Page 85 of Regency in Color

As the sun touched the horizon, a cloud of crows seemed to rise from the churchyard outside St. Leonard’s. Dozens if not hundreds of them soared above the crowd, swarming up and up and up until they disappeared over the top of the theater. The crowd tittered, but Andie could only stare, aghast.

“It’s not just a clever name.”

Andie turned at the sound of Frank’s voice behind her. He stood in a side doorway with his arms crossed, unbothered by all the people waiting to get in. In a starched white shirt with a high collar and braces, he looked rather more debonaire than the previous day. He’d shaved and taken such care with his hair that Andie might have mistaken him for a gentleman if not for his sleeves, which were once again rolled up to his elbows. Curiously, she didn’t mind the oversight.

“The Crow’s Nest. Very clever.” She smiled. “Were they already here when you moved in, or…?”

Frank gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head and motioned her closer. “Between you and me?” He lowered his face to hers until she could smell the orange-flower water in his skin. “It’s sunflower seeds.”

Andie was so unnerved by his nearness that she didn’t immediately register what he’d said. “Did you say sunflower seeds?”

He nodded. “Get them at the ‘change, cheap as anything. I take out a handful, give them a shake, and—” Frank mimed throwing seeds like he was rolling dice at a gaming table. “Works every time.”

Unsure if he was joking, Andie laughed. “You’ll have to show me sometimes.”

“I’ve got lots of things to show you. Let’s get started.” Clearly in his element, Frank pulled himself to full height and spun on his heel. He offered her his arm with all the melodrama of a pantomime. He was playing for cheap laughs. Andie knew that, so she was startled when she heard herself giggle.

Frank led her through the side door and down a twisting corridor of back hallways filled with scattered costumes and performers in various stages of undress. Two men assisted each other with affixing collars while three chorus girls layered garish petticoats over old-fashioned paniers. An older woman hauled an enormous tambourine toward a flight of narrow stairs, a thin cigar clamped between her serious lips. Another man followed with a percussion instrument Andie couldn’t identify, then the neck of a gargantuan string instrument appeared like a giraffe charging above the melee.

The woman carrying it was younger and smaller than Andie was. She stopped in front of Frank, almost tripping up a mustachioed gentleman carrying what Andie could only assume was a hurdy-gurdy. When the woman spoke, it was with a thick Spanish accent. “Is it bass tonight or not? Tell me before I haul this bastard up the stairs.”

“Theorbo,” Frank said, and Andie finally recognized the instrument. She had only ever seen illustrations; she didn’t expect them to be so big. “We have a guest tonight. We must show her what we can do. Miss Archer, this is Antonia. Antonia, Miss Andie Archer.”

Andie extended her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you…is it Mrs. Creighton?”

Antonia’s eyes grew huge, then she let out a laugh an ear-splitting laugh. “Mrs…” She laughed until she wheezed. “No, no, no. I would murder him before lunch. You see what he makes me do?” She hurled the theorbo onto her back, and Andie and Frank both ducked as the neck swung toward him. The whole instrument was easily two yards long. Without ceremony, she headed toward the stairs.

“Thank you, Antonia,” he called.

“Bugger yourself, Frank,” she answered.

Frank ran a hand through his hair with a laugh. “She loves me really.”

A man standing behind Frank with a guitar shook his head at her, and Andie had to stifle a laugh. “Is it always this…chaotic?”

“Chaotic? This is just Friday.” They continued through the hall toward a more central set of stairs. “I suppose it would seem chaotic if you weren’t accustomed to it. You’ll get to know everyone soon enough. I’ll introduce you around properly later.”

As they passed the main doors, Andie noticed the crowd outside had doubled as well. “How many people work here?”

If Frank noticed the crowd, he ignored them as he led her up the stairs. “The orchestra has twelve at the moment, then there’s half a dozen regular performers for the show, not counting guests. Of course, some of the musicians are also performers—Pietro and Lorenzo are acrobats, for example. I’d have them on stage every night, but where would I find another oboe da caccia expert in these parts?” He laughed to himself, and Andie began to wonder if he was quite mad. She knew for certain he was when his gaze fixed on a seemingly empty space and he cried, “Lulu!”

After a moment’s pause, a girl peeked out from behind a gold-painted pillar. Younger than the other performers by a good few years, she was perhaps fourteen. Tall for a child, she had olive skin and a pair of huge, oddly solemn dark eyes. “I’m here.”

Frank’s whole face warmed up when he saw her. As they reached the next floor, he introduced them. “This is Miss Archer, the singer I told you about. Would you be so good as to show her the ropes tonight? Give her the famous Lulu tour?”

The girl smiled shyly, but she nodded.

“Lovely. Miss Archer, this is Lucrezia. She’s our costume designer, set designer, crow wrangler, and accounts clerk. She keeps the tomatoes alive—old tomatoes very much included—and incidentally, she is also my daughter.” Frank bowed.

Lulu rolled her eyes dramatically but gave a little curtsy. “Miss Archer.”

Utterly charmed, Andie couldn’t help but grin. “I’m delighted to meet you, Lulu. What will you show me first?”

Lulu looked to her father for guidance.

He shrugged. “I trust you. I’d better be off, but you two sit in the box tonight. I want Miss Archer to have a good view.”

“But the bridge…?” Lulu frowned.