9The Chronicles of Accidental Romance Part 1.
1896
It was late at night, one Autumn evening when Addie was woken from her peaceful slumber by her House Keeper, Mrs Brown. Rubbing her weary eyes, the young woman glanced at her bedside clock; 11 o'clock. She groaned, wanting to go back to sleep, but knew that her friends were waiting down stairs for her.
So, instead of throwing on her uniform, Addie simply threw on the cream and brown walking dress she had been wearing earlier that day and traversed down the stairs to Henry and George.
Her hair was in a messy braid, there was sleep in her eyes and the young woman was constantly yawning, so it was no surprise that she failed to realize that her two best friends were armed. When she did notice, it was too late; they were already at the suspects hide-out, the empty sewers next to the river.
"Stay close to Crabtree and Higgins Addie." The Inspector had warned her.
Although she tried her best, when she heard a stone skitter across the floor, she had to look. It wasn't until the Inspector looked back that anyone knew she was missing.
"Oh bloody Hell! That girl doesn't listen to a word I say!" He hissed, his voice echoing slightly in the emptiness around him.
"I'll go look for her sir." Higgins offered.
All the men looked at each other and then past Higgins, into the dark.
"You be careful buggalugs."
Henry kept his finger on the trigger the whole time, as he traipsed around the sewer, looking for Addie. He chose to make his way back to the entrance, guessing they'd lost her somewhere around there.
Turning a corner, he almost jumped out of his skin, as Addie turned the corner at the same time.
"Addie! You frightened me to death! Where have you been?" he whispered, looking around him for danger.
"I heard a noise and went to see what it was..."
"Are you insane? The man could have taken your throat out!"
"Sorry, I wasn't thinking-"
The young constables' argument was cut off by a loud gun shot. Instinctively, Henry threw himself around his young friend, essentially protecting her from a bullet.
"Henry..."
"Shh!"
The two of them spent a few moments pressed together against a wall, waiting to see what would happen next, listening intently, when footsteps began to echo around them, and George's voice called out to them.
The pair sighed, great full that it was just their friend, who, little did they know, had been watching them for several moments.
1896, October.
"You know, I think it's wonderful that the detective has a brother!" Addie breathed happily, as she took her place at the trio's shared desk.
"Really?" George asked, following suit.
"Why wouldn't it be George? Especially now that he knows there's someone with, more or less the same morals as him, and of the same intellect. My brother and I were the same."
"You've got a brother?" Henry asked, undoing his top button and leaning back in his chair.
"Yes, his name's Edward Thomas," she paused in thought, as she did so often, "Don't you have a brother too Henry?"
Henry now shifted uncomfortably in his chair, scratching the side of his neck just below his jaw.
"Well yes, but we're absolutely nothing alike. He's more amorous than I am, a womanizer really, so my father thinks...Apparently, there's always a woman taking his eye, it's a different woman almost every week. How they fall for his ridiculous charms are beyond me."
George and Addie shared a look, as the latter started to giggle, and the former just shook his head and leaned back into his chair. Henry gave them both a puzzled look, glancing from the young woman, to the young man in front of him.
"What?"
"Henry, you're exactly the same..."
"No I'm not!" Henry Higgins now protested.
"Yes you are!" Addie laughed, "You have a new lady almost every month!"
Henry now paused to think. And thus admitted defeat.
"I'm not as bad as my brother."
"If you say so." she shrugged, picking up the newspaper, looking for the days crossword.
"It just takes time." George added.
"What does?" Henry asked, suddenly curious.
"Love, I mean, finding the right person. It can take a while to find, but when you do, you never know who it could be. They could be right under your nose, but you might not notice for a while."
Then he discretely inclined his head towards their friend, who was completely absorbed in the crossword puzzle.
Henry furrowed his brow at his friend.
"What are you getting at?"
"Nothing, nothing at all, I'm just saying that the perfect person could be right in front of you."
Henry sighed and rolled his eyes.
"George, Addie and I are friends-"
"And I suppose, you're taking her to see the Nutcracker Ballet, which happens to be her favourite ballet, because...?"
Now Henry was flustered.
"As an early birthday present?"
"That doesn't convince me at all... Henry man, why don't you just admit that you're taken with her?"
"George I'm not... I like Addie, yes, but it's not like that. Besides, even if I did have those kind of feelings towards her, she's too high above my station."
George rolled his eyes at his long time friend, and then stole a glance towards Addie. She was still absorbed in her cross word puzzle, and hadn't heard a thing they'd said. This, he knew, because she was mumbling to herself.
"Famous book, five-three-nine..." she thought for a moment. "Pride and Prejudice. Finished." she announced proudly, sitting back and promptly dropping the paper on to the desk in front of her. She looked, momentarily at the finished crossword puzzle, before she rose elegantly from her seat, with an almost, forlorn air about her. Sighing, she stepped into Brackenried's office. George watched her carefully. Perhaps she had been listening...
June 24th, 1897.
Today it rained. I suppose it's fitting really, considering that I found out my new sweetheart was blackmailing someone and it led to his death. I feel a fool. Of course, the men a the station aren't saying anything, but then again, I think they're just being polite. Uncle Tom seems to think molly-coddling me will make me feel better, and George and Henry, my two best friends aren't speaking to me, because they seem to think that being alone would help me feel better. It doesn't, all I feel is resentment towards myself. I should have known he was too good to be true, but as usual, I let my heart do the thinking instead of my brain.
June 25th, 1897.
Walked into the station this morning, only to find myself surrounded by clowns. I don't mean the men at the station. I mean actual clowns. I hate clowns. I don't see what's so damn jolly, about someone who's complexion could give Dracula a run for his money...
"Uh... sir... may I esquire as to what an entire circus is doing in the station?" Addie asked uncomfortably, looking around at the clowns, side-shows and freaks. There were midgits, giants. Even conjoined twins, whom Henry seemed to be very keen on. Typical Henry.
"It seems that a tiger tamer has been eaten by her tiger..."
"And so you brought the entire circus in I see."
"Yes, well..." the Detective sighed, somewhat overwhelmed. "As soon as the tiger escaped, the circus packed up and left."
"Ah... well, you could have at least left out the clowns..." she muttered.
"Not keen on them?"
"You could say that sir... Personally, if someone has the same complexion or paler, than Dracula's, I don't really see what the amusement is... Why must they wear that horrid make up... I could do the things they do without all that and still be funny." the young woman grumbled, pressing her back against a near by desk as several clowns traipsed by. From the stairs in the short distance across the room, she could see Henry and George, as well as several other of her friends, speaking to the two, in her opinion, extremely pretty conjoined twins. She sighed, only just catching Henry revealing a bandage on his arm to the group around him.
"Sir... what happened to Higgins?"
"Ah, George and he, told me that the tiger bit him when they were trying to calm the situation."
"Good God.. Well, he certainly is putting his wound to good use it seems."
Murdoch rolled his eyes. All the station knew Henry Higgins had an eye for the ladies, and he got them because he was so incredibly charming. Addie was just assessing this quality of his, when Murdoch suddenly became very pale. Addie gave him a confused look, before she felt something slither past the back of her shoulders.
"Addie. Don't move a muscle."
Of course when someone says that to anyone, they have to look behind them. Only when Addie looked behind her, she wished she hadn't. Slithering down her arm, was a cobra. A cobra. Murdoch shouted for quiet, as he stared at the deadly snake with dread. Addie's breathing hastened, and she began to panic, though she didn't move. Gulping, as Murdoch called for the snake's handler to come and get the snake, she tried to steady her heart beat and uneasy breathing. Before the handler had a chance to remove the cobra from the terrified constable's arm, it lashed out and bit her.
The poisonous snake sank it's fangs deep into her hand. Murdoch cried out in horror, as the handler tore the snake from her skin, and caught her as she fell in shock. Her face paled instantly, ashen, with dark patches around her eyes. The handler always kept anti-venom on hand, just in case of emergency, and so he administered it with agility and ease, while Hodges called for an ambulance.
As soon as Addie had been taken away to hospital for treatment, Murdoch and the Inspector had gone wild. All the dangerous animals and reptiles were to be locked up where they couldn't escape.
Since Addie was in hospital, the station was one hand down, a good hand at that, and the station was overwhelmed with the entire circus. So aside from the good doctor Ogden, Addie was left to herself, more or less unconscious with virtually no visitors.
After a week, the case had been solved, and the circus gone. Addie was awake, but still in hospital. Being told to rest, the only place she went was to the showers and toilet or to the garden. On the day Higgins came to take her home, she was sat in a chair by the window, writing in her diary.
2nd July, 1897.
Got bitten by a cobra not long after I came into work and wrote in my diary. Turns out it was a crime of love. Why do I know this. Doctor Ogden, the only person I've seen all week other than the wretched nurse. Apparently, I'm still not well enough to walk anywhere on my own, so Uncle Tom is sending Henry to fetch me home. I can imagine the conversation being fixed on the twins he met. Julia said he was fascinated with them. Just like him...
"Hello Addie." He greeted his friend nervously. She slammed her little diary shut and rose to her wobbly feet.
"Henry."
"How are you feeling?"
"Better... I was told you got bitten by the tiger."
"I was.. it's nothing." he shrugged. The conversation died for a moment, until he quickly revived it. "We were worried about you."
"Oh?"
"Yes. The detective almost had a heart attack and the Inspector went on a rampage."
That's just typical of Uncle Tom. Addie thought. She wondered how Henry would have felt. George, she knew would be more worried than anyone. He had a worried and caring streak right through him. But Henry, well you could never tell with him unless he told you. And usually he'd try to hide his feeling.
"Well it's nice to know someone missed me."
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, scowling.
"Nothing. Never mind Henry. Just let me go home and rest."
Finally! Another chapter D.O.N.E! :) read, enjoy and review!