She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Goodnight, my dear Mr. Constantine.”
“Goodnight, my Mira.”
She slipped out of the carriage and dashed across the lawn, wanting to get in bed as soon as possible, cheeks warm despitethe chill of the night.
February 14, 1889: Morning
No one was the wiser to theirlittle escapade, but Mira was absolutely exhausted the next morning at breakfast. Walker and Liza managed to carry the conversation, though they kept sending curious glances her way. She was certain she would be interrogated the moment it was appropriate.
“Now, we do have the Valentine’s party this evening at the Risewell’s,” Mrs. Renaldi said. “Did you bring one of your pink or red dresses, Liza dear?”
“I thought the red one would be nice,” Liza said. “Especially if you wear your pink one, Mira.”
“I’m glad I brought it,” Mira said. “I completely forgot about Valentine’s Day.”
“How could you forget when you finally have a Valentine?” Walker said.
“I suppose I was a bit more concerned with—” she stopped herself before she said “the burglaries,” and feigned a little cough. “With everything else. Bath has been such a change, hasn’t it?”
“I won’t be going to the party,” Aunt Eleanor said. “Not to that house of death.”
“Eleanor,” Mrs. Renaldi said, “The Risewells can’t beblamed for such an unfortunate accident.”
“No. But they can be blamed for not looking into that man’s background before allowing him to be in such close company with their daughter. We don’t even know what his name was!”
“What?” Mrs. Renaldi said, laughing a little. “Wasn’t his name Treadway?”
Eleanor picked up the morning paper from where it lay on the table and handed it to her sister-in-law. “They made an announcement this morning. No one knows who he is.”
Mira set her napkin on the table, finding she no longer had an appetite.
“Mira, are you all right?” Walker asked.
She forced a smile. “Yes, I suppose I just wasn’t as hungry as I thought I was.” She stood. “I think I’ll go make sure my dress is ready for tonight.”
She left the dining room and headed up the stairs, feeling sick all over. The general public would never know the name Enoch Hand. And they would never know about his wife and child, either.
Somehow, that made her feel guilty about it all. Even if Sibyl hated him, it must have been terrible to learn that her husband had died, leaving her alone to raise their son. It was courageous to share her story at all, especially since her husband’s accomplices were still at large. But because of her candor, Mira and Byron now had something substantial to go off of to stop this newly revealed Circe plot.
She stopped halfway up the stairs, changing course for the library. She didn’t know anything about the Treaty of San Stefano. If they were looking for documents related to it, it would be good to know more about the situation.
A little light was coming through the windows, but not enough for reading small print. She lit the gas lamps and went in search of the encyclopedias. With any luck, there would bean edition printed after 1878. That couldn’t be too much to ask, could it?
She found a row of encyclopedias and pulled out the one labeled “ROT-SIA.” She opened the front cover and smiled, seeing it had been printed in 1882. After checking for “San Stefano” and only finding information on the city, she took volume “T-UPS” from the shelf. There, she found the Treaty of San Stefano.
“The Treaty of San Stefano was signed on 3 March, 1878 at the conclusion of the Russo-Turkish War. It was an agreement between the Russian and Ottoman Empires and provided for the establishment of an autonomous Principality of Bulgaria. It also granted the independence of Serbia, Montenegro, Romania, and the Vilayet of Bosnia. The provisions of the treaty were later changed in July of 1878 after other European powers determined the treaty to be damaging to their holdings. (See Treaty of Berlin).”
Mira frowned. If the treaty had been changed, what business did Circe have with the documents related to it? She flipped to an earlier listing and found the Treaty of Berlin. Skimming it, she learned the changes were mostly related to the amount of land granted to each of the new independent nations, but the new treaty revoked the Vilayet of Bosnia’s independence.
The new wording kept Bosnia under Ottoman rule, but was placed under Austrian-Hungarian occupation. Her brow furrowed. That didn’t make sense, but then again, she didn’t have much experience when it came to international relations. She certainly couldn’t discern why it would be important to Circe. She closed the encyclopedia, replacing it on the shelf with a sigh. She came looking for answers and only found more questions.
***
The Risewells knew how to throw afine party. It was all swishing bustles, laughter, and flowers. The amount of red roses in the vases scattered around had likely depleted every greenhouse for miles. Mira walked along the outer wall with Liza and Walker, keeping a lookout for either Byron or Theresia among the waltzing partners. The Sherards had yet to make their appearance and it seemed Miss Risewell had not come down yet.
“You are such a worrier,” Walker said. “We have all night to find her and I’m certain she’ll agree to let you visit tomorrow.”
“I’m not so certain,” Mira said, smoothing down the lace on the front of her rose-colored evening dress. “Remember, I’m part of the reason why Mr. Foster was arrested. I’m sure she hates me for it.”
