Shadow, page 7
part #1 of Jaegers of the Consortium Series
Another grim nod from Lucas. “It coincides with what you told us, in that he didn’t want you leaving the bank with your accounting journal,” he said. “That’s now a loose copy that’s dated and stamped and can directly contradict any cooking he’s been doing to your accounts for god knows how long.” He pressed his fingertips together as he gave Charity a long look. “Had you remained in Dixie with that journal, I would be willing to bet that there would’ve been a break-in at your estate and your journal would’ve been among the missing. Right now, I think that this is the safest place for you.”
“But… why would someone do this?” Charity sank into the nearest chair, and Ayla laid a hand on her shoulder.
“Money,” Lucas said. “And maybe hurting your family. It seems that the next day, the same woman came in with the servant and started making draws on your parents’ accounts. That’s why I initiated the No Confidence notice; no bank or business in the Atlanta area will accept your signature now until the Consortium lifts it on my order.”
“Wow. That’s not an easy feat. You must have some serious pull with the Consortium in order to get something like that issued and lifted, all at the drop of a hat,” Charity said.
Ayla sighed. “So now what?”
“I need to go back into town and expedite my inquiries, not to mention lodge a formal complaint against her bank. I have definitive proof that Charity is here and not in Atlanta, and therefore could not have possibly been the one to close the account.” He gave Charity an apologetic look. “As much as I’d love to stay here and finish what we started down at the pool, time is of the essence if I’m going to save your family’s finances.”
Charity nodded. “I understand. And, thank you for looking after my family, as well.” Ayla tugged on Charity’s shoulders, guiding her from the room while Lucas jogged back to the pool to retrieve his clothes.
Once they were up in Charity’s guest suite, Ayla gave her a hug. “I’m sorry this has happened to you. Lucas is the best. He’ll get your money back and make everything right.”
“That’s not what has me down, but thank you,” Charity said, smiling. “The timing just sucks, that’s all.”
Ayla gave her a sheepish, apologetic look. “Yeah, I saw you two down there by the pool. Sorry I had to interrupt.”
Charity gave her an even look. “Are you, really?” she asked. “After all, you can have him any time you want.”
Ayla rocked back, shocked at the accusation in her friend’s voice. “Whoa, I told you that there wasn’t anything going on between us.”
“But that first night…”
“Was nothing serious,” Ayla snapped. “We haven’t slept together since then. In fact, he hasn’t slept with anyone since he’s met you. I figured that he would’ve had you in bed by this point but for some reason he’s taking his time with you. I’ve never seen him so head over heels over someone like this before.”
Now it was Charity’s turn to be surprised. “He… he hasn’t?” She didn’t know what to say to that. She knew he’d slept with many women before, but….
Ayla shook her head. “No. And I’ve been sleeping with this Jaeger that I know, anyway. His name’s Jake. Lucas hasn’t so much as glanced lustfully my way since the night you shattered my Ming vase over his head.”
Charity blinked. She had assumed that since Lucas hadn’t gotten anything more than kisses from her, he’d been sleeping with Ayla. “I didn’t know that.”
“Well, you have been a bit too preoccupied to notice whether I’m gone from the house or not,” Ayla said with a lopsided grin. “In fact, Lucas has been doing a lot more than what a normal accountant would do. Technically, he should be hired first by your parents before trying to protect their accounts, but he’s going above and beyond by going to the Consortium on a weekend to get the jump on things like this.” Ayla let out a hollow chuckle. “I guess he’s really turning things around for you.”
Charity didn’t see Lucas again until Monday, since he’d stayed in the city for the remainder of the weekend. She wound up studying her One Book and praying for guidance all day Sunday, hoping for Lucas to return. When he finally showed up during breakfast the next day, Charity launched herself at him, surprised at just how much she had missed him over the weekend. She showered him in kisses, which he happily returned. “I’m happy to see you, too,” he said, nearly dropping his briefcase and the bundle of papers and envelopes tucked under his arm.
“Where were you all of this time?” she asked, pulling back a bit to punch him lightly on the arm. “I was worried.”
Lucas had the good nature to at least pretend the punch hurt. He rubbed the area and smiled. He was probably just thankful she hadn’t thrown something at him. “You’ll be happy to hear that your doppelganger and friend in Atlanta tried again to draw on your parents’ accounts and were turned down. She made an appearance again at your bank during a special appointment, conferred with her Director cohort, and neither one were able to get anything done in accessing any of the Carmichael accounts.”
A glimmer of hope danced in Charity’s eyes. “So, is she caught now?”
Grimacing, Lucas shook his head. “No, but my man inside got a partial picture of her. When he called me yesterday morning, he said that he had a rush on the pic development and was sending it down to us via special courier.” He ruffled through the pile of envelopes before finding one made of parchment. He handed it to her. “I just got this late last night at the Consortium office and picked up all of Ayla’s mail while I was there. It took hours to get everything straightened out with them, but they’re on our side.”
With a slightly shaky hand, Charity opened the envelope and took the flasher pic out. The black and white image showed a girl her age, if not younger, with her same build and height. Her hair was only a bit lighter than Charity’s own. She didn’t recognize her, and it was a poor picture, but if Charity didn’t know any better, she could have sworn that it was her. The imposter even dressed the way Charity did, with the exception of a lace choker around her neck. “Why haven’t they taken her in?” Charity asked, looking up.
“Director Wain ushered her out the back door the moment a Consortium rep showed up with the local constables,” Lucas said. “The unknown man went out another exit with the girl in the confusion.”
Charity noticed an envelope at the top of the stack that was addressed to her. “What’s this?” she asked, picking it up. Her face went pale. “Oh my, it’s from him.”
Lucas cocked his head as he looked for a return address. There was none. “Him? Him, who?”
“Eddie.”
“Your… betrothed?” Lucas said in a strangled voice. “How can you tell?”
Face set, Charity ran her finger under the flap to tear it open. “I’ve seen his handwriting before.” She pulled the letter out and read it, her hand trembling even more to the point that she had to put it down to get through it all. Charity sighed dejectedly. “He wants to know why I’m down here, why I’m embarrassing him and my parents by emptying out my accounts and drawing on theirs, and he wants me to come home immediately.” Tears welled up in her eyes. “There’s a ticket in here for the first airship out of New Eden back to Atlanta along with the notice that he’s going to be waiting for me at the Skyport.”
Lucas let out a snort of derision as he looked over her shoulder. “I hope to hell that you’re not seriously considering it.”
“I could stay here?” Charity glanced up at him. “How? The summons is clear,” she waved the letter in front of his face as if it explained everything.
“First off, you’re over the age of eighteen which means that legally you cannot be forced to do anything that you do not want to do,” Lucas said, ticking the point off on his finger.
“But in the Theocracy…”
“Second, we’re not in the Theocracy, are we?” He kissed the top of her head. “That summons isn’t even worth the price of express postage that he paid to get this to you today. Besides, even if we were in the Theocracy, you’d be reportable to only your parents and they would have to send the written summons with both of their signatures on it since you’re here, on vacation, at their consent.”
Charity opened her mouth to retort, but stopped short and blinked as she thought about it. Hope sprang up in her chest again as she realized that she didn’t have to go home just then. She eyed him again. “How is it that you know so much about the laws where I’m from and yet you have no idea what a swimming suit is?” Her eyes narrowed. “Did you feign ignorance just to get my dress off?”
Lucas gave her a wicked grin. “You’ll never know.”
Charity picked up the nearest object she could find, a porcelain bottle full of milk, and flung it at him as he fled. At least she got the satisfaction of hearing him cry out as the bottle hit his back and shattered in the hallway. She only felt bad for the poor estate maids who were always cleaning up the messes she made.
Chapter 7
Later that night, bells in the mansion started ringing. They were getting a radio-telephone. A maid’s voice echoed throughout the rooms as she used the pipe amplification system to address everyone. “Personal call for Miss Charity Carmichael,” she said in a high, smooth voice.
Charity found the maid in the radio-telephone room downstairs, dressed in a proper maid’s outfit: short skirt, white frilly apron, thigh-high stockings with garters—even a white lace cap and collar. The woman gave her a polite curtsey and a bow of the head before closing the door behind her.
“Hello?” Charity asked tentatively. Who on earth would be calling her?
“You were supposed to be back this afternoon. Why are you still down there?” Baron Edward Spence III demanded over the line. His tone was so harsh it made Charity drop her end of the phone. It clattered against the equipment and dangled there by its cord, swaying gently, until she fumbled it back up.
“Eddie!” she said into the speaker. “How did you—I mean. Why are you calling me?”
“Because I want an answer to my question,” Eddie snarled. “Why weren’t you on the airship? Your parents are worried sick about you since you didn’t arrive at the Skyport.”
Charity swallowed hard, and summoned all the courage she could muster. “I don’t want to come back yet,” she said, fighting to keep her voice even. “I am here on holiday enjoying myself before the Fall Gala for the announcement.”
“The hell you are,” Eddie said with such venom that Charity flinched. By this time, Lucas had come in and saw her distressed. Behind him stood the maid who’d called her down. Lucas walked over to the radio-telephone and flipped a couple of switches so that he could hear the conversation, just in time to hear Eddie’s next demand. “Now you listen here. You are going to get on the next flight back to Atlanta or so help me God, I will send people down there and bring you back by force.”
By then, she was on the verge of tears, torn between how she wanted to respond and how she knew she should; she looked at Lucas imploringly. He gently took the microphone from her and held it up. “Hi. Eddie, is it?”
“It’s Baron Spencer, whoever you are.”
“Yeah, whatever,” Lucas said. “Eddie, your demands on Charity are meaningless.” He winked at Charity as she stood there, dumbfounded by his audacity. Her mother, her father, her sisters, and the rest of Dixie, they all but worshipped the ground Eddie walked on; even Charity would never dare speak to him like that, as much as she’d like to.
Eddie’s voice over the line, furious: “Excuse me? Who the hell are you?”
“Just someone who’s not going to oblige you with a reach around.”
She could hear the sneer in Eddie’s voice. “Do you have any idea who you are talking to?”
“A better question is; do you know who you are talking to?”
“I am a Baron of the Theocracy,” Eddie spat. “It doesn’t matter who you are. We have traditions here in the South, and tradition dictates that she follow my instructions! Her parents have agreed for her to marry me, which means that she is mine! She’s mine! She belongs to me!” Eddie’s voice roared through the speakers. “And I am commanding her to return home immediately!”
Charity opened her mouth to speak, but Lucas held a finger up. ‘Trust me’, he mouthed. Charity swallowed hard and nodded, but she felt torn between wanting to do what was right and proper, and wanting to follow her heart, and stay in Elysium with Lucas.
“Yeah, well, I’ll see your traditions and raise you International and Consortium Law, both of which apply here, which means you cannot force or coerce anyone to do anything against their will regardless of ideology. You’re not married to her—hell, I don’t even think you like her. So you can take your commands, your demands, and your threats, and you can shove them all right up your Theocratic ass, Eddie.”
“You are a dead man, whoever you are. Do you hear me?”
“I won’t lose much sleep over it. I’ve been threatened by far worse than you. In the meantime, I think Charity is going to stay right here for now, and I suggest you respect her wishes. Good evening.” Lucas hung the microphone back on its receiver and flipped the switches to end the transmission.
“No one has ever done that before, you know,” she said, staring at him. “Talked to him like that, I mean.” She couldn’t believe how calm and cavalier he was being about this.
“I could tell you wanted to. Besides, it’s part of the job,” he said with a smile as he planted a kiss on her forehead. He gave a gentle jerk of his head in the direction of Charity’s suite. “You’ve had a long day and you should probably get some rest. May I escort you to your room?” He held out the crook of his arm for her to take hold, a salute to Dixie culture.
She smiled at the gesture. He even gave her a half bow while waiting for her response. She slipped her arm into his, and they walked out toward the foyer and up the stairs. When they got to her suite, he stopped to let her go through the door. “Thank you, Lucas. For everything.” She turned in the doorway to face him and lowered her head in shame. “I… probably would have given in to him had you not shown up.”
Charity was turning to go in when Lucas gently caught her by the chin, raising her head and turning her back around to him. “That’s your stupid Theocracy talking. You are a strong woman.” He looked into her eyes and his hand slid along her jaw, cupping the side of her head. “It took courage and guts to throw your so-called ‘traditions’ to the wind to take a stand the way you have. I don’t think any other woman in the whole Theocracy of Dixie would’ve had the spine or the willpower to run to your only friend, in a foreign country no less, to get help. You are a wonderful, remarkable woman. Don’t ever let anyone tell you differently and don’t ever let anyone make you do something that you don’t want to do.”
Tears flooded her eyes, trickling down her cheeks and over his hand cupping her face. It was the most romantic thing anyone had ever told her, so different than what she’d been used to, with Eddie, and from what she’d been taught to expect. But Lucas was treating her as equal.
Unable to resist, Charity stepped up to him, raised her face to his, and kissed him on the lips. Lucas took her into his arms and returned it, giving her light, feather kisses in return. “You know,” he murmured, in between their lips touching, “as your accountant, I’m obliged to tell you that you’ve already given me my requisite kiss for the day. This is technically overpayment and can’t be applied toward future payments.”
Charity pulled back just enough so he could see her smile. She felt better just being in his arms. “Consider this a bonus then, for services rendered beyond that of the original terms of the contract.”
“Ooooh… and she speaks fluent Legalese,” he said, kissing her again, this time more deeply. “I might just have to steal you away for myself.”
“Promise?” she whispered, unsure if he heard her as they locked lips, his tongue tentatively probing her mouth. When she moaned, and melted into his embrace, he drew her in even closer. Lucas then moved to kiss her cheek, trailing soft kisses down the side of her neck to gently suck at the base of her neck.
Charity closed her eyes and sighed. “Ooooh, don’t,” she breathed. She felt Lucas wince, heard him mumble a husky apology and start to pull away, but she locked her arms around his waist. He looked at her in confusion, and she gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “I meant don’t stop,” she said, swallowing. “Please, make me feel the way I did yesterday by the pool.”
“Whatever the lady wants,” he said, with heartfelt emotion. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her into her suite, kicking the door shut behind him. Charity wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into his shoulder, humming contently in the safe, sensuous feeling of being held in his powerful arms. “I’ll make you forget all about your problems,” he said, kissing the top of her head.
Lucas placed her back down onto her feet when they reached the bed. He slid his hands around her, holding her close while they kissed again. This time, his hands went for the complicated stays holding her bodice up. Charity moaned, melting into him, as she felt her dress loosen around her torso. Lucas brought his hands up to her shoulders and brushed the soft fabric off, gathering it and bringing it up off her body as she lifted her arms. Then, he snagged the top of her panties, easing both down her thighs before letting them drop to the floor.
“Are you—are you going to do to me what you did to Ayla when I first saw you?”
Lucas arched an eyebrow. “Do you want me to? That’s quite a big jump considering that we’ve yet to sleep together.” He looked her up and down, standing there half-naked in just her white garter belt, stockings, and knee-high laced boots.
Charity felt embarrassed as she divulged her fantasy from the other day when he’d walked in on her in the library. Lucas listened intently, and by the time she was done, he had the face of a child eyeing presents on Yuletide morning.
“There’s two safe words that you need to know,” he said, “yellow and red. Yellow means that I’m approaching your limit of what you can handle and that I should back off a bit. Red means that I’ve passed it and you want me to stop.”
