Chapter Six
Later that afternoon
Since the rain stopped around teatime, once the guests had partaken of the repast, a few groups decided to walk to the traveler’s fair.
Mary let her husband escort her, and they hung back from the other walkers.
Neither one of them wished to join a group or the conversation therein, for the talk they’d had in the portrait gallery earlier had been heavy and serious.
She’d been exhausted afterward and had lain down for a brief nap.
Gabriel had been left to his own devices, but when she’d woken, he swore he was reading and answering correspondence.
Oddly, she believed him, for he had no reason to lie, and she had no reason not to trust him. Which made the slight rift between them even more perplexing.
“Is there something you are especially looking forward to finding while we’re at the fair?” he asked as they strolled through the meadow grass.
“I’m not sure.” She tightened her fingers in the crook of his elbow while straining to see past the walking parties.
As of yet, the fair hadn’t come into view.
“Perhaps it’s not much of what I want to find but what I want to experience.
” It had been ages since she’d visited a traveler’s fair.
At times, Bright would take her to a night circus at Vauxhall Gardens, but as of late, they hadn’t been anywhere overly much. “What about you?”
“I might enjoy sampling some of the foods, but mostly, I just want to spend the time with you.” He peered down at her, and amusement danced in his hazel eyes beneath the brim of his top hat.
“We need to make a concentrated effort to carve out time each week for the two of us. I’m now realizing it is something vital that is missing in our lives. ”
A bit of happiness welled in her chest. “That would be lovely.” Perhaps he was learning, and she needed to do the same. “Outings in the middle of the day or even attending the opera in the evenings would be great fun.”
“I agree.” He patted her hand but didn’t say anything else.
After walking for another twenty minutes with desultory conversation, the traveler’s fair came into view with a tall pole of a round tent of some sort.
Perhaps there would be a play in that tent or an animal exhibition.
The excitement of attending the fair enveloped her, and she couldn’t wait to immerse herself in a world beyond her reality.
“Perhaps we shall indulge in games this afternoon. The skies have cleared, so we need to take advantage of that.” Bright raised a hand in greeting to an acquaintance of his, but Mary didn’t know who the man was.
When she glanced at him in inquiry, he chuckled.
“He was a client from a few months ago. His home had been burgled, and I managed to track down the thief who’d taken a few pieces of jewelry. ”
“How interesting.” Not very often did he tell her about the cases he worked… unless they involved murder. Then he would ask her to partner with him in that. “Look how darling the wagons are!”
As they came further into the clearing where the fair had set up, visitors laughed and chatted in gay fashion.
The different hues of the ladies’ dresses reminded her of spring flowers.
Delighted screeches from children rang in the air.
Savory and sweet scents tickled her nose from food carts.
Flashes of brilliant color from the travelers’ clothing gave life to the meadow grass and the stretches of mud formed by the recent rain.
Brightly decorated wagons were arranged in a large, wide semi-circle throughout the fairgrounds to frame the central structure she saw earlier.
Tent-like stalls lay interspersed between them where vendors sold their wares.
“This is really quite something,” Bright said as he inspected the area with his hands on his hips. “Where shall we start?”
“That is a difficult decision, isn’t it?” As the walking parties went in different directions, she led her husband forward toward the middle of the arc. What would banish the ennui that suddenly plagued her? “I think I want something fun but mysterious.”
“Ah, then you are in luck. Aren’t those the very things at the foundation of this fair?”
“Perhaps.” When she glanced up into his face, she quelled the urge to smile as a faint tickling sensation invaded her belly. How could she remain out of sorts with him when he could still affect her thusly? “Come along, Bright.” With quickened steps, she continued toward a wagon nearby.
“Where?”
As she drew close, a wooden sign proclaimed, “Fortunes told.”
“Let us start here.” In short order, she found the owner of the wagon sitting at a small, round table near the rear of the vehicle that was painted in pleasing colors of sage green and rosy pink.
The interior had been decorated to resemble the interior of a cozy cottage, and for one wild moment, Mary wished she could ride away with the travelers and start her life anew.
But then she would miss Gabriel and the children far too much.
The older woman with beautifully braided salt-and-pepper hair gestured her over and then pointed to a wooden stool across from her table. “I am Elena. Would you like to have your fortune read this afternoon?”
Bright frowned. “Telling the future is impossible.”
Of course he would say that. He was one of those people who didn’t believe in a thing unless he could see it first. Mary patted his arm.
“Hush, Bright. It will be fine. If you don’t wish to be here, I can catch you up.
” When his frown deepened, she sat in the indicated chair. “Your name is beautiful. I’m Mary.”
“Ah. A proper English name if dull.” The older woman flicked her gaze to Bright. “You belong to her, yes?”
Ruddy color climbed his neck above his collar. “I am Inspector Bright, her husband.”
Slowly, Elena nodded. “There is trouble between you, a darkness of sorts.”
He crossed his arms at his chest. “This is nothing more than poppycock.”
“You are entitled to your opinion, but my words are true.”
“Are they? I suspect you give people false hope and comfort while fleecing them out of their coin. Am I right?”
Mary huffed out a breath. “You are being ridiculous, Bright,” she whispered to him as the heat of embarrassment crept into her chest. “It’s only a bit of fun.” She transferred her gaze to Elena. “I will pay you to read my fortune.”
The older woman nodded. “I thank you for that.”
Yet Bright wouldn’t be deterred. “I don’t believe a person can see another’s future.”
One of Elena’s heavy eyebrows rose in challenge. “Then there is no need for you to be here, Inspector.”
Dear heavens, why is he acting like this?
He snorted. “I don’t want you to fill Mary’s head with lies.”
“Or alternatively, I might give her hope. I can see in her eyes she is desperate for that, for she hasn’t had it from you.”
Hurt jumped into Bright’s eyes. “I rather think you’ll tell her of dark tidings that will never happen.”
“That is entirely possible, but you are also afraid of the same. There are, indeed, dark clouds on your horizon.”
Another grunt escaped him. “Weather related?” He cast a glance at the skies. “It’s bloody England. It’s a safe bet that it will rain sooner rather than later.”
Mary gawked at him. “Enough, Bright. There is no need to come the crab.” Had Elena struck a nerve with him? Why hadn’t he mentioned it to her last night or even earlier in the portrait gallery?
“The inspector is correct. Some things we can easily glean for ourselves, but others are definitely in shadow.” Elena narrowed her eyes as she and Bright exchanged glares.
“I would venture to say that you are afraid I will tell your wife the truth, are you not? And in that, I might show her a choice of paths to take, for you might come up empty-handed if she takes one over the other.”
Oh, dear. What does that even mean?
Before Mary could intervene, even as a cold tremble twisted down her spine, Bright said, “You are a nothing but a charlatan, madam.”
Elena shrugged, and it was quite an eloquent expression. “That depends on your perspective, but you are in danger of losing everything.”
Bright grunted. “Tonight? This week?”
“Would you like to know?” When he remained silent, she continued.
“I can tell you this. Perhaps soon or perhaps sometime in your future, you will meet a larger, more complicated challenge than what you face now. It might prove the end of all that you hold dear. Only you can decide how much damage it will bring to your life.” There was nothing malicious in her voice, only facts.
“Be prepared, Inspector. You will need that.”
For the space of a few heartbeats, Bright remained silent. Then he cleared his throat. “Bah. Such gammon. A man makes his own luck, his own fortune, and his own happiness.”
“All of which you are worried about, Mr. Man with a Scowl. Now go away and let me talk to your wife. There are things she needs to know.”
Knots of worry tugged in Mary’s stomach. “It’s all right, Gabriel. I’ll come and find you once I’m done here.”
“Fine.” Though he relaxed his arms, the rest of his form was as taut as a bowstring. “I’m going for some ale.”
Once he left them alone, Mary sighed. “I apologize for his behavior. He is not usually like this.”
Elena smiled. “Are you certain? Or have you merely become accustomed to it?” The Romani accent was soft in her melodious tone.
Heat smacked Mary’s cheeks. “I often wonder that myself, but truly, he has grown as a person since we met.”
“Very well.” The other woman nodded. “Do you wish to have your fortune told, Mrs. Bright?” The sunshine yellow scarf that covered her salt-and-pepper hair was a splash of gladness in the rain-drenched world.
Silver spangles on her maroon and orange gown caught the sun as did several bangle bracelets on her wrists. “Only two pence.”
“I do. Thank you.” She rooted in her reticule for the required payment and offered the coins to Elena. “It’s all in fun.”