Madame Osiris pushed her chair back from the table, allowing the candlelight to illuminate her fully, the better to glower fiercely at Molly.
Nice to see you again too, Madame O, Molly said cheerfully. Don t get up. We re not staying. And we re definitely not tourists, so lay off the purple prose.
Madame Osiris sniffed loudly. All the stalls on all the piers and you had to come walking into mine. I should have seen this coming. She looked me over in an impersonal sort of way.
So this is the new boyfriend, is it? You always did like them big and dumb, Molly. Whatever happened to Oh, you know, Big and Blond and Ethereal? I always liked him.
He couldn t stand the pace, said Molly. She smiled at me. This one can.
Nicest thing you ve ever said about me, I said.
Madame Osiris was still giving me the once-over, in a considering sort of way that was probably designed to make me feel uncomfortable. So when in doubt, attack. I struck a deliberately casual pose and gave her my best intimidating smile.
We re not here to have our futures told. We have questions we want answered.
You and the whole world, dearie. Oh, sit down, sit down. You make the place look untidy.
I glanced at Molly, who nodded to the only empty chair. I sat down facing Madame Osiris, and she smiled briefly like she d just won a point. Molly made a point of standing beside me with her arms folded impatiently.
Cross my palm with silver, dearie, Madame Osiris said briskly, and I shall reveal all.
You ll catch your death in this weather, said Molly.
How about I cross your palm with gold? I said. I sent my armour shooting down my arm to cover my hand in a golden gauntlet and slammed it down on the table. Madame Osiris didn t even jump. Just looked at it like I d dropped a fresh turd on the table before her.
Stone me, it s a Drood. She looked at my throat. Yes, there it is: the golden dog collar. Should have spotted it the moment you walked in I must be getting old. Looks a bit odd, though; a bit off-colour She raised an eyebrow, but I just smiled and said nothing, and pulled the armour back off my hand. Madame Osiris shrugged briefly. None of my business, dearie. See if I care. She looked reproachfully at Molly. Dating a Drood? That really the best you can do? I thought you had better taste. All right. What do you want to know? And, no, I don t do lottery numbers.
Where can we find the Regent of Shadows? I said.
She surprised me then by laughing in my face. Don t need a crystal ball for that one, dearie. You don t find him. He finds you.
Forget the clever dialogue, I said. I m not a tourist. Where, exactly?
You need the Department of the Uncanny, in London, Madame Osiris said resignedly. Go to Big Ben and then ask again. And, no, I m not even a little bit kidding. Word is the Regent s going up in the world. Probably because he knows all kinds of things he isn t supposed to He s been making a lot of people nervous. Anything else you want from me before I invite you to go to hell by the express route? The last thing I need around here is your kind, lowering the tone and attracting the kind of attention I can well do without. You re bad news, Molly Metcalf, and you always were.
How can you say that, Madame O, after all we ve been through together? said Molly.
Madame Osiris glared at me. Run, boy, while you still can. She ll get you killed. Just like everyone else who gets close to her. The Metcalf sisters have never cared for anyone but themselves. There s a reason why they re still alive and the rest of their family isn t.
Never meet up again with old friends, Molly said to me. They ll always let you down.
And I can t believe you re stepping out with a Drood! snapped Madame Osiris. You have better reason than most to know what they really are! But then, you never did listen to me. I could have made you big!
This from someone hiding out in a fortune-teller s stall on Brighton Pier, said Molly. How have the mighty fallen
You little cow
That s enough! I said. I didn t come here for this!
And something in my voice snapped both their heads round to look at me. Madame Osiris actually looked startled for a moment, and Molly looked at me as though she didn t know me at all. And then they looked at each other.
Is he? said Madame Osiris.
Just a bit, said Molly.
You always did know how to pick them, dearie. Whatever happened to Roger Morningstar?
Dead, finally, said Molly.
Then we can all sleep a little more safely in our beds, at last. Are you in trouble, Molly?
Perhaps a little more than usual.
I always did have a soft spot for you, much against my better judgement. Like the daughter I never wanted. Lose the Drood, Molly, while you still can.
I can t, said Molly. He s the only one who ever really mattered to me.
Madame Osiris sighed. And love makes fools of us all. One more question, dearie, on the house, and I ll see what I can do.
Where are my sisters? said Molly. Right now.
Madame Osiris raised a heavily painted eyebrow. Don t you know?
Obviously not, or I wouldn t be asking! They ve got their auras turned off, and that isn t like them. So where are they?
Madame Osiris sat thoughtfully for a long moment, her dark eyes staring off into the distance and then she sat up straight and shrugged quickly. Sorry, dearie. Outside my range. But then, they always were. Come on, Molly. You know as well as I do that no one finds Isabella and Louisa if they don t want to be found. And wherever they are right now, they clearly don t want anyone else knowing.
But I m not anyone else! I m their sister!
Then the question you should be asking yourself, said Madame Osiris, is, What could they be up to that they know you wouldn t approve of? Maybe you should go talk to the Regent of Shadows. He knows everything about everyone. That s his job description. In fact, it s probably engraved on his business cards.
Molly nodded brusquely and turned to leave. You do know Osiris is a man s name, right?
Madame O laughed in a good-natured way. It s all Egyptian to me, dearie.
Molly and I made our way back down the Pier. Neither of us was in a hurry to get anywhere. We both had a lot to think about.
Well, I said finally. That was pretty much a waste of time.
Did you know the Regent of Shadows was now in charge of the Department of the Uncanny?
I d heard rumours.
Did you know he was hiding out at Big Ben?
Nice to have the rumours confirmed, I suppose, I said. Your Madame O gave me the impression of being just a bit rattled by our sudden appearance. She wasn t pleased to see you, and she definitely didn t like having me around.
Of course not, said Molly, smiling briefly.
You re a Drood.
The point I m making is, Do you think someone else might have got to her first? Crossed her palm with a hell of a lot of silver to point us in the wrong direction?
She didn t know we were coming to see her, said Molly. She couldn t. Hell, we didn t know until I made the decision just a few hours ago.
But if she can see the Future
Grow up, Eddie. Of course she can t! You are so gullible sometimes. That whole Madame Osiris thing is just for show! Just another con for the unwary It takes a hell of a lot of power to look into all the future timetracks ahead of us.
Someone with real power like Crow Lee? I said. My old tutors always said no one understood the Theory of Magick like Unholy Crow Lee. Molly, is it just me, or is it getting dark in a hurry?
We both stopped and looked around us and then up at the sky. Grim, overbearing clouds were forming out over the ocean, filling the sky and cutting off the sunshine. The temperature dropped perceptibly as something leached all the summer s warmth out of the day. A great grim fog was forming, rising up off the sea and heading straight for the Pier.