Darque Wants (62 page)

Chapter 2

Walking up to, the barn there is already a great number of people in attendance. There is music drifting out to them coupled with the sound of dozens or pairs of feet dancing away. Faith turns to Dorian smiling in a moment of pure bliss wanting to share it with him, but he still has his emotions closed up still.

“Can we try to have fun tonight? I know we have things we need to do tonight, but will you dance at least one dance with me?”

“Yes,” Dorian says. “I will be sure to get a spot on your dance card.” With that they both make their way into the party.

“William & Constance, this is my cousin, Faith, I told you about from New York,” William says introducing Faith to the couple.

“Welcome, Faith. I hope you are finding Durango to your liking. I’m sure our little town is nothing like your big city, but we do know how to have a good time.”

“Good evening, Mrs. Moore. Thank you so much for having us. The decorations are exquisite.”

“Oh my dear, please call me Constance. We are all friends here and I we will be great friends I’m sure. Dorian can be such a bore sometimes you will surely want to come for a visit every now and then while you are here. Now let’s get you a dance card, come with me.” Dorian is sure to put his name about half way down her dance card. He believes Lucas will make his first advance around that time. Constance takes Faith at the crook of her arm and gets her settle with the other young women.

“She is quite exquisite Dorian. Where ever did you find her,” William asks Dorian with an arched eyebrow.

“Why whatever do you mean old friend?”

“I know for fact that you have no cousins, you can’t fool me. And anyone with eyes can see that you are smitten with the girl.”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Yes, now tell me what in the world is going on?”

“Not here, we will have to discuss that at another time. Do you have any new projects you are working on?” Dorian knows that asking William about his work is the fastest way to derail this line of questioning. This time though, William ignores the question.

“Have you discovered any more information regarding the mysterious circumstances of your father’s death?” Dorian is taken aback by the question and remains silent for a moment. He glances around to make sure Faith has made it to where she needs to be and that Lucas is in attendance. He spots him in the far corner positively salivating over the line of young women. Faith catches Lucas’s eye  immediately. Good, Dorian thinks. You will be singing like a canary by midnight. This may be easier than they thought.

“No,” Dorian replies. “But I am working on a solution for our little problem we have been having in town. It was fortuitous that our parents built their homes and livelihoods so far out of the town limits. Otherwise, we would be just as mindless as the rest of the town. I know it is a power move for Lucas but I am glad that we are still able to have our annual celebrations.”

“Wait, what are you planning? Did you say you had a solution? This is the first I have heard of it,” William says with a slightly disappointed tone.

“Don’t worry, you will have your part to play I’m sure before it is all said and done. For now it is all up to Faith.”

“That seems like an awful lot to ask of the girl. Do you think she is up for it?”

“Oh yes, I believe she will do just fine,” Dorian says with an edge in his voice. Faith is immediately claimed by her first dance partner as the music begins and the party really gets underway. Not surprisingly, her dance card filled up quite quickly. Faith adapts admirably to each new dance partner and pride swells in Dorian watching her glide around the floor.

“She is a very accomplished dancer Dorian,” William remarks.

“Yes she is, she learns very quickly.”

“So tell me now, where did she come from?”

“You wouldn’t believe me. There are too many ears around right now. Can we table the discussion for now and I swear that I will reveal all in good time?”

“Now let’s enjoy this party you have put together. Go dance with your beautiful wife.”

“I think I will.” Straightening his vest William struts across the room to take his wife by the hand and swirls into the reel currently being played. Dorian looks to see who Faith is dancing with, a local boy who is just grinning from ear to ear like he can’t believe his luck. At the end of the dance, Dorian steps to Faith to claim his dance. As the music begins he looks into her eyes for the first time since yesterday.

“You look beautiful tonight,” he says.

“Why thank you. You look quite dashing yourself. I hoped that you would claim your dance.”

“Of course, I wouldn’t miss it. Now we just have to wait and see if Lucas feels the same way.” Dorian doesn’t see Lucas moving through the dance party to make his way to them.

“May I cut in?” Lucas asks in his deep silky southern baritone. He moves in to take Dorian’s place without waiting for a response. He is impeccably dressed, standing out among the men with his well-tailored suit and jacket. He looks as if he was going to a fancy dinner party instead of a barn dance. While the other young women may be swooning over him, Faith is not overly impressed.

“I believe you are the most beautiful woman here tonight. May I have the pleasure of knowing your name?” He feigns ignorance, but Faith is sure that he knows exactly who she is.

“My name is Miss Blackburn to you.” She quips back, somewhat smartly.

“I was hoping we could be friends Miss Blackburn may I not know your first name? Do you know who I am?”

“Yes, you are Mr. Lucas Snakewood.”

“Good well then I don’t have to explain that I always obtain what I set my mind too,” he says as he spins her expertly across the floor. Faith is beginning to relax in his arms as they move about the room, a perfectly matched pair to the casual observer.

“And what is it that you want from me Lucas?” Faith asks somewhat coyly.

“That remains to be seen, but I would like the opportunity to know you more intimately than just as a dance partner. You are a delightful partner by the way.”

“Thank you for the kind compliment.”

“Oh no, that is a statement of fact. I do not idly hand out compliments my dear.”

“I see, well I suppose after a few turns around the dance floor we could step out to the garden to become better acquainted.” Dorian has been watching this exchange and has started to feel the swell of jealously blossoming in his chest. An unknown emotion to him, he is unable to quell the thoughts running through his head. Without thinking, he goes to couple and roughly displaces Lucas. Lucas maintains his decorum and elegantly retreats from the swirl of dancing couples.

“What are you doing Dorian? I had him right where we wanted him.” Faith spits angrily at Dorian. Dorian seems to come out of his haze of jealousy.

“I apologize, I don’t know what got into me. I saw him with you and you seemed to be so happy being in his arms, I couldn’t abide by that. I had to do something.”

“Well you did something alright and you may have cost us this opportunity. I will have to go apologize for you and see if I can salvage the situation. I am pleased to know that you feel that strongly for me, but next time control yourself!”

“Now go find someone to dance with or talk to William while I work on our target.” Dorian departs rather doggedly and engages himself elsewhere. Faith makes her way to Lucas.

“You will have to excuse my cousin Lucas, he was not quite himself. Would you like to dance again?”

“My dear, of course. I assure you that a man of lesser quality than my own self would completely forget himself where you are involved. Men can quite lose their heads I’m afraid when they find a beautiful woman to be object of their lust, however misplaced those impulses are.” Faith titters with laughter and leads him out to the dance floor once more for a lively reel.

“Shall we go out to the garden and partake in the refreshing night air? I find that it is quite stifling in here at the moment.”

“I would be delighted,” Faith replies. On the way out Lucas gets them some refreshments and hands one to Faith smiling at her like he is a predator that has finally gotten his prey where he wants them. Funny enough she feels the same way.

“So what is it that makes you such a force to be reckoned with in this town?” She asks after they have moved away from the party.

“Why it’s my good looks and debonair charm of course.” Faith laughs throwing her head back exposing her neck. He steps closer and places his hand on her back. She acts coy and playfully turns away.

“I would like to see where you rule your little kingdom from and how the better-half lives.”

“I would most assuredly enjoy showing you everything about my Durango, but first I think you will need to show a little more sincerity toward me.”

“How can I show you that?”

“You can start by telling me your first name.”

“It is Faith.”

“Ah, Faith. Such a delicate yet strong name. I have a feeling it accurately describes you my dear. Do you have a rebellious spirit I wonder?” He says with a look on his face that clearly suggests she will have to show that she does in order to get where she wants to go. Forgetting for a moment that she is in 1881, Faith presses herself as close as she can to him. Lapsing into her previous promiscuity filled frame of mind, Faith finds the perfect words to say to get Lucas intrigued.

“I assure you that I am every bit a rebellious spirit. You have to experience me to find out exactly rebellious I can be.” Lucas grasps her chin while kissing her somewhat roughly in response to her fiery declaration. Faiths body responds like a livewire. The past day and a half has left her emotionally empty and Lucas immediately seems to fill the void she has been feeling with Dorian. Struggling to keep her hands to herself, she responds to his advances in kind exploring his mouth expertly with her tongue.

Dorian glimpses the couple through the open doorway and immediately begins to move toward them. Faith catches his eye over Lucas’s shoulder and motions him to stop. Dorian does so reluctantly. Faith breaks their kiss with a smile.

“I haven’t received that kind of affection in some time. I know that decorum would want me to slap you or get one of my menfolk, but mostly I just want to kiss you again and melt into your arms.”

“Would you like to come to my home tomorrow for luncheon? It would be a pleasure to show you one of the most beautiful houses in all of Durango. Perhaps we can become acquainted away from prying eyes. Faith wonders if he knows Dorian has been watching them all night, she dismisses the idea and returns her attention to Lucas.

“That would be delightful.”

“I will have my newest acquisition pick you up.”

“What is it?” Faith asks curiously.

“You will see tomorrow. It is quite an ingenious contraption. I know you will like it.”

“Until tomorrow then Mr. Lucas Snakewood.” Faith takes her leave from Lucas and spends the rest of the night dancing every dance. She steps out to take the dance with Dorian, but Lucas cuts in and forces Dorian out. Dorian leaves in a mood and waits outside for the party to be over.

“I thought we had said goodnight, Lucas.”

“We did, but I decided that I wanted the last dance with the most beautiful creature in all of Durango.” Faith playfully gets away after the music ends promising to see him tomorrow.

“Goodbye Constance, thank you for the lovely evening. We had a wonderful time.” Faith says as she catches Constance on her way out to Dorian.

“Oh I’m so glad you were able to attend. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Don’t forget to come visit anytime.”

“I won’t,” Faith says with a warm smile. She goes out then to find Dorian hoping he hasn’t left her to walk home alone. He is leaning against the fence waiting for her.

“Well I think that was a productive evening. We got what we needed from Lucas.”

“I am not sure you needed to be so excited to be with him. You were acting inappropriately. Thankfully you were outside where no one could see you.”

“Well regardless of how you feel about it, I enjoyed myself and I got the job down. We are having luncheon together tomorrow at the Manor.” Faith says triumphantly. They walk home in silence after that.

“Will you help me undress?” Faith asks quietly once they get upstairs.

“Yes, I will but I still think that you didn’t need to be so forward with him.”

“How else was I supposed to get him to play along and do what we wanted him to do?”

“I don’t know, but you didn’t have to act like such a whore.” At that Faith slaps him full across the face. Her reaction surprises her just as much as it does Dorian who goes quiet immediately. He finishes undoing the laces of her corset roughly and stalks out of the room without saying another word. Faith finishes undressing and crawls mournfully into bed. She thought that tonight would be a new beginning for them, but once again she feels like she has managed to foul things up.

Chapter 3

“Are we going to be able to talk to each other like adults this morning?” Faith asks as she comes into the kitchen. Not receiving any answer from Dorian who is sitting resolutely at the table she heads outside to collect the eggs for the day. Dorian wants to talk to her but the shame he feels over last night seems to block everything else out. He doesn’t know how to apologize for something that he thinks is unforgivable. The rest of the morning is quiet around the house as the pair keep their distance from each other. When it comes time for her to leave for the manor, Faith has gotten tired of what she believes to be childish behavior on Dorian’s part and tries one more time to talk to him.

“Will you at least wish me good luck?” she asks Dorian hopefully. The color of her eyes is perfectly enhanced by the soft blue gown she is wearing for the occasion. Combined with feminine lace edging at the neckline and sleeves her smile completes the perfect storm for Dorian. His stony face brakes and he pulls her to him. He hugs her tightly and kisses her lightly.

“I’m sorry for the way I acted last night. I should have listened to you and recognize that you did what needed to be done for the sake of our mission. Finding the machine Lucas is using to control the town is of the utmost importance. It must be located by any means necessary. I cannot ever take back the awful thing I called you last night, but I hope that you will be able to forgive me.”

“Already forgiven, Dorian, but let’s just talk to each other next time shall we? I think we can work things out if we do it together.”

“I agree. Good luck this afternoon. I trust you implicitly. I will be here when you come home,” He says as an odd looking contraption with wheels, comes rumbling down the street. Not odd because of the wheels of course, but because there are no horses pulling it, it appears to be propelling itself down the street and is being driven by one of Lucas’s men. Dorian stands there with his mouth agape. Faith has seen things like it before in her books of the early 1900’s but never in real life and she did not realize they existed this early. She makes a mental note to research this new revelation. Her obsession with new technology quite rivals Dorian’s own obsession with it.

“I am here to collect the Lady Faith Blackburn,” he says after exiting the vehicle and opening the passenger side door.

“That would be me,” Faith says hesitantly. “You want me to get into that thing?”

“Why yes, it’s perfectly safe. Mr. Snakewood thought you would appreciate its unique design. You should not keep him waiting madam.” With that, he helps her into the vehicle and whisks her off to the Manor. At the Manor, Faith is greeted by a menacing looking butler and shown to the parlor.

“Will Mr. Snakewood be joining me soon,” she asks as she turns to address the butler, but he is gone and she is alone. She sits there a while in the parlor and has time to memorize every detail of the room and recall the entryway and stairs. It really is a beautiful home. The fireplace is surrounded by an elegant mantle and molding. The walls of the parlor are a soft blue that evoke calm and serenity. She always wondered what it would be like to live in a home like this one. She thinks that if it were hers she would open it up to everyone so that everyone could enjoy the beauty and stay whenever they liked. That would be the best way to honor the love and sweat that went in to building and designing it. When she gets home she will draw everything out for Dorian so they have a complete floor plan of the house. This is the recon mission for the true objective of finding the hiding place of the machine rumored to be controlling the people of the city of Durango. Thinking on it she realizes that everyone seemed to be acting normal at the party which makes her believe that the reach of the machine must only go so far and doesn’t include the outlying homes & businesses.

“Good afternoon, my lady,” Lucas says as he finally enters the room with a flourishing bow. Faith smiles to herself at his gesture.

“Good afternoon, dear sir.”

“I hope I did not keep you waiting long and that you found the accommodations comfortable.”

“Oh no, not at all. Your home is lovely. I particularly enjoy this room.”

“I am so glad to hear it. Shall we go out to the garden for luncheon? It is a beautiful day outside that will be made more beautiful with your presence I am sure.” Faith places her hand in his and he leads them outside to where a table has already been set. He is correct in his assessment of the day. A perfect blend of a sun and warmth the blooming flowers are waving slowly in the light breeze. Faith takes a deep breath of the fresh mountain air and wonders how she could ever think about leaving this place.

Faith has a good vantage point to see the rest of the house from the table they are seated at and uses that to her advantage to get an idea of how the rest of the house is set up. Dorian has never been inside of it so it is up to her to accurately draw up the floor plan. She takes note that there are two out buildings that could house the machine.

“What are those two buildings for?”

“Oh just storage and the like, but if you are curious still I can show them to you after we finish our meal.” He thinks he has a chance at winning her over and possibly making her Missus Lucas Snakewood so he is happy to oblige her in whatever she asks. There turns out to be nothing of note in the two out buildings except for chickens in one.Faith is disappointed but knew it wouldn’t be that easy to discover the location
.
She can see that there are at least 3 floors in the main house. In an effort to impress Faith and sell himself a little, Lucas walks Faith through the first floor and mentions briefly that there are four bedrooms on the second floor plus the maid’s quarters. He says nothing about the third floor she observed from the garden. This gives Faith the basic tour omitting the third floor this gives Faith the impression that he's hiding something there.

“What is on the third floor?” Faith asks politely, wondering if he will show the same eagerness to please as he did out in the garden.

“Oh just storage of old things left behind by the last occupants. It is quite dreary and sad up there. No one goes up there much.” Deflected expertly Faith can’t find a way to get him to let her up there so she lets it go and continues to catalog the rooms of the house. The downstairs includes the parlor, the dining room, the kitchen, and the formal living room. She is struck by the sheer enormity of it and all of the space that has been allocated to one person. She remembers though where she is and that Lucas most likely forced out the previous occupants, a family perhaps, and is all but squatting here.

Lucas has been pumping Faith all the while about herself during their visit. Where she's from and how she came to Durango. She is careful in her answers and tries to stick to the cover story Dorian prepared for her. To her surprise Lucas doesn't try anything fresh during the whole engagement and is the perfect gentleman. She thought after last night they would be frolicking in one of the bedrooms by now. Part of her is relieved but another part is somewhat disappointed. As she leaves, Faith wonders if maybe she misread him last night. Little does she know that Lucas has a scheme of his own, she will soon find out just what he is capable of.