The Clockwork Scarab (Stoker & Holmes 1)

Pepper had braided my hair tightly against my head and pinned a bonnet over it. I chose the hat because it was abominably ugly. With five long pheasant feathers sprouting from the back of the crown and miniature brown-speckled blue bird's eggs decorating it, I knew no one would believe it was fashionable Evaline Stoker under that brim. We pinned false red-gold curls underneath. Miss Holmes had suggested I wear clear-glass spectacles, which she claimed would help to disguise the shape of my eyes. I also wore flat shoes to make me appear shorter.

"Merely changing the color of your hair and style of dress isn't enough to hide your true identity," she lectured. "And for heaven's sake, keep your gloves on at all times. One's hands are an excellent means of identification, and most people don't think to disguise them."

Thinking it might be fun to don our disguises together, I suggested we get dressed at Grantworth House. But Miss Holmes gave me a disapproving look. "We can't arrive together, even if we are in disguise. I will be at Witcherell's at nine o'clock."

I'd seen many disreputable storefronts and buildings, but Witcherell's was the dirtiest place I'd ever seen. Located at ground level several blocks from Haymarket, it was on the same street as a dingy pub, a sad-looking bakery, a second pawnshop, and an empty storefront. Just the sort of places a pickpocket or thief would frequent.

The street and walkway were busy. Yet when I glanced up and down the way, there was no sign of Mina Holmes-even in disguise. So I walked into the pawnshop.

The only person inside was the proprietor, a skinny man with protruding eyes and a bald head. His nose was a large triangular blade that made even Miss Holmes's look dainty. He looked at me as I came in. Was I to ask about the Sekhmet Society meeting? Unlike when we attended the Roses Ball, this time Miss Holmes hadn't given me any indication of how she expected to proceed.

And I hadn't thought to ask. Or to plan ahead.

Chafing with impatience, I looked around for inspiration. How on earth did this place stay in business? Every one of its offerings seemed to fall under one of three categories: filthy, broken, or filthy and broken.

A little tinkle of bells drew my attention from behind, and I turned to see a young woman walk through the door. Finally. A young woman would never be in a place like this unless she was planning to attend the Society of Sekhmet meeting.

She glanced around hesitantly, then edged her way toward the counter where the proprietor sat watching both of us like a large, silent toad.

I would have assumed the newcomer was my partner, but it wasn't. Miss Holmes's nose would have given her away immediately. This young woman's nose, although by no means delicate, was shaped differently. Her cheeks and jaw were round and pudgy, and her skin was an unbecoming ruddy color. Her dark hair looked as if it were about to tumble free of its haphazard pins. She obviously didn't have a lady's maid to help her dress, although her clothing seemed well made.

However shyly she moved, this young woman appeared to have a better notion of what to do than I. She walked with small steps up to the counter.

"Oh," she said, pausing to poke her fingers around inside a shallow bowl. There was a soft rattling sound, as if the small objects were being stirred up. Her voice was loud and a little squeaky. "These beetles are just utterly too, too!"

Beetles? I wasted no time edging my way toward the counter.

"If ye be likin' dem, missy, ye mun fin' more o' dem back 'roun' 'ere," said the proprietor. He flipped up a section of the counter and gestured the young woman through.

Despite my impatience, I waited until she disappeared into the back room. Then I approached and looked in the bowl. It was filled with Egyptian scarabs.

"I like these beetles," I said. "May I look at the others in the back?"

The proprietor looked at me balefully. "I ain't got no more dem beet-ulls," he said, and picked up a rag that might once have been white. "Dis 'ere's wot I got." He began to polish a metal cup, ignoring me.

What had I done wrong? Was I supposed to speak some sort of password?

Surely no one chose a password as ridiculous as "utterly too, too" . . . did they?

I stewed about the situation for a moment, wandering the shop. All the while, I watched the skinny toad out of the corner of my eye. Then I came back to the bowl and dragged my fingers through it again, disturbing the disk-like scarabs. "What cunning little things," I said, trying not to sound as ridiculous as I felt. "They're simply, utterly too, too!"

"If y'ain't gerrna buy nuthin' or sell nuthin', then ye can stop wastin' m'time," the shopkeeper snapped, setting the metal cup down with a loud clang.

"I'm looking for more scarabs like those," I said. "You sent that other girl to look at them. Why won't you let me through?"

He remained silent.

What in the blooming fish was wrong with me? I couldn't even get past the owner of a pawnshop. And though I waited, hoping Miss Holmes or some other Sekhmet Society member would arrive, the shop remained empty of anyone but me and the beady-eyed proprietor.

At last I had no choice but to leave. The door slammed behind me as if to punctuate my displeasure. It was nearly half past nine. If I didn't find a way into the back room, Mina Holmes was liable to get herself killed. Aside from that, she'd never let me forget it if she gained access and I didn't. She must have made her way past the obnoxious gatekeeper prior to my arrival. I could only imagine what she was doing in the midst of the Society of Sekhmet.

I should have insisted we meet up ahead of time. This was no place for someone like her to be on her own. For one thing, she'd probably trip and draw the Ankh's attention to her straightaway.

But there was more than one way to skin a cat. And a scrawny little toad wasn't going to keep me from my mission.

As I came out onto the narrow walkway in front of Witcherell's, I peered up at the tall stretch of building. It rose several stories, appearing to merge into the dark sky. High above was a fly-bridge connecting this building to the one across the air-canal. A tiny golden light winked on either end, and there appeared to be a small landing on either side of the fly-bridge.

There.

I hurried across the throughway opposite Witcherell's, and along the stationary walkway until I found a lift. For once, I had a small pouch of coins with me. I slid two farthings onto the money tray and shoved it in place. The brass gate clicked, then opened, and I slipped through onto the lift. The night air was cool and crisp at this height, and the heavy layer of polluted fog dissipated as I rose in the open-air conveyor.

I exited five levels above the pawnshop and at the same location as the fly-bridge. Up here, the buildings were so wide at the top that they were only a short distance across the air-canal. Looking overhead, I saw the air-anchors wafting gently in the breeze, outlined by a drassy moon and stars. Each anchor sported several tiny glowing lights on the balloon as well as on the line attaching it to the building as a warning for airships that might fly through.