Page 66 of Dick Stone, Regency Stud
Once again, time slowed. When the physician’s eyes slid to the doorknob that led to Edward’s room, he finally realized what the man had been telling him.
He flung open the door, but it was too late. The window had been unlocked and left wobbling on its hinges. Tobias was nowhere to be found.
In the casements, the new caulk appeared damaged, as if someone had scratched at it like a trapped animal before remembering how to free the latch.
“I suppose she’s gone,” said the doctor, taking out a cheroot and standing by as he waited for Edward to come to his senses and settle the bill. “Exam still happened.”
“I didn’t even know her name,” mumbled Edward, feeling for the coins.
“Said it was Tabitha,” said the physician, clapping him on the shoulder in thanks when he handed over payment.
Tabitha.
“Don’t worry, my man,” said the doctor as he started down the stairs, “they always come back, those tabby cats. Just put out a bowl of milk and give her a few days.”
“I don’t think this one will,” muttered Edward to himself as he re-entered the room.
By now, it was night. Tobias…Tabitha had straightened his bed before departing, despite his…her panic. He regarded the open window again and ran his fingers through the gouges in the caulk.
Edward sank onto the bed, imagining what it would be like to never see his friend again. Not because of a terrible accident, but because of this secret he never expected.
He resigned himself to going out in search of a bottle of liquor when a bright light caught his eye. There on his desk was Tobias’s prized silver water flask. Tabitha’s flask.
“You can’t be going about without this,” he said to himself, tucking it into his coat pocket. He’d set out to find her tomorrow. She’d want this back.
Above his head that night, the window remained just a little open, letting in the fetid London air as he thought of how to track her down.
Come wind, come weather, he’d get his friend back.
THE END
