The Dollmaker by Morgan Shamy

Author:Morgan Shamy [Shamy, Morgan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: CamCat Publishing

15

BLACK VELVET

Dawn pounded on Gideon’s door, her knuckles aching. Cold bit her skin, and each knock jolted pain into her hand, but she kept pounding. The sun had descended, trapped behind the tall buildings, and a chill cut the air, the streets quiet, her knocking echoing.

Gideon creaked open the door. His eyes roamed over her, his face dead, until he sighed. “What are you doing here?”

“What am I . . .? Have you lost your mind?” She pushed herself past him, barging inside. She marched down the hall to his study. Papers had been completely cleared off the table, scattered on the floor. Furniture was turned over, including chairs and a bookshelf, with torn and bent books piled on the floor.

“What happened in here?”

Gideon slowly entered the room after her, swiping a hand over his face.

“I’m not in the mood, Dawn. If you came to say something, just say it and leave.”

She blinked back at him, before her eyes narrowed. “What is wrong with you?”

He walked by and lowered himself to the chaise. “What is wrong with me?” His head fell back over the edge of the couch, his long legs out in front of him. “I can’t believe you have to ask that. I killed someone, Dawn. As in murdered. How can you think I’d be all right?”

Dawn went still, as she took in the tight planes of his face. A line was permanently etched into the middle of his brow.

“Caldwell’s not dead,” she whispered. “He’s all right.”

He shook his head. “He was dead. I was willing to kill someone. Kill. And then what do I do? I convince Nora to do a séance for me. Only to have my brother . . .” He shut his eyes, agony painted on his face.

Dawn tentatively went to him, her footsteps soft on the carpet. Her anger had faded. She hadn’t thought about how he was feeling. “Who is your brother? And why is he here? I mean . . .”

“My brother is a nuisance. A cheat. A liar. He only cares about himself and will do whatever it takes to get what he wants.”

A series of questions were bombarding her brain, but she settled with, “What happened between you two?”

Gideon made a noise in the back of his throat. “How to tell a hundred-page saga in a few short words?”

“You can try.”

He shook his head again. “He isn’t worth the energy.”

“Then at least tell me why you think he’s here. He . . .” She swallowed. She knew she shouldn’t say anything, but now that she knew he was Gideon’s brother . . . “He lives underneath the theater. Why?”

Gideon’s eyes popped open, and he slowly sat up. His usual sleek hair was ruffled in the back. “He’s shown himself to you? Other than last night?”

Her brows pinched. “Yes. Why?”

“Because”—he sat up further—“he hasn’t shown himself to anyone since . . . well, he disappeared after an argument we had about my Sophie. He hasn’t been seen since. I’ve asked about him .

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