Page 16 of The Journal of a Thousand Years
“We have that in common. We were always a step behind you.”
“She never told you?”
“She told James and me nothing about our pasts or hers. It’s all quite new for me.”
“And everyone thinks I was the cruel one. I would have told James everything. Children should know their origins. Children of magicians especially.” He drummed his fingers on the table before abruptly stopping. “We never married. You’re not legitimate.”
The possibility had always been in the back of my mind, so I wasn’t shocked. “Did she know your real name was Hendry? Or did she only know you as Maxwell Cooper?”
“She knew me as both, but James would have only known the name Cooper, if he wasn’t too young to remember anything at all. That’s why I continued using the name Cooper all these years and remained here in London. I hoped he would seek me out by going to the paper factories in the city where he’d last seen his father.” He closed his eyes and swallowed heavily.
“James remembered nothing. Or if he did, he never mentioned it to me. But I doubt he could recall that far back. He would have tried to find you if he remembered Cooper or London, or even paper magic.”
His eyes flew open. He thumped his fist on the table. “That bloody woman.”
“Don’t speak about my mother that way,” I snapped. “She had her faults, but she had her reasons for doing what she did.”
Two men entered the café. Although they showed no interest in us, Melville angled his hat lower to obscure his face. He hadn’t taken it off when we sat. He was the only man in the café still wearing one.
“How strong is your magic?” he suddenly asked.
“Quite strong, so the Petersons told me. I’m still learning.” I said it almost apologetically. I couldn’t explain why, but Melville made me feel inept for being naive about my ability.
“I remember Rosina had a son. Is he a paper magician?”
“No, and nor is her daughter. You knew she had a daughter. Why didn’t you ask about her?”
He ignored my question. “Did Myrtle and Naomi ever reproduce?”
“No.”
He stood again. “Don’t follow me.”
I indicated the coffee and pastry that I was yet to try. “I’ll finish this before I leave. Melville,” I said, addressing him by his name for the first time. “Your sisters would like to see you again.”
He sniffed. “I doubt that. They were ashamed of me once they learned that I was…”
“Not like other men?” I finished.
“They told you,” he said flatly.
“They didn’t seem to have an issue with that. It was your actions years later that brought shame on the family, when the police came looking for you.”
He quickly looked around, worried I’d been overheard. But there was no one in the immediate vicinity. “I have no interest in seeing any of them. I doubt they’ve changed much.”
“Haveyouchanged?”
His direct gaze drilled into me. Then, with brisk steps and hat pulled low, he strode out of the café.
With a sigh, I tucked into my pastry. I hardly tasted it.
Despite the thoughtswhirling around in my head, I managed to keep alert to my surroundings. I intended to take Mr. Jakes’s warning seriously. I arrived safely at Gabe’s house where the elderly butler, Bristow, welcomed me with his usual stiff formality. The twinkle in his eye was new, however.
“You’re in a good mood,” I said. “Have I missed a funny joke?”
“Nothing like that, Miss Ashe,” he intoned. “I’d just like to say that on behalf of all the staff, we’re very happy to see you again.”
While I didn’t think anyone had seen Gabe and I kiss that day in the corridor, perhaps one of the staff had been nearby after all. Or perhaps Gabe had given them clues. Some of the staff had been with the family so long they’d known him since he was born, and they’d want to see him happy. The fact that I made Gabe happy warmed me. Some of the tension I’d felt ever since being accosted by my father in Crooked Lane eased.
