The Heartbeat Thief by AJ Krafton & Ash Krafton

Author:AJ Krafton & Ash Krafton [AJ Krafton & Ash Krafton]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2015-06-12T07:00:00+00:00

Up in her room, Senza sat on the tidy bed, holding Knell’s journal, closed upon her lap. She’d checked it three times in the last ten minutes, steeling herself to accept what she’d read. The Chelsea address had been crossed off, and a new address scrawled below it.

Senza had not been the one who wrote it.

She begged Mrs. Branson’s pardon, feigning a headache. The matron issued orders for bed rest and a bowl of broth, which the Roberts faithfully supplied. Once the house had quieted, the staff retreating to their quarters to await Branson’s return, Senza crept down the stairs, dressed in the plain dress, bags in hand.

She hailed a cab at the corner of the block and read off her destination, repeating herself because the driver wasn’t sure he’d heard her right. He was familiar with the sight of Mrs. Branson’s ward, and probably could not imagine what business she could possibly have in such a neighborhood.

Money trumped a conscience, as it always did. A handful of coins helped him change his mind and he drove her there without further protest.

She barely noted the streets, the familiar sights that had been her home for seven years. Truthfully, the last seven had eventually felt as long as the decades that had led up to them. She wouldn’t miss Chelsea. Not at all.

Journal in hand, she noted the other changes Knell had made. More accounts, foreign holdings. More money than she’d know how to spend. And the address—a public house, it seemed, if the colorful name was any indication.

Her suspicions were confirmed when the carriage took her to a mixed neighborhood in the East End, where homes of both poor and more comfortable Londoners spotted the same streets. The cab stopped in front of a corner inn, with a weathered painted sign over its door. The Iron Lion.

She paid the cabbie, who urged his horses off, a streak of unease thinning his usually-booming voice.

The tavern was moderately lit, with greasy glass lamps leaking yellowed light onto the crowded tables. Rowdy patrons, working men and weary women. The serving girl seemed to have made a target for hands and crude words. No place for a respectable young lady, traveling alone. Senza paused in the doorway, waiting for the barkeep to notice her.

And he immediately noticed her, without a doubt. Nearly tripped over a bench to get to her.

“You be wantin’ a table, miss?” He wiped his hands on his stained apron, leaving an oily smear.

“A room.” Her voice held more than a chill. It was cold enough for frost to grow on his ears.

He squinted at her. “Rooms cost money.”

“Only if they are clean and secure.” She pulled her purse from her waist, and pinched out several coins. Holding them up for his inspection, she stowed her purse in a different pocket to thwart the pickpockets. “Clean sheets, a fresh basin, and a hot meal. A decent one.”

He reached for the money, his eyes devouring the sight of it. She snapped it out of his grasp.

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