Taking her words at face value, he said quietly, "I'll hold you to that." For the first time in days, he kissed her, cupping her chin in his hand-lightly, quickly, but still affecting her all the way to her marrow. The constraint that had been between them for days vanished, leaving peace. Then he turned toward his study while Kit continued up to her bedroom, her knees a little less steady than they had been.
Kira liked jewelry, and the velvet-lined chest that held her collection was a tangle of beads and baubles. Kit hesitated over the open box, wondering what to choose. Even if the divination attempt was absurd, she must try her best.
Not a bracelet or complicated necklace, or any of the brooches, for they would not swing easily. Her gaze fell on a pair of sapphire drop earrings. One of those suspended on a thread should do nicely.
Reaching for an earring, her hand halted in midair. There was an odd sensation of heat against her palm. No, not heat, and not really an itch, but… something.
Feeling foolish, she poked through the mound of jewelry until she discovered a heart-shaped locket at the bottom of the chest. It was a lovely trifle with a delicately etched pattern on the golden surface and a slender chain that would be perfect for a pendulum.
Beyond that, it felt like the right choice. Fatigue and anxiety were definitely making her a little strange. She closed the jewelry box and returned to the kitchen.
Jason was pacing restlessly about the long, flagstoned room. In sharp contrast, Michael was sprawled back in his Windsor chair, his legs crossed at the ankle with the calm of a man who had learned patience in the battlefield. Doubtless it helped that he had the least at stake; he scarcely knew Kit, and Kira not at all. Yet that made it all the more admirable he was willing to join a mission that could prove hazardous. She wondered what it would be like to have such courage. She was very tired of being afraid.
Lucien had returned before her and was opening an enormous book on the trestle table. As she drew closer, she saw that it was a folio of superbly drawn and colored maps of the British shires. She was admiring the quality of the printing when he calmly ripped out the page illustrating Surrey.
He glanced up when she made a sound of involuntary protest. "I don't know how a pendulum works, but it might have problems with a map that was bound in with other maps."
"That makes sense," she agreed. She opened her hand to show the locket. "Will this do, Jason?"
His face tightened when he saw what she held. "I gave that to Kira. Did… did she ever wear it?"
Though Kit wished she could say yes, she had to shake her head. "No, but remember that I've seen her very seldom in the last several years."
He took the locket and opened it with a thumbnail. Inside was a wisp of dark hair that exactly matched his own. "At least she kept it. That must mean something."
Her heart ached for him. Not only did he fear for Kira's life, but he could not be sure of Kira's love. "Believe me, if my sister had wanted to forget you, she would have gotten rid of this." Kit took the locket back and turned it to the light so she could see the initials engraved inside. K. T. + J. T. Below was the horizontal hourglass figure that was the mathematical symbol for infinity. Kira and Jason, for always. Blinking back the emotion that was too close to the surface, she said, "Obviously I picked the right pendulum."
His expression raw, Jason said, "Let us hope so."
She snapped the locket shut. "How does this work? I just realized that I haven't the faintest idea."
"Take a chair and get comfortable. This will take time."
Obediently she settled into one of the Windsor chairs. Jason continued, "Prop your elbow on the table and let the pendulum swing freely from your right hand."
Lucien said, "Does it matter that Kit is left-handed?"
"In that case, use your left hand. Let the locket hang until it's absolutely still."
As Kit waited for the swinging to stop, Jason explained, "Generally a pendulum is used for questions that can be answered with a yes or no. However, the motions vary for different people. To find out how the pendulum works for you, ask questions for which you know the answer."
With a nod of understanding Lucien asked, "Are you in London?"
The hanging locket quivered. Then, to Kit's amazement, it began slowly swinging counterclockwise even though she was prepared to swear that she was doing nothing.
Jason said, "That direction must mean yes."
Intrigued, Lucien asked, "Have you ever been to India, Kit?"
The pendulum slowed to a stop, then began moving clockwise. "That must be no," the American said.
Michael spoke up. "Will the Congress of Vienna allow Napoleon to keep the throne of France?"
The locket twitched nervously and came to a halt.
"A pendulum isn't usually much good for telling the future," Jason said. "It seems to work best for finding lost objects, or to help people discover what they truly want in a situation that is confusing."
Lucien began asking Kit a series of questions with simple answers. It became clear that counterclockwise was always yes and the reverse was always no. Impressed in spite of her doubts, Kit asked, "Where did you learn this?"
"From my mother, who was a wild-eyed Irishwoman." Jason smiled with obvious affection. "According to her, the O'Hanlon females had been village wise women for generations, passing traditional knowledge from mother to daughter. My father died when I was young, and my mother never remarried, so she taught me the family lore with strict orders to pass it on to my own daughter." His smile faded. "If I ever have one."
He and his mother had obviously been close. Perhaps being raised by a "wild-eyed Irishwoman" was why Jason could fall in love with the sort of strong, unconventional woman who would dare to be an actress. The more Kit saw of her cousin, the better she understood why her sister had loved him in return.
Bringing her tired mind back to business, Kit asked, "Now that we've established how it answers for me, what do I do?"
"Think very hard about finding Kira," he replied.
"When you have your goal firmly in mind, keep the pendulum steady in your left hand while you slowly move the other hand above the map. If this works, you'll get a strong reaction from the pendulum when your right hand passes over the place where she is being held."
"Hang on a moment while I get the maps in order," Lucien said. "Shall we start with London itself?"
The others agreed, so he tore the city map from the folio. As she waited, Kit remembered what Jason had said about how a pendulum could help someone discover true feelings in a tangled situation. Mentally she asked, "Am I in love with Lucien?"
The pendulum jumped in her hand, then began whirling wildly in a counterclockwise direction. Yes, yes, yes.
She stared bleakly at the swinging locket. She had been a fool to ask. Of course she loved him; how could she not? But her cowardly mind had wanted to deny the truth because it preferred not to acknowledge how painful it would be to lose him. Actually, there was some relief in accepting that she was in love with him; denying the fact hadn't made her feel any better.
Before she could stop herself, her mind formed the words, "Will he still think he loves me when this is over?"
The locket slowed to a complete halt and hung motionless from the gold chain. Well, Jason had said a pendulum wasn't good at telling the future. Nor did she really want to know what would happen later; thinking about it already hurt too much.
Jason said, "Ready?"
Lucien set the map of London in front of her. She closed her eyes and thought of her twin, her other, better self. Kira, where are you? Tell me where you are, love. She repeated the sentences like a litany until her consciousness was saturated with the essence of her sister.