“Has she? Why?”
“I’m sorry, sir, but I’ve no idea. The lads have been at it since noon.”
She was wearing a dress he’d not seen before, something in a green stripe he liked.
He strode up the hill, advancing on his wife. Veronica saw him coming and addressed the men.
“You’ve all done very well. Remember the colors of your units, and we’ll practice more next week.”
“Colors?”
She didn’t answer him, merely turned, and placed the buckets in a stack.
“Veronica.”
“Montgomery,” she said, still not looking at him.
“Why have you begun a fire brigade?”
She turned and faced him. “Are you returning to America?”
“What?”
“Why do you walk every night?” she asked.
“What’s wrong with you?”
She lowered her voice. “Why haven’t you come to me in the last two nights?”
He frowned at her.
“What are you working on in the distillery?”
When he didn’t speak, she matched his frown with one of her own.
“I’m not answeringanyof your questions,” she said, “until you’ve answeredsomeof mine.”
With that, she grabbed the buckets, turned, and marched away, leaving him staring after her.
Veronica took the stairs to the second floor, hoping Elspeth wasn’t in her room. She was perilously close to tears and didn’t want anyone to witness them. She’d always been protective of what she felt, probably because she felt the emotions of others so keenly.
Entering her chamber, she was grateful to find it empty, and closed the door behind her.
After taking the mirror from the bureau, she walked into the sitting room and sat on one of the comfortable chairs near thewindow. Slowly, she withdrew the mirror from its protective bag but kept the brown glass facing away from her. Did she want to see a glimpse of her future again? Was it even the future? Perhaps it was only her deepest wish given form. Perhaps she wouldn’t see happiness at all. Instead, she might witness Montgomery returning to Virginia alone.
She held the mirror up, then turned it, forcing herself to look into the reflection. The brown glass remained dark and murky. All she saw was the faint reflection of her face, her eyes too wide and almost fearful.
Had she imagined what she’d seen?
In the carriage, after the meeting at the Society the Mercaii, she’d still been suffering from the effects of whatever drug they’d given her. On her wedding night, she’d seen something, but Montgomery had interrupted her before she could study the reflection completely.
At the moment, she wanted to see her future. She wanted to see something more hopeful than what she felt.
The glass didn’t change.
She heard Elspeth come into the bedchamber, and it gave her enough time to compose herself. Before she could put the mirror into its bag, however, Elspeth peered around the doorway.
“What is that, Your Ladyship?”
