Having the fabric in hand, I could answer my own question, for I received a brief vision, from Susan’s perspective, of her ripping the piece of cloth from the jacket of one of her abductors. ‘No, this belongs to one of the men who took Susan.’ I was excited at this discovery, as was my husband, who moved closer to me.
‘What can you see?’ he inquired, while his brother growled in disbelief.
I closed my eyes and focused on the clue. ‘The man who wore this is bound for Italy,’ I gasped and opened my eyes, ‘and he is in the service of Christian Molier.’
Lord Devere frowned. ‘Molier? Why do I recognise that name?’
‘The Arsenal Library in Paris,’ my husband said to jog his brother’s memory. James had never actually met Molier, but had heard about him in conversation.
‘Your associate in Paris!’ Lord Devere became decidedly steamed-up once more. ‘What does he want with Susan?’
‘He wants me,’ I said abruptly, to calm the man. ‘And there is no reason to believe that he will harm Susan.’
‘And I am expected to believe that, am I?’ Lord Devere protested at the leap of faith I was requiring him to make.
‘We found you, did we not? And we shall find Susan too.’ Tired of justifying myself, I turned and exited the cabin.
‘We have arranged to have this vessel taken back to port,’ Earnest advised his brother. ‘We can take up the pursuit of Lady Devere’s abductors immediately.’ He motioned James up the stairs.
James, holding on to his anger, was unsure about obliging us. ‘You had better be right about this, Earnest, or so help me god I’ll—’
‘I am sure,’ he confidently declared, before his brother could finish the threat. ‘But every second could be precious. Let us not dally here any longer than needed.’
The lord retrieved his few belongings from the cabin and accompanied his brother up on to the deck where I was arguing with Cingar. ‘Oh no, not gypsies,’ James whined in protest, but stopped short of accusing them of intending to steal the craft he’d hired, instead of returning it to port.
Both Cingar and myself chose to ignore Lord Devere to pursue our argument. ‘You only vowed to see me to the sea, which you have done, and now you must return to your people,’ I insisted.
‘My man will return this boat to port and Jessenia and I can rejoin our families in Italy once I know all is well with you.’ Cingar would not hear of departing yet, despite the assurances of my husband and I that we could take it from here.
After four days at sea, I was more deathly ill than I had been during my first day on the waters off Marseilles. It was clear that ship life did not agree with me at all. My husband had looked a little green for a couple of days, but had grown accustomed to the boat’s rocking and was now as fit as a fiddle and rather enjoying the voyage.
I was very grateful that Cingar and his wife had insisted on accompanying us to Italy. Jessenia was a tireless nurse and succeeded in making me feel infinitely better than if I had had to cope with my illness alone.
‘Captain Falco said to inform you that we should be in sight of the Tiber today,’ Jessenia announced when she brought me breakfast in my cabin, where I had spent most of the voyage.
At the mouth of the Tiber River we would pass the ancient city of Ostia, on our way to the modern port that lay a few miles upstream. Here large craft docked and passengers for Rome could hire smaller craft for a journey up the river, or travel overland to the Holy City. This was where I hoped to spy the vessel that had carried Susan away. I had received an impression of the boat from the piece of torn fabric I had found. Albray had assured me that he could confirm my vision, for he had witnessed the abduction first-hand and seen the vessel for himself.
‘Dry land would be a dream come true.’ I forced a smile as I sat upright to try and force myself to eat something. This meal could actually be considered as a lunch. My stomach always seemed to be more unsettled following a horrid night’s sleep and I could not take food too early. My nights at sea had been plagued by vivid dreams of searching for something I couldn’t find: these left me drenched in sweat and had me awake every few hours.
‘I have a real treat today,’ Jessenia boasted. ‘Freshly made bread, and a pot of real tea, compliments of the captain’s private stock.’
I was delighted. Tea was a rarity at sea. I had been craving a warm brew, and plain fresh bread, baked daily by the ship’s cook, seemed to be the only food I could stomach. ‘You are an angel.’ I emphasised my delight. ‘Do thank the captain for me.’
‘He wishes only to see you well again.’ My beautiful gypsy nurse poured a cup of tea and passed it to me on a saucer.
I took a couple of sips and then sighed with delight.
‘It is surely unusual for someone to remain seasick for so long,’ Jessenia ventured to comment as she pulled up a chair and sat at my bedside. ‘In fact, I am beginning to suspect that it is not just the sea voyage that is causing it.’
I scoffed at her concern. ‘I have rarely known a sick day in my life.’ A fact that was making my current plight all the harder to tolerate. ‘Do I have the symptoms of some other illness?’
‘The sickness in the morning, the vivid dreams, the perspiring and broken sleep,’ she listed. ‘They all seem to add up to pregnancy.’
‘Pregnancy!’ I objected, and the cup rattled violently in its saucer. Jessenia relieved me of it. ‘Please, goddess,
Jessenia smiled at my referral to the goddess, for her people were avid believers in the Great Mother, Danu, or Diana, whose daughter Aradia brought all witchcraft to the world. ‘Is it possible that this could be the case?’ She attempted to dispel my horror until I’d examined the possibility thoroughly.
‘I suppose…’ I was reluctant to admit I had not bled since I’d been reunited with my husband. My monthly time was now well overdue. The realisation made my stomach turn, for many reasons, and finding my bedpan my
