Page 67 of Mesmerized

“It could be because Olivia is in this house. Perhaps that is the vital confluence,” Bellard said. “Or it could be the combination of Olivia and Lord St. Leger. Or perhaps it is the mixing of all three—Olivia, St. Leger and Blackhope.”

“But why?” Olivia asked. “I mean, obviously the place would have something to do with it. And St. Leger is the lord of the estate, even if it was not his ancestor who was involved in this story. But what would I have to do with it?”

“It must involve you,” Stephen argued. “If it was only the combination of the house and me, it could have happened anytime these past six months. Indeed, it could have happened years ago, when I was growing up here.”

“We are not the only people who have converged at this place,” Olivia pointed out. “Madame Valenskaya and her group are here, as well.”

“But I thought, from what Stephen told me, you had concluded that what the medium did was all quackery,” Rafe said.

“Oh, they are definitely after money or the Martyrs’ treasure, and most everything they have done has been a fraud,” Stephen agreed. “But there is the matter of Mr. Babington’s peculiar behavior at the last séance. We cannot deny that something sent him into a very real state of unconsciousness. And Madame Valenskaya and her group have been here in the house during the time of the visions and dreams. I think we must consider the possibility that they had something to do with them.”

“It is rather a lot to ask of coincidence that this medium is here at the same time you are experiencing your ‘ghostly’ visions,” Olivia’s great-uncle agreed.

“Of course, Stephen had the first dream before either of us had met Madame Valenskaya,” Olivia said.

“But not before she had come on the scene,” Great-uncle Bellard pointed out. “She was already involved with Lady St. Leger, was she not?”

“That’s true,” Stephen admitted.

“When you meet Madame Valenskaya, you will see that she is not capable of carrying off something so skilled,” Olivia commented.

“What about her companions?” Great-uncle Bellard asked.

“Her daughter is a veritable mouse of a woman,” Stephen explained. “And Mr. Babington has been unconscious the past few days.”

“Perhaps it is somebody else, someone who is not even here,” Rafe suggested. “He is pulling the puppets’ strings, so to speak, and you don’t know who he is.”

“Yes. We had even discussed that once,” Stephen said.

“You know...” Bellard mused. “Perhaps it was not by happenstance that Madame Valenskaya latched on to Lady St. Leger. Maybe it was as a result of a careful plan. I would be rather interested in knowing how your mother met this medium. Who introduced them?”

They looked at Stephen, who shrugged. “I have no idea. I don’t recall that Mother ever said. I can ask her, of course, but I have to tread carefully where Madame Valenskaya is concerned. Lady St. Leger is very distressed by the existence of my disbelief. The medium has told her that my cynicism stands in the way of the spirits reaching her, you see.”

“A common ploy,” Olivia added. “It is a handy way to silence critics, making the nonappearance of the spirits the critics’ fault.”

“Yes, I see.”

“I’d like to see this woman in action,” Rafe said.

“Yes,” Great-uncle Bellard agreed eagerly. “It would be quite interesting to witness a séance.”

“I am sure one can be arranged,” Stephen said. “We shall broach the subject tonight at supper.”

* * *

SUPPER THAT EVENING was a livelier affair than usual. Lady St. Leger was predictably charmed by Rafe McIntyre and proud to now have as a guest not only a duke’s daughter, but also a duke’s uncle. Just as predictably, Lady Pamela spent the entire meal flirting madly with Stephen’s former partner. The American obligingly flirted back, but there was a cynical gleam in his blue eyes that made Olivia suspect he knew the true story of what had occurred between Stephen and Pamela. The wry glance Stephen shot at Rafe confirmed her suspicion.

About halfway through the meal, Stephen brought up the subject of a séance. “Madame Valenskaya, I was hoping that you would grace us with another sitting while Lord Moreland is here. Tonight, perhaps?”

Madame Valenskaya turned to him with a startled look. “A—a sitting, my lord?”

“I would greatly appreciate it, Madame,” Great-uncle Bellard added.

The medium glanced around vaguely. “Mmm. I don’t—I’m not sure.”

“Oh, yes, please.” Lady St. Leger added her entreaty to the others.

“But Mr. Babington...it, um, would seem not respectful, yes?” The medium nodded emphatically with her words, and her cap slipped a little over one ear.