looked of the small window on to the London streets.
Then a knock at her door.
Eliza took a breath and straightened her dress. She pulled open the door to find -- Marissa Ashby standing there.
Marissa pushed into the small bedroom, her heart racing. She was holding her little son, my cousin, Roman.
"What's happened?" Eliza asked her coconspirator. "How's Albert?"
"They've left." Marissa said, her eyes like saucers.
"Left!?"
"Back to America, back home - this morning. Why? Why did scarab do that to him? This was supposed to be on Jacob!" She said in a stressed tone.
"Jacob wasn't supposed to give away the scarab, Marissa. I never expected that to happen." Eliza said.
"He was supposed to pay for what he did to me, to Mary, to Sabrina. Now he just gets to go back to Welshport and never see any kind of punishment? Albert must suffer? Can you reverse it?"
Eliza shook her head. "These forces are dangerous. We played with them and unfortunately Albert was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"That's putting it mildly." Marrissa shot back, her guilty creeping in.
Eliza sighed "The only thing that can happen now is allow the curse to take its course and when it's through, we'll see the full damage, then I can adjust. I gave Rebecca instructions on how to pass the curse from them."
"Pass the curse? No one can get hurt! This was supposed to be on Jacob and Jacob alone, Eliza. We can't allow it to go to someone else!" Aunt Marissa said rocking Roman who was now crying.
"There's no other way, the curse will weaken overtime." Eliza said, unsure if that was true as the curse was not her creation and had nothing to do with the type of magic and spells she was used to.
"We made a mistake." Marissa replied. "What if Rebecca gives it to Sebastian, or worse, what if she one day gives it to my niece! What will come of Evie? I have to find a way to stop her from doing that."
"No! No... Marissa calm down. Rebecca knows that the curse is attached to the object she would never do that to her grandson -- he's my nephew too, I would never ever put him in danger. Same goes for Evie. Rebecca would never hurt the children." Eliza explained.
"I can't help but feel we've made a grave mistake. I should have never come you for help. We've never should have done this. Albert may die and we'd be responsible." Marissa said.
"Its going to be alright." Eliza tried to reassure.
"If Albert does die, this puts Sebastian in a precarious position. Without his father David around, Sebastian and Jacob will be the sole heirs of Lord publishing. Jacob is a selfish bastard with only devilish thoughts ruling his conscience. That'll put Sebastian in Jacob's crosshairs, which will put my niece there too. She's going to marry him, Eliza, some day she will. And what will he do to them? What will he put them through?" Marissa replied, the panic in her voice growing louder.
"Just be calm, be calm." Eliza said, thinking of the Devil card Rebecca pulled earlier and associating it now with Jacob. "I won't let anything happen to them, I promise you. Once I am home, I will do all I can do protect my nephew and your niece. I promise you."
Marissa wasn't sure. She didn't know what to do now other than hope and pray I would be safe.
But no one really knew. Not even Eliza who had a wealth of power to herself gifted to her by the universe. Powers no one really fully understood and perhaps never would.
"Go -- take your sweet boy and go home and speak of this to no one. I will keep you informed." Eliza said.
Marissa nodded and re-wrapped my little cousin Roman in a blanket that had fallen off his little frame leaving Eliza alone now in the room above the shop.
She watched from the window as Aunt Marissa and Roman scurried down the street. She never looked back.
 |
| The Lords say goodbye to England |
When The Lords finally arrived the dock in Southampton was filled with hundreds of people. Some awaiting passengers from another ship, others there to say goodbye to friends and family heading back to American. The business made Rebecca's stomach tie in knots. She had never been around so many people, even when they arrived there weren't this many people at the dock.
"Its going to be fine." Jacob said, in a surprising show of softness to his worried mother.
She looked over and saw him there holding Sebastian's hand. In an ordinary world it would have warmed her heart to see her son take such care of his nephew, but this was Jacob she was looking at. Seeing Uncle and nephew holding, in total innocence, only made her feel like the wolf had gotten too close to the baby lamb.
She said nothing and took Sebastian's hand instead.
"Are you alright grandmother?" Sebastian asked.
She turned and smiled kindly to her handsome grandson as they walked. She caressed his blush cheek with the back of her gloved hand and nodded.
"Everything is going to be alright." She replied.
"Do you really think so?" He asked.
"I know that you and I haven't had a lot of time together, darling, I'm sorry about that. But yes, I really do think everything is going to be alright. Trust me." She said.
Sebastian smiled back and squeezed her hand. Jacob remained silent, his thoughts only thinking of his own next step.
"Now, what did you think of Evangeline? She's lovely, isn't she?" Rebecca asked of me.
Sebastian shyly nodded. "She's very nice. I enjoyed getting to know her as a friend."
"As a friend! Yes. Friends work out first, always. I'm happy we came." Rebecca said.
"WHAT?" Jacob finally replied. "Mother how can you possible say that after everything that's happened?"
Rebecca narrowed her eyes at her son and sucked her teeth but did not reply. Rebecca's mind was always trying to make the best of terrible situation for Sebastian. She'd done it all his life through all their tragedies. This would be no different.
As they chatted, ship bellhops scurried around the wood planked dock grabbing and tagging the First-class passenger's bags and trunks and quickly made their way back to the gigantic ship awaiting its time to set off back towards America.
"Where's the doctor going?" Sebastian asked "With Grandfather?"
Jacob and Rebecca turned to see the Dr. Rothschyld paying three bellhops to help the sedated Albert in a wheelchair through the crowds. The doctor looked back and nodded to the Lords signaling he would take care of Albert and meet at the stateroom.
Rebecca smiled back, Jacob stayed stone-faced.
Soon the class and tag number the Lords and their party were tied to were called and they were ushered with a few other first-class travelers amid to now swelling crowds and crying seagulls up the passenger gangway and into the giant ship called the RMS ETRURIA.
In that crowd a man lowered a newspaper and watched as the Lords diapered into the ship.
It was David Lord, the missing and presumed dead son of Albert and Rebecca. He had read that they'd come as a family to meet me. He'd been watching them for days and days from outside out street day and night sometimes he sat under the Gaslamp and just watched hoping to get a secret glimpse of the son he left behind. On the dock, for a split second was his best view of handsome Sebastian yet.
He missed him so. He wanted to go to him, to take him into his arms and kiss his sweet face and apologize for leaving him, apologize for all the pain and suffering and not protecting his mother. But David couldn't do that. He believed, even then, that he was the one who killed Sabrina on the beach.
David watched as his family, who believed him dead form a jump off of the Welshport Lighthouse, vanished again for what he thought was forever.
At dinner in the first class dining room, Jacob, Rebecca and Sebastian entered. They were dressed in their finest clothes as everyone else was. Rebecca was dripping in diamonds with long pointed feathers crowing her head. Jacob and the boy with his golden curls now slick-back and combed to match his dashing uncle's entered wondering where to sit.
They were brought to an empty table. One that was perfect for the three of them. It all felt so strange, to be having dinner as if nothing had happened. As if Albert didn't exist or was somewhere off on his own. They practically didn't speak of the events at my home. Why would they? They were traumatised and confused. Wondering what would happened next.
The only person who knew what would happen next was Rebecca who excused herself a little after the first course to the lady's room.
She had the beetle with her -- if was heavy in her purse, almost like a 300-pound boulder she was carrying around one that was to save her husband's life.
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| The exchange |
Rebecca pushed opened the pristine white doors of the lady's room and stared at herself in the mirror. She thought about how she begged and pleaded for Albert to physically give her the scarab beetle and say the words that it was hers now. She needed him to do it, it was the only way for the curse would pass.
And he did, just before 3 in the morning in a moment of lucidity just before being sedated again.
Time now was of the essence. Before the curse could take hold of Rebecca, she needed to pass it on to someone else, just as Eliza instructed. She worried for the person, hoped they'd too give it away in time but could only truly really hope for her own family getting out of this alive. And they'd just barely done that.
The lady's room door opened and it was an old woman. Small. Fat. She smiled at Rebecca who returned the greeting but she could not bare to give it to the old woman who'd surely suffer. Then two women, American friends by their accent, entered gossiping and chattering about this and that. One was strikingly beautiful with a long neck and long pearl drop earrings, her friends, a beauty as well, Rebecca remarked on the second woman's beautiful eggplant colored dress.
"Oh! Why thank you!" the woman said, her eyes glittering from the compliment.
"I just love your jewelry too." Rebecca noted, as the woman held on to gold and diamonds.
"I can see you're just a diamond lover as I am." The woman smiled clocking Rebecca's sparkling collection.
"Yes, well, I found these on my trip to London." She said, lying. "We’d gone shopping and I just had to have them."
"London is a wonderful place to buy isn't -- Mayfair is to die for when it comes to jewels. New York as well, but truly Mayfair has always been perfect for me." The woman said adjusting her makeup.
"London? FOR JEWELS!" the others squawked. "That's Paris."
"Would you like to see what else I bought, I know it's incredibly gouache to show this here in the Lady's room but I was going to show a friend of mine at dinner but she couldn't make it." Rebecca said pulling the golden curse scarab out of her purse.
The two women oohed and awed. The clittering lights made the scarab look even more dazzling. They went to touch it, each running their hand over the solid gold cold surface.
"What is it?" One woman asked.
"A scarab, like a beetle. From Egypt. An art dealer sold it to me. Its said to have been Cleopatra's." Rebecca answered recalling the article about the theft at the museum.
The woman chatted and loved it but then the chance to offer it to them vanished as they found away out of the conversation.
Then the old woman exited one of the stalls and met Rebecca's gaze in the mirror as she adjusted her white hair that matched her white long lace dress. Her white gloved hand tucked away curls behind her ear but her eyes were on the gaudy golden beetle.
"Its exquisite." The old woman said, also American.
"Yes." Rebecca replied. "But I think perhaps my eyes were too greedy. I have no place to put it."
"Oh?"
"I was secretly hoping one of those lady's would have liked it enough to take if off my hands." Rebecca added.
"You really don't want it?" The old woman asked.
Rebecca shook her head.
“Why?” The woman wondered.
Rebecca had to work now “You see my husband gave me a bit of a budget on our travel expenses and, I just went clean over it. This is the one thing I definitely can’t show up on our door step with. I just can’t!”
"How much do you want for it?" The woman asked intrigued. She too knew herself to overspend and felt bad for Rebecca.
Rebecca's eyes lit up. Here was her chance.
"I wouldn't take any money for it, I have enough. Just to be sure it went to the right home where it could be displayed and shown with all its glory would be payment enough."
The woman smiled and then, to Rebecca's shock -- took the beetle.
Rebecca said the words out loud solidifying the gift "It is yours -- I give it to you."
Jacob and Sebastian never said a word to each other. Jacob only looked around the glamorous dining room in search of a new face to seduce.
When Rebecca sat back down at the table she only said "Its done."
The old woman who took the scarab loved it. She displayed it in her home for many years. She made up stories about it's tie to Cleopatra and how a mysterious woman with red hair had given it to her. It wasn't long after that the woman named Aldrina Holdmond-Pyke began to lose herself in maddens just like Albert. She wondered the halls of her mansion screaming like a banshee. She could not be consoled. No doctor ever knew what had happened to her. Nothing but madness could be prescribed.
Three months after she took hold of the scarab -- she died from a fall down the long marble stairs of her Newport, Rhode Island.
In her will she left the scarab to her son, Cotton Pyke who hated it. Cotton gave it to his brother John Pyke who gifted it to his friend Arthur Baur's wife Anna Lynd-Baur on her birthday. Same stories floated around it and Cleopatra's strange connection.
Anna went mad too months later. She tried to run from her family's country estate and when she forced the horse she was on to jump a fence she flew off of it and fell breaking her neck.
Heartbroken with Anna's death, Arthur packed all her possessions in crates essentially breaking the curse.
Until 18 years later when Arthur unexpectedly died from an infection and his second wife Lillian Randall-Baur looked through the boxes and found the heavy scarab.
Newly widowed Lillian wanted nothing to do with Anna's things and gave them all away to different people.
The scarab passed again the curse, now alive in the year 1917 was handed it's new victim.
A new madness would soon be born.
And I never saw it coming.
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