“Hart Cormac?” Nyssa read over his shoulder.
“Yes, I wanted something that if it got shouted at me, I’d look up. Cormac was my mother’s maiden name.” He handed her the other document. “You’re Nessa Cormac.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Are we siblings or spouses in this scenario?”
“I’m assuming spouses, since we’re sharing a stateroom.” He laughed.
She flushed.
“Don’t worry,” he said, his tone growing serious again. “There are two beds. I paid extra.”
“It’s all here,” Victor called out. “A pleasure doing business with you.” He came back and offered Ellis his hand.
Nyssa stared at the documents. He’d gotten her age right, sixteen, even if he’d lied about her name and marital status. Her own face stared back at her from the photograph: hazel eyes steely, mouth a firm line. Perhaps her expression was a little harsh.
Somehow Ellis had managed a smile even with the awkward, formal pose Victor had required. He looked charming, his tanned complexion and dark hair coming across well in the sepia tones of the picture.
He pulled out the envelope with their zeppelin tickets and tucked it into his passport. “We better head back to the hotel. We have to be at the hangar by six a.m. for departure.”
His braces folded back into a wheelchair as Ellis sat. Victor rushed to get the door for them, bowing.
“If you are ever back in Freeport and in need of documents, I’d be happy to serve you again,” he said. “It has been a pleasure, Mr. and Mrs. Cormac.”
“Thanks,” Nyssa mumbled.
She kept one hand on the back of Ellis’s chair as he rolled out the door.
“It makes you uncomfortable, being my wife?” Ellis raised an eyebrow.
“It makes me uncomfortable pretending to be your wife. I’ve never been much for playacting.”
They’d hidden their horseless carriage around back. Nyssa suspected the plates might be reported as stolen, since she’d taken the carriage from the woman who’d blackmailed her into breaking into Ellis’s home. At least that had allowed her to find Ellis, who had been trapped by his insane father’s experiments.
She might be the one who was wanted by the authorities, but Ellis had his own share of ghosts. Yes, a fresh start overseas was just what both of them needed.
He smiled. “Yes, well, we’ve only known each other about three weeks. It’s a little early to make it official.”
Her face warmed. “I didn’t mean …”
“So that wasn’t a proposal? For the best, I suppose. You don’t have a ring to give me.” He laughed again.
She sniffed. “The only ring you’ll get from me is me wringing your neck, smart mouth.”I owe him a prank for that one. Maybe I’ll stuff some nuts and bolts in his pillow tonight.
They turned a corner into the alley. A woman in a scarlet dress leaned against their horseless carriage.
“What is she doing here?” Nyssa whispered.
The woman turned to face them. Her skin was porcelain pale, contrasting starkly with her rich, brown curls. Green eyes flashed above a crimson scarf that covered the lower portion of her face.
Nyssa dove for a board that lay in a trash pile nearby. She brandished it at the woman. “Get away from our carriage, thief!”
“Uh, Nyss …”
Nyssa glanced back.
A man in a bowler hat with a black scarf over his mouth and nose stood at Ellis’s shoulder. He held the barrel of a revolver against Ellis’s neck. The muscles in Nyssa’s arms turned to water. The board clattered to the cobblestones.
“We don’t want your carriage,” the man said. “Just the documents you picked up from Victor’s shop.”
“They won’t do you any good. They have our faces on them,” Ellis said.
“We’ll figure that out.” The woman flounced towards them. Nyssa eyed her. They were about the same size, petite … but something about the woman’s movements made Nyssa sure she could take her. She had a certain elegance that didn’t suggest someone used to scrapping. While Nyssa didn’t like to fight, she’d been forced to defend herself more than once during her days on the streets.
“Look, we don’t want any trouble,” Ellis said.
The man jabbed the gun into Ellis’s temple. Ellis grunted, his mouth hardening. Nyssa’s stomach twisted.Oh God, don’t let them hurt him.
“The documents, now.” The man aimed his revolver at Nyssa.
“All right!” Ellis held up his passport. He opened it, probably intending to remove the zeppelin tickets, but the man snatched it from his hand.
“And yours?” The woman put out her hand.
Nyssa gritted her teeth but handed over her document. The woman tucked it into her laced bodice.
“Let’s get out of here, love.” She rushed to the man’s side. The man backed out of the alley, his gun alternating between pointing at Ellis and Nyssa. They rounded the corner and disappeared.
Nyssa exhaled. “Are you all right?”
Ellis nodded stonily. “I’m sorry. I didn’t hear him sneak up on me.”
“Neither did I. I was too focused on the woman.” She walked to him. “I hate being played.”
“Do you think we’ll have time to get new documents by tomorrow?” Ellis asked. “Victor seems the type to demand cash up front, and I didn’t bring enough for another payment.”
“Plus he was clear, he only got those finished so quickly because the other couple …”The other couple … “Let’s go talk to him, anyway. He may know who they are.”
They hurried back to the shop, only to find the door and windows locked. Nyssa pounded on the door.
Pink already tinged the sky above them.
“We’ll have to come back tomorrow,” Ellis said.
“Yes, but by thenThe Juliet will be gone.” Nyssa’s shoulders slumped. “Oh Ellis, what else can go wrong?”
“Hey.” He touched her arm. “We aren’t beat yet. Let’s get back to the hotel, order something to eat, and we’ll figure it out from there.”
She followed him to the carriage, but her mind still turned over the events in the alleyway. If she ever got her hands on that couple, they’d get more than a piece of her mind.
Chapter Two
Nyssa sat on her hotel bed, stroking the burgundy counterpane. Her fingers glided across the smooth cloth,
