Rise of the Arcane Fire (The Secret Order) (36 page)

David shielded his eyes as he looked out at the water, but the Scots wasted no time. They climbed onto the trebuchet and quickly extended and locked the arm. Two men scrambled up the length of the arm and then hung off, tipping the lever to the ground as the counterweight bucket rose into the air. They set the trigger.

I handed off the bomb to a man in a green tartan, and he fixed it easily into the sling.

Something was wrong.

“There’s no counterweight,” I shouted. “It won’t fire.”

“You there, stones!” one of the Scots shouted, and a group of them charged down the hill toward the ruins of the tower. It would take all day to fill the bucket with rocks. We didn’t have the time.

Perfect. We found ourselves atop a hill with a siege weapon that couldn’t fire. I glanced around at the men. It didn’t matter how strong they were, they’d never carry enough rocks in time.

“Run!” David shouted.

We needed mass.

Mass.

“No!” I screamed. Everyone turned to look at me. “Into the counterweight,” I shouted. “All of you. As many as will fit. Hurry!”

“Bloody brilliant,” Will said as he scrambled up the framework for the trebuchet and jumped into the counterweight bucket. David followed, and Will offered him a hand in.

Soon the rest of the horde joined them, climbing over the frame and pulling themselves into the crowded bucket. Several of them who couldn’t fit within the bucket clung to the front and back.

“Now, Meg!” Will shouted. I threw myself against the triggering mechanism and then stumbled backward as the counterweight dropped. The men in the counterweight shouted a Highland war cry as they swung down and beneath the belly of the machine, and the long arm flung the bomb high into the air and over the lake.

I held my breath as I lost sight of it over the water.

My heart beat.

Again.

Boom!

I felt the force of the blast like a blow to my chest, and my ears stung from the sound. I covered them but didn’t turn away as an enormous plume of water launched into the air.

Tears gathered in my eyes as I listened to the water splattering back down onto the surface of the lake.

The shouts and cheers of the Foundry men drowned out the ringing in my ears. Overwhelmed, I stumbled on the edge of the platform, but Will caught me, held me close to his chest, and swung me around as the Foundry men slapped at us, still cheering.

David remained at the edge of the group, his arms crossed as he gave me a regal nod. I returned the gesture. I never would have made it without him, and for that I’d always be grateful.

“Bloody well done, lass!” Malcolm shouted, slapping me so hard on the back, I lost my breath. “We’ll never use stones again.”

“Now look what you did,” Will admonished, but he smiled at me. All the shadow of doubt had left his eyes. He was safe, and alive. Nothing could have meant more to me.

SEVERAL WEEKS LATER, AFTER THE
cuts and bruises had healed, even the deep one at the base of my thumb, and some of the endless questions about what had happened had begun to abate, I entered the ballroom of Chadwick manor for the Automaton Ball.

The ballroom glittered with lights and gaiety. Large sprays of flowers adorned the tables and the walls. In the corner musicians played as the Amusementists danced. I walked over to the musicians for a closer look, and they stared back at me in their powdered wigs and eighteenth-century costumes. Of course, “stared” wasn’t really the correct word, since every single one of the musicians had a smooth featureless face that reflected my own image back at me.

The first time I had set foot in this house, I had been in rags and in hiding in the servants’ quarters below stairs. The entire house had been deserted. Now I looked around at the crowded ballroom filled with light and laughter, and at my own reflection.

I barely recognized myself.

The fabric of my ball gown hardly needed adorning. It was a delicate floral paisley pattern in cream over pale blue that looked like it belonged in a royal tapestry. A frothy collar of glittering glass beads and lace swept across my chest, meeting in lovely blue-and-cream folds of bows that hung off my bare shoulders like the petals of an iris.

Around my neck I wore the clockwork key, polished to a dazzling silver. In that moment I felt like something more than a simple shopkeeper, even more than an apprentice.

I turned around and noticed the Duke of Chadwick coming toward me. His eye patch was gone, and while his injured eye still squinted just slightly, he looked as handsome and well as I had ever seen him.

“Meg, so good to see you.” Oliver greeted me with his new bride on his arm. Lucinda smiled warmly.

“You look stunning,” she offered, taking my hands.

I turned to Oliver. “Congratulations, Headmaster.” It seemed all the wounds that Lawrence had inflicted were slowly healing, and I couldn’t be happier for the both of them, though I wondered what had become of Samuel. No one had seen either him or his mother since the incident at the Foundry.

“Have you heard any news on the ship?” I asked. For the last few weeks Oliver had been using his connections to try to help me find the ship that the man in the clockwork mask had escaped upon.

“I’m sorry. My men traced its last known route to France, but there’s been no sign of it since.” He placed a hand on my arm and gave me a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry, Meg. We’ll save your grandfather.”

I sighed. I wanted to believe him, but I feared I’d be too late.

“Meg!” Peter trotted up to us, then realized who I was talking to and reverently bowed his head in apology. “Excuse me, Headmaster. We’re almost ready for the first dance.”

“Of course,” Oliver said, laughing at us as Peter dragged me to the center of the ballroom. My friends were standing back in a small group, looking pleased with themselves. I greeted them warmly, kissing each of their cheeks, though Michael blushed so furiously, he looked like he’d suddenly taken fever. Manoj looked particularly fetching in his native clothing as he gave me a short bow of his head in appreciation. Noah stood close to Peter and leaned over to say something near his ear. They were the finest friends I could imagine, and my heart felt full to bursting with pride for what we had done.

Eve was flawless. From her powdered wig to the ornate cream-colored dress trimmed with gold and pearls, she looked like she could have stepped off the top of the music box and into the court of Louis XIV. She had her arms cast perfectly around David’s automaton, and the gilded couple waited, frozen in time, for the music to start.

Around the ballroom eight other automaton couples also anticipated the music as they stood in various poses. One pair bowed to one another, the woman’s arm and fan extended out elegantly behind her as she held a dainty finger to her chin. Another couple looked as if the man had some work to do to win the heart of the reluctant lady. She seemed poised to walk away from him. Each had an individual personality, and I marveled at how much more my friends and I would be able to do in the future.

The automatons remained still, as if time had stopped for the machines but continued on for the rest of us mortals. The Amusementists danced around them, occasionally pausing to marvel at their craftsmanship.

As the human dancers swirled past, I turned and caught sight of David slowly crossing the ballroom.

He made a fine figure. He looked every bit the cultured aristocrat and perfectly at home among the finery and frivolity of the ball. While his bearing was cool and regal as he approached, his gaze was not, and I knew the mask that he liked to keep would never completely conceal him from me again.

“Attention, attention!” Leader Octavian stood on a box to see over the rail as he called down from the balcony. He had attempted to tame his hair, but it seemed to be rebelling. His face was alight with merriment. “It is time for the challenge to begin.”

The crowd broke out in applause as David took his place beside me. We both looked up at the balcony without a word.

“First, a special award of merit goes to Apprentice Margaret and Apprentice David for uncovering a most sinister plot and thwarting inconceivable disaster.” He paused as the swell of applause rose. I felt my cheeks grow warm as I stood in shock. He had said my name the way he would any other apprentice.

I blinked, fighting the thrill of emotion. I couldn’t afford it now. Only one thing tempered the sheer joy of the moment. No one had believed us until it had been nearly too late. I supposed if they wanted to try to alleviate their guilt in the matter, I could be gracious about it. After all, they had given Uncle Albrecht his key back, and they had given me my name.

“It is with a heavy heart that we mourn the loss of Argus MacTavish and the young Foundry worker Duncan MacBain. Thankfully, Magnus Gordon has agreed to take charge of the Foundry, so our long and prosperous association may continue.” Everyone in the ballroom fell appropriately somber, but I had to fight off a chill. I rubbed my hands together. Every so often they still felt as if they held the stain of Duncan’s blood. I felt horrible for Duncan’s death, and even more horrible that in the aftermath I couldn’t stop myself for being very thankful it hadn’t been Will’s blood on my hands. It so easily could have been.

A murmur rose in the ballroom as a large group of men in kilts came forward from beneath the balcony. I strained to see if Will was among them.

“It is with our grateful thanks to the Foundry that we present this ball, a celebration of beauty after such dark times.
Ex scientia pulchritudo.
” Octavian clapped his hands, and the crowd backed off the dance floor, leaving David and me alone with our creations.

We took our places at the backs of our automatons, and my hand shook as I rested my finger on the switch. The conductor of the mechanical orchestra tapped his baton on the stand.

“Three and one,” David counted, and we flipped our switches in perfect time with the downbeat. Then both of us quickly backed away, allowing our inventions to shine.

The automatons trembled, as if nervous to be in one another’s arms, but slowly they took a step, then another. It was working. They danced together flawlessly, spinning around the floor as if they were alive. Soon other automaton couples began to dance, until the ballroom became a mesmerizing swirl of elegance and color.

I listened to the voices of the Amusementists around me. They were filled with wonder and pride. Uncle Albrecht clapped wildly for us in the corner, while Mary Thornby looked as if she’d just swallowed a newt. I smiled sweetly at her, and her mother scowled and ushered her away.

As the song faded, each of the automatons ended the waltz in a bow, then stood, poised to begin again, should the orchestra play their song.

The Amusementists broke out in loud cheers and congratulations. Several of the older members of the Order offered me their praise as the music died away.

I felt humbled by it, and not at all worthy of it. I couldn’t have done it without the help of my friends. Working with them and making peace with David had been great achievements, but nothing had been greater than saving Will’s life and knowing that one day we would be together.

David met me on the edge of the dance floor and gave me a courtly bow. “Apprentice Margaret, would you do me the honor of this dance?”

I couldn’t say no. Instead I placed my hand in his. He led me onto the floor, and as the orchestra began once more, his other hand slid around my waist. The tightness of my corset enhanced the feel of his palm on my side as we began to turn in dizzying circles around our automatons.

David brought his cheek close to mine. “To a job well done,” he whispered into my ear.

I leaned back and looked at him. His eyes seemed warmer than they had been. “Indeed.”

We danced, and I allowed myself to enjoy the moment. It was only a moment, after all.

As the music began to fade, his gaze dipped to my lips. “I will win you, Meg.”

The music stopped, and I pulled away from him. “Oh, David,” I sighed. That was just the problem.

When I tried to leave him, he held my hand long enough to place a possessive kiss on the back of it. I turned, leaving him on the glittering dance floor, and retreated to the doors open to the gardens.

Will stood there. The breeze caught in the curling wisps of his hair. His gaze seemed to drink me in, but he didn’t say a word. His lips curled in the slightest of smiles.

He looked quite dashing in his black velvet doublet and kilt, like a grand Scottish lord, or at least a brigand dressed as one. It was hard to look at the strength in him, the new confidence, and see the poor stable hand who had hidden with me in the servants’ quarters of this very house.

“Care to test your wits against the labyrinth?” he asked, his smile widening as he tilted his head toward the tiny hedge maze that didn’t reach higher than one’s knee.

I laughed. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“I wouldn’t be if it weren’t for you.” He looked down at his feet, then back up to meet my eyes. “You’re beautiful.”

I knew I blushed. I could feel the tingling in my cheeks as I reached into the new pocket I had sewn into the billowing folds of my skirt.

“You sewed a pocket into a ball gown?” I could hear the laughter in Will’s voice and feel the warmth in his eyes.

“Of course. They’re frightfully useful. I made you this.” I opened my hands and revealed the little frog I had finally perfected.

Will shook his head in mirth as he reached for it. At the last moment it sprang to him, and he caught it against his chest. He touched it gently on the head, then tucked it lovingly into his sporran. “I’ll treasure it.”

A heady thrumming began in my body, a visceral awareness of who he was and all that we’d done together. I placed my hand gently on his shoulder, and he tenderly gathered my other hand in his.

We swayed together to the music, our foreheads touching like the sweetest kiss. It was all the dance I needed.

“I don’t understand why you would choose this, when you could have all that that world offers,” he whispered.