I couldn’t help my smile. “You’re right. I did promise. And yes.”
His eyes lit with excitement. “First thing?”
“First thing,” I agreed.
Naturally, this was all Tommy wanted to talk about as we finished our supper and I put him to bed. Rather than reading another chapter fromTreasure Island, he insisted on the entry for the museum in the Baedeker guidebook, and I’m certain he must have fallen asleep to images of animal skeletons and ammonites.
The next morning, Tommy was up with the sunrise, even though, as we had learned last night, the museum didn’t open until ten. He passed the time by reading the guide again, then searched my aunt’s shelves for any book remotely connectedto the subject of natural history. While he made a mess of her shelves, a thought occurred to me: I didn’t know where Mr. Dorian lived, but perhaps I could send a message through his publisher, Mr. Howard.
He owned the villa next to ours on Corfu and had given his star client the run of the property last spring. I didn’t know Mr. Howard very well, as he rarely spent time in Corfu, but I felt certain that he would pass on a message to Mr. Dorian for me. What I would relate in said message was another matter I still needed to think on. At least, it should be something more substantial than the accusations currently swirling around my mind.
At half-past nine, Tommy practically pushed me out the door, and we descended down the front steps. He wanted to be there right when the doors opened. That seemed rather unnecessary to me, but as Tommy was a ball of excitement, it was better to get him out of the house.
“I think we should start with the Mammalian Collection first,” he began. “Then the Geological and Paleontological Collection. That’s the fossils, Mama.”
“Oh, yes. Good idea,” I replied rather absently.
He continued to happily dictate our itinerary while my thoughts wandered, which was why I failed to take notice of the man walking towards us until I felt Tommy stop short at my side.
“Mr. Dorian?”
I frowned down at my son, entirely confused for a moment. Had I somehow spoken my thoughts aloud? But before I could question him, his face lit with joy, and he broke into a run.
“Tommy!” I called after him as he raced down the pavement towards someone.
Only then did I realize that it was, in fact, Mr. Dorian. He grinned as Tommy approached, and I could barely make out their muffled greetings. After a few moments, they bothlooked back at me, and I realized I hadn’t moved from my spot. It was as if I was frozen in place.
“Mama, look! It’sMr. Dorian,” Tommy said, as if I was very dense and hadn’t recognized him.
I blinked and gave a stiff nod as I willed my legs to move. “Yes. Yes, of course. Hello,” I said, once I joined them.
“Mrs. Harper,” Mr. Dorian said, returning my nod before addressing Tommy. “I heard you were in London and came to pay the two of you a visit.”
“Is that so?” I said flatly at the lie. “I’m amazed to see you conscious at this hour,” I added in a low voice.
Unfortunately, my barb did not have the desired effect, given that the corner of the man’s mouth curved up. “I hoped to catch you before you started your day.”
“We are going to the Natural History Museum,” Tommy chimed in.
“Are you, now?” Mr. Dorian replied before shooting me a smug smile. “A wonderful place.”
“You should come with us then,” Tommy said eagerly.
“Tommy,” I began, “I’m sure Mr. Dorian is very busy—”
“Not really,” he interrupted. “I’d be happy to join you. If you’ll have me, that is,” he added with an innocent little look that did not fool me at all.
I narrowed my eyes at him. The odious man very well knew he had put me in an impossible position. “Fine.”
“We can take my carriage,” he said. “It’s just round the corner.”
Tommy let out a whoop of delight and took each of us by the hand. “Let’s go!”
I could feel Mr. Dorian’s gaze on me as we were tugged towards the direction of the carriage, but I refused to look at him. The cool morning air had a bite to it, and I instinctively curled inward. Tommy, of course, seemed completely unaffected and practically skipped down the pavement.
Suddenly, I felt a heavy hand at the small of my back and nearly jumped from the unexpected sensation. “Come, Mrs. Harper,” Mr. Dorian murmured by my ear. “The coach is warm.”
“Thank you,” I rasped, then stepped quickly ahead until his hand fell away from me. The place where he had touched me still prickled from the sensation.
