this chapter is so brutal.
•
after
Amelia Evans glared down at the silver box on the table, the one holding the vile piece of metal that connected to the ghost that attempted to kill them all in the middle of the night. She wanted no part in this meeting but Lockwood had dragged her down to the kitchen, ignoring the acidic words that spewed from her mouth about Lucy.
The girl in question was avoiding her icy glare, fear of being frozen in place making her avert her eyes away from the girl who was held in place from the arm Lockwood had wrapped around her waist. Even George could barely meet her eyes, his nervousness making him glance between Amelia and Lucy every few minutes to see when his best mate would finally blow her top towards the younger girl.
"I didn't know it was the source. I just took it because it's like I can feel what she feels. What she wants." Lucy was standing on the other side of the table attempting to reason with them while Amelia was sandwiched between Lockwood and George, her fingers twisting the necklace that she held dear between her fingers. "Uh. No, it's hard to explain.
"A psychic connection." Lockwood glanced down at Amelia to see her face set in stone, her thoughts completely hidden from them, before turning back to look at Lucy who was tapping a photo of the deceased woman against the table.
"Yes!" Lucy exclaimed in excitement that they were finally understanding why she took the source, though from the looks on their faces, they were still miles away from understanding completely.
"I literally cannot believe
you stole a source from a crime scene." George, always the logical member of the group, pointed out the one thing that they were all collectively thinking. It was the one thing that no one had mentioned but it sent a wave of nausea through Amelia's stomach as she realized that they were already in hot water with the company at hand. "DEPRAC will bury us."
"They'll bury her." Amelia declared snidely, her face twitching as Lucy's terrified eyes met her own. She could see that the younger girl was wary of her, especially when she noticed that Lockwood was almost as stony faced as she was in that moment. Lucy had yet to grasp that she had almost gotten them killed in their home, the one safety net that they had left in the world. "I warned you when you first turned up that you would wish you never had if you put us in danger. Instead of thinking logically, you stole a source and brought it into our home without locking it up properly. You risked my life and more importantly you risked the lives of Georgie and Lockwood. You can go about risking your own life but don't drag us down with you."
"Excuse me." Lucy welled with indignation, her face souring at the accusations thrown her way before she caught sight of the skull in the glass case that always sat there. "I'm not the only one round here who steals sources. What about that ridiculous skull you're always experimenting on?"
"That skull has been in our possession for three years." Amelia began heatedly when George shrunk back next to her. She could feel the warning in the way that Lockwood squeezed her side above her hip. She felt her fingers release the necklace that was wrapped soundly around her neck, the feel of it bouncing against the skin over her heart soothing her, before pointing harshly at Lucy. "It's in a case and has never tried to actively kill us like the source that you dared to bring into our home."
"Annabel was stuck behind a wall
for years with nobody knowing
and DEPRAC doing sod all." Lucy pleaded her case once again, her heart bleeding for the ghost that was now trapped inside of a little case in front of them all, just like she had been trapped behind a wall for all those years. "She needs our help."
"And what does she expect you to do, exactly, after all this time?" George spoke up again, his eyes drifting towards Amelia who was once again shooting the now heartened Lucy a firm scowl. It was a fiery look and he was instantly glad that the look was not directed towards him.
"Solve this." Lucy declared firmly, her eyes moving towards Amelia's own and raising an eyebrow in challenge. It was something that had become a common occurrence in the house since Lucy had joined them, a power struggle between the two that would more than likely end with Lucy flat on her arse. "Get justice."
Amelia snorted as if her words were the funniest thing that she had heard all night, her eyebrows raising at the furious look that was tossed her way by Lucy at the sound. The girl was a year younger than her, but she had obviously not grasped the concept of the world that they lived in, not truly. It was a cruel world, one where the big corporations and even the small ones, tossed away associates and hid behind lies to protect themselves. The ghosts were dead and gone and needed to be destroyed before they could drag others down with them.
"She's dead, Lucy. We can't help a ghost. We need to destroy her source and move on." Lockwood declared firmly, his hand squeezing Amelia's waist again but this time in comfort, knowing that destroying ghosts sometimes weighed her down from the way that she had destroyed her family's ghosts. It weighed her down and that was why they had brought Lucy in the fold in the first place, especially in cases that concerned children. "Let her go."
"You're acting like you can reason with this ghost to find out what happened to her and we will magically solve the case to save the day." Amelia interjected and Lucy looked slightly scolded at her words. Amelia's decaying heart bled for the girl in front of her because she had felt the same way once upon a time when her brother was concerned. However, ghosts were not the people that they had once been and it was their job to help the living move on. "All of our problems won't magically turn to pixie dust and float away by helping one ghost who you believe you've connected with. In fact, this ghost has only added to our growing list of problems by trying to murder us in the middle of the bloody night. I feel for you Lucy, I truly believe you mean well, but ghosts are no longer the people that they once were and they need to be put to rest by destroying the source that they cling to. The ring is getting tossed in a furnace and we're cleaning our hands of this whole nasty business."
"Just because you have such a jaded view of the world, doesn't mean the rest of us have to fall into line and be cold and uncaring. Have you not ever wanted to help one of the spirits find justice in the end?" The words were out of Lucy's mouth before she could take them back and she could see the moment that Amelia's face had fallen before the mask had quickly gone back up. The words were obviously the wrong thing to be spat at the other girl and Lucy could see that as she turned to George to plead her case when she saw the fury in his own eyes directed towards her. The words of warning that Lockwood had given her about the pair were ringing in her ears as she looked at him. "Come on, George. Back me up. You love a new experiment. Why throw away the chance
to investigate a new phenomenon?"
"Nice try, but psychic connections
are weak science." George declared coldly, his own hand reaching over to rest on Amelia's shoulders, and Lucy could see the wall of solidarity between the three older teens with Amelia Evans standing right in the middle of it all. Lockwood might have been their boss, but Amelia's opinion was obviously respected in their small group and she was their glue holding them all together. "You felt sorry for her. You heard her death loop. End of story."
"So prove it. Before you destroy the ring, let me try to connect with her one last time." Lucy pleaded with them softly, her eyes locking on Amelia's own because to sway the others she needed to sway her first. The whole thing was down to Amelia Evans being convinced that Lucy wouldn't get them all killed. "See what else I can feel. Let me prove to you that it is real. Let me help her like you wanted to help your one person."
"No way." Lockwood spoke quickly, eyeing the contemplative look that crossed Amelia's face and knew that she was close to being swayed even in her anger towards Lucy. If Amelia fell, the others would surely fall close behind. "Too dangerous."
"Dangerous is basically your middle name." Amelia declared softly, her eyes softening slightly at the sight of Lucy's pleading face. It hit too close to home for her and she knew she was being manipulated by the younger girl to see her viewpoint. Her thoughts turned to Henry, his red curls and the saddened smile the last time he had told her that he loved her. She would have given anything to help his ghost move on and get justice against their parents but they had taken that from them by finishing themselves off before she could bring him closure. Maybe it was the sentimental part of her that finally broke down because the anniversary was coming up or maybe she was just hoping for one more reason to turn Lucy over to DEPRAC, but she found herself nodding towards the younger girl. "You're a bloody idiot for bringing that vile ring into our home, but I can also vaguely see where you're coming from. The spirits are usually only left behind if they have unfinished business and while I don't particularly enjoy being manipulated, I can see the need to bring her justice. So you might be able to connect with her, but if you get yourself killed by stealing the blasted ring, I won't be able to haul you to DEPRAC for your stupidity which I am still sorely tempted to do."
"It is almost dawn." With Amelia much more complicit with the idea, for reasons they were all sorely aware of besides Lucy, George seemed much more compliant with the idea as he turned his head to offer Lockwood a small grin. "Her ghost will be much weaker."
"No. We've only just escaped with our lives." Lockwood commented firmly, his voice stern as he looked down at the others with a frown. He could see Amelia's train of through plain as day on her face. Thoughts of Henry were surely spilling into her head and he knew that she was hoping to help someone in the way that she couldn't help him. He could not however get the image of Amelia on the ground at the Holloway house cleared from his head and he didn't want to live through that experience again in their home. It would surely break him to the point of disrepair if he saw her fall in the place that he vowed would be her one safe haven. "Twice."
"Because you were unprepared." George squeezed Amelia's shoulder before moving to cross the room to stand beside the pleading Lucy, his hands twitching at his side by standing against his best mate even though she seemed more on board with the idea than she let on. She was furious with Lucy for endangering them all, but George knew that she wanted to help the girl just because of the memory of Henry. "Twice. This time, we'll do it properly."
"I need to do this." Lucy looked at the two opposing her and she watched Amelia Evans and Anthony Lockwood glance at each other and the small girl dip her head in the most subtle nod she had ever seen in her life. The relationship between the pair still confused her to know end, but from the way that Lockwood was slowly looking like he was conceding, it was clear to Lucy Carlyle which of the pair wore the pants in the relationship.
"If you get yourself killed, I'm calling DEPRAC and even if you don't, I'm still tempted to call them anyways just for a good laugh." Amelia declared lowly, her eyes conveying how much the idea scared her but the possibility of helping someone like she could have helped Henry won out over her anger towards Lucy. "Don't make us regret this Lucy."
"What was that you were saying
about normal people?" Lockwood mumbled unhappily after a deep exhale, feeling outnumbered as Amelia finally consented towards Lucy's pleas. The others shared a look before moving away, discussing the supplies that they would need to keep them all safe with Lucy's plan. Amelia moved to follow after them but Lockwood tightened his grip on her waist, turning her body towards him and showing his fear for the first time since they had woken up earlier that night. "Ames, I know that you're only going along with this because of the guilt that you're feeling from Henry, but what's your endgame here? You don't particularly like Lucy and you wanted to do nothing more than call DEPRAC on her earlier."
"If we can help this one ghost get justice, maybe I can begin to make up for all the things I did wrong with Henry." Amelia declared lowly after a moment of silence, her eyes staring at Lockwood's collarbone so that she wouldn't have to meet his curious eyes. "It's a stupid plan, but I'm doing what you want and trying to give the girl a chance even though she's completely earned my anger. I still want to turn her in for negligence, but her heart is in the right place."
"Who are you and what have you done with my Amelia Evans?" Lockwood squeezed her to him, fear in his veins at the idea of bringing about a ghost inside of their home for the second time that night. It was a risk, one that Amelia would have never taken, and he was wondering what was truly going on inside of her head. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head, inhaling softly and smiling at the scent of her lavender shampoo. "If something goes wrong, you get out of there and make the call to DEPRAC. You're far too important for me to lose over one ill thought out attempt to help a ghost."
"Something will probably go wrong, we've had that type of luck lately, but you're absolutely mad if you think I'm leaving you or George behind to save my own skin." Amelia reached up and flitted her fingers through his hair softly, feeling his body loosen at the calming sensation. Her eyes met his and she felt her breath catch at the emotion that she saw in them, something that was rare and beautiful and scared her more than words could describe. "I care about you and George far too much to lose you both so I'm going to supervise because Lucy would probably do this without us anyways. This way we can at least mitigate the damage and not ruin your parent's house. Besides, who better than to keep me safe than you. With you watching my back as closely as you have been since the Holloway estate, I don't think I would be able to get so much as a paper-cut in this house, much less a life threatening injury under your watchful gaze."
Amelia kissed his cheek gently and turned away from him to leave the room. Lockwood did watch her back as she left and unfortunately his gaze drifted just the slightest bit to the south towards her backside and he leaned his head back and sighed. The bloody woman was beautiful and astounding and he knew instantly that he was in so much trouble because she had him wrapped around her finger to the point that he didn't think he could deny her anything ever again.
•
before
She and Georgie had been at the house a few months, still adjusting to the creaks and groans the old house sometimes gave when they hit the wooden floors with heavy feet. It was a surreal experience to wake up in the same place for longer than a few days at a time, a warm cup of tea and food in their stomachs. It was surreal and sometimes Amelia felt like the other shoe was waiting to drop. She found herself that morning at the table, a soft smile on her face as she traced her fingers over the little notes that they had all written back and forth between each other. It was a habit that made her heart swell.
There was a sort of grief surrounding the girl that morning, one that had been noticed by Lockwood and sent him into a state of confusion, and one that had sent George into a worrisome tailspin when he caught sight of her as he walked into their small kitchen. He hadn't mentioned it, ignoring Lockwood's curious looks as he planned to make the day as painless as possible and entering the kitchen was the first step in that plan.
"Happy birthday Lia." George mumbled underneath his breath, gently pressing a kiss to the side of her head as he passed by her to head towards the stove, fully intent on showering her with love that day by starting with her favorite breakfast. He knew how much she despised the day, though he made sure to remind her every year. "I love you."
Amelia noticed Lockwood's wide eyes from across the table, something that she had never seen on him before. He was staring between George and Amelia with a confused gleam in his eyes and she shifted nervously as he kept eyeing her like he wasn't quite sure what to do with her.
"It's your birthday? Happy birthday Ames." Lockwood spoke softly, a sort of melancholy overtaking him and she realized it was because he had no idea. The boy didn't scream that he was a sentimental type, even though the entire house they were sitting in was sentimental to him. Something about celebrating the birthday of the girl in front of him though, the one who was slowly scaling her way over all of his walls, seemed like the most important and sentimental thing in the world. "You never said. We could have gotten a cake or planned to do something big. I'm sure your family would want to come or even some of your old friends from Fittes. I bet George and I could get the house cleaned within the hour and have a party planned in that time."
The silence that followed his words rang out in the kitchen and they all noticed the way Amelia's fingers stilled on the table, her body becoming stiff, and her eyes growing colder than the Antarctic. George had paused with a sauce pan hovering just over the stove, his wide eyes meeting Lockwood's from over Amelia's head and his head was shaking back and forth in a motion to stop Lockwood from digging himself in a hole that he might not escape from.
The whole room felt like the temperature had dropped, the girl in front of them staring into space for a brief moment before shaking her head and looking up at Lockwood. The smallest smile grazed her lips but he had seen her smile before and the one that he saw now was a mask, something to hide the pain and the grief and the guilt. She couldn't hide it from him though, not when he had seen that same smile plastered on his face almost every night when he looked in the mirror.
"Thank you, but that won't be necessary." Amelia nodded stiffly, that porcelain smile still plastered on her face even though cracks were starting to slip through and show everything that she wanted to hide from him. George knew, with one glance, that Amelia would run and hide herself up in the highest room of the house. He knew that she would run and hide and build up the walls that threatened to tumble down to reveal the most fragile part of her before Lockwood could see. "I doubt you and Kipps would be civil long enough to last through cutting a cake and we didn't end on the best terms with him and his team. Besides, the only family I have left is George and I guess you now. Don't make a big deal about today. It's not worth it."
She pushed herself from the table, giving George a soft look knowing that he meant the best and and apologetic look at the way that Lockwood's face fell before she fled the kitchen and leaving a stilted silence behind her. George sat the pan on the stove down on the stove with a soft click, a sigh escaping his mouth at his sister.
"Don't follow her." George mumbled softly as Lockwood moved to get up, fully intent on tracking down Amelia Evans and doing everything in his power to turn that mask of a smile back into a real one. "You don't want to do that right now. She prefers to put that mask back on in private after breaking down a bit."
"When you came to me, I knew that you two didn't end on the best terms with Kipps and his crew." Lockwood hovered halfway out of his chair for a brief moment before crashing back down on the seat. His face was troubled, full of confusion and self doubt which was a peculiar expression to see placed there. "But you and Ames have been particularly closed off about your families."
"I left mine." George moved to sit across him in Amelia's abandoned chair, sipping the tea that she left behind to wet his mouth that had gone uncharacteristically dry at the conversation at hand. He would never betray Amelia's trust, but he couldn't stand to see the self loathing that was crossing Lockwood's face at upsetting Amelia. He had watched the pair since they had come to Portland Row and he could see the way they magnetically drew towards one another. They were kidding each other by believing that they would have the same relationship that she and George had and he wondered how long it would take them to figure that out. "My parents loved me and so did my siblings, but they never really understood me. I was too strange for them to comprehend. The first person to show me unconditional love for who I am was Amelia. She's been my family since we were twelve and it's been hell trying to get her to realize that I won't leave her."
"What happened to her family?" Lockwood leaned forwards towards his best researcher, intrigued by the closed off secrets that had been plaguing his mind for months. He knew better than most that he kept secrets from them as well, things closely guarded to his heart that he might never tell them, but the way Amelia stilled had been so familiar to him. It was the same way that he closed off when he was younger and people have him condolences for the loss of his family. "She never mentions them. She never mentioned how she came to be at Fittes and I respect her too much to dig up her past through DEPRAC records."
"I'm not going to tell you what happened to them." George stared down at the little drawing that he knew Amelia had done on the table. His fingers traced it softly, knowing that she would appreciate the little art set that was wrapped up in a neat little box in his room to give to her later that night. "That's Lia's business and you might be my friend, but she's my family. All I will say is that her birthday is not something she particularly likes. Lots of bad memories come attached to this day for her and all we can do is pick her up when she finally breaks down today. It's inevitable and today is the one day out of the year that she allows herself to succumb to her emotions. She's a strong girl, the strongest person I've ever met in my life, but she still falters sometimes."
"They're dead." Lockwood commented lowly, the puzzle pieces slotting into place in his mind. He knew the look on Amelia's face because he had seen it on his own many times. They were the last of their family, but they had allowed other people to slot themselves into their lives to fill the void that their true family had left behind, something that would likely kill them in the end. "She's the last Evans left and Fittes snatched her up because of her incredible gifts."
"I'm not an idiot Lockwood, you and Lia are far more similar than you'd like to admit." George declared sternly, his fingers tapping on the drawing with a sense of urgency. "We respect your privacy enough to not mention it, but we know this was your family home. It's too sentimental to let go. We don't dig into your business and I hope you respect us enough to not go digging into Amelia's business. Now this conversation is over and I apologize for being a bit harsh, but I don't plan to betray her trust by talking any more about this. If Amelia trusts you, she will tell you. All I ask is that you don't hurt her feelings on today of all days and if she breaks down in front of you, just help me pick up the pieces and put them back together."
George tapped the table, leaving Lockwood to contemplate everything that he had heard in favor of going to make Lia breakfast. Lockwood was staring at the table still, ignoring the looks of pure knowing that George was shooting him every couple seconds.
Amelia Evans and George Karim had come into his life like a shooting star. They burned so bright and gave him the hope that things would get better with the start of his own agency. He hadn't planned to care about them the way he did though. They were the closest thing that he had to a family anymore and it had gone against everything that he had wanted when letting someone in. He had wanted someone to watch his back on cases, associates to help him out, but instead he got two people who would sit up and wait if he didn't make it back to Portland Row.
Amelia Evans in particular made him pause at least once a day and wonder what he had done to deserve someone like her in his life. She was witty and intelligent and so beautiful that he wondered how he could tear his eyes away from her some days. She made him think and wonder and care so much that he didn't believe it was possible.
Amelia Evans was a dangerous woman to care about because she had walls that were almost taller than the ones that he had constructed to keep his heart safe. She had moments where she let that guard down and showed him the parts of her that made her Amelia. She laughed so loudly that she snorted at horrible jokes and she couldn't stand to eat her vegetables. She hummed while she baked sweets for them to eat and she couldn't stand her feet being cold.
Amelia seemed incredibly happy but there were moments like earlier when her mask slipped and he could see the young girl who lost too much in her life. He has suspected that George and Amelia had bad relationships with their family members because they never spoke of them, but he realized that Amelia was more like him than he thought. She lost her family too and he didn't know when. She let George in and he became her family like he let them in and they became his. It was becoming incredibly difficult to ignore the girl that had run and hid away at the mention of family.
He looked up to the ceiling, knowing that she was up in the room at the top of her house possibly breaking herself down only to put herself back together again. Then his thoughts turned to a lone necklace of his sister's that had been sitting in the box on top of his dresser. It was one of the things that he cherished the most in the world and he couldn't help but wonder if she would cherish the gift like his sister did. He would probably never tell her where he had gotten the trinket, but he thought hesitantly that maybe it would help her enjoy the day she despised just a little bit more.
•
after
Their entire arsenal had been dumped on the table and Amelia Evans eyed the salt bombs and magnesium flares sitting on the table in trepidation. She despised the little devices even though they were incredibly helpful in stopping the spirits from attacking them. Her fingers were twirling her necklace around as George closed the curtains behind Lucy who had taken a seat in the middle of the room. Lockwood was next to her and she felt a pounding behind her eyes as the lock was clicked open on the box and he took the ring from its coffin.
"That thing is still vile." Amelia shuddered as the sensation of dread and unhappiness slammed into her, the ring too close to her body and her talents picking up the sensations from it without meaning to. She closed her eyes and twirled the necklace around her neck tightly, the soothing sensation that emitted from the gift bringing her a semblance of peace. It had always brought her something close to peace since it had been wrapped around her thin neck and she wondered what type of person owned the thing before she had because the thing gave her a sense of such gentleness and care. "We need to get this thing over with so we can destroy the bloody thing."
"If she takes any liberties, we're right here, okay?" Lockwood crossed the room as George moved towards her side, his fingers brushing her shoulder for comfort at the sight of her pinched expression. Something about the ring sent Amelia on edge and they were all aware of it.
"Okay." Lucy stated softly Amelia's eyes zeroed in on the gentle way that Lockwood placed the ring in her hand, his fingers brushing her own so softly that it was almost a caress. Her fingers tightened on the ring and George eyed her as her face became much more closed off than it had before.
"Be careful." Amelia's teeth clenched at Lockwood's words towards the girl, rethinking the entire plan from the way that his body was tense in fear for what could happen to their newest associate. It left bitter taste in her mouth and she couldn't help but feel slightly jealous at the way that Lockwood was worriedly eyeing Lucy in that moment.
"It's okay, Annabel." Amelia watched Lucy close her eyes gently, her whole body relaxing in the chair as she opened her mind to the ghost that was attached to the ring in her hand. "It's safe."
The sound of opera music filled her ears, a haunting melody that had her clenching her eyes shut and attempting to block out the sound. Something about Lucy connecting to the ghost in front of her sent Amelia's own talents haywire, the gentle humming that she normally could hear from upstairs crescendoing in her ears layering the music with a sharp snap. She clenched her eyes shut, blocking them all out by reaching over and grasping the hand that Lockwood had resting against his hip. She steeled herself, opening her eyes and kept her focus on Lockwood to keep the sounds away from her ears, though it was proving to be difficult the more Lucy lost herself to the ghostly connection.
"There's a song playing in the room." Lucy was smiling softly at what she was hearing while Amelia was slowly losing her self to keep whatever was attached to the ring at bay, one hand intertwined with Lockwood's and the other finding peace in holding the necklace she loved dearly. "She loves it. It's their song."
"Who's they? Annabel and?" George questioned quietly only to be cut off by Lockwood hushing their friend. He was attempting to focus on Lucy, completely missing the way that Amelia was slowly losing herself beside him. George however, had noticed his best mate growing tense from the moment that the ring was taken from the box and how she had slowly grown tenser from the moment that Lucy had allowed the connection to fill the room.
"She's so happy. She loves him." Amelia's eyes turned towards Lockwood at Lucy's words, her face falling and her mind losing the little control that she had left over blocking out the connection at the look on his face towards Lucy. He was focused so intently on her that he didn't notice Amelia dropping his hand and taking a shaking step back towards George as the sounds echoed in her ears like they were echoing in Lucy's own. "She's dancing to the song. He's watching her."
"I don't like this." Amelia shook her head harshly, the sounds from the ring growing darker and more sinister inside of her head. She wanted it to stop, she wanted it all to stop now. "Make her stop."
"He wants her, but it's just." Lucy stood up from the chair, eyes still closed and completely unaware of the other powerful listener in the room slowly growing sick from the sounds that came from the connection.
Amelia released her necklace, the sense of peace that she normally felt from it draining and being replaced with the feeling of someone choking her. She could hear the gasps, feel the air leaving her lungs and George was at her side in an instant. His wide eyes were darting between her and Lucy, completely baffled at what he was seeing. Lockwood was oblivious to it all, his eyes still locked on Lucy as she grew closer to him.
"What is it?" Lockwood declared softly and Amelia leaned back into George as he tried to stabilize her, the pair staring at the way Lucy's eyes popped open as if she was in a daze.
"He's angry. Jealous. She's afraid. Again." Lucy's words were dazed and even in her hazy mind, Amelia could sense something wrong with what was happening in front of her. Lucy looked like a woman possessed and the connection between her and the ghost strengthened to the point that made Amelia physically sick. "Yes. He loves me."
"We need to stop this now." Amelia choked out, desperate eyes darting between George and Lucy who was slowly cornering Lockwood like an animal would it's prey. Her eyes were staring at his longingly and it sent a wave of nausea through he on top of the nausea that she felt from the sounds coming from the ring.
"You love me, don't you? You gave me the ring." Lucy reached up and touched Lockwood's face, her body almost completely touching his own and Amelia stumbled back away from George at the sight. It reminded her of her and Lockwood's many embraces, ones that were far too close to toying that like between platonic and something more. She felt her body hit the table behind her, eyes locked on the scene and unable to look away. "He'd never hurt me. He'd never."
Amelia was frozen in place, the table digging harshly into her back, eyes locked on the way that Lucy had draped herself over Lockwood. She wanted to run, to hide away from the situation, to avoid the growing sickness inside of her body from the sounds that were plaguing her mind and the sight in front of her. It bothered her more than she would care to admit, especially since Lockwood had yet to push Lucy away from him.
"We need to stop this." Lockwood commented uncomfortably, his hands attempting to hold Lucy away from him. He glanced back towards Amelia and George for the first time since they had started, his heart falling as he noticed the hurt look in his favorite girl's eyes. She was staring at him, something akin to betrayal in her eyes and her chest heaving like she had run a marathon. The connection was hurting her too, but Lockwood couldn't help but feel like Lucy attempting to get closer to him was not helping matters. "Now."
"Look at me. Look at me. Look." Amelia could hear Lucy pleading with the unnamed person, her words and body directed towards Lockwood. She couldn't properly focus though, the sounds from the connection overpowering her.
Amelia felt her body giving out, her knees bending and her backside hitting the ground as she felt her chest heave. It was all too much for her, the sounds and the feelings that came from the ring were too much. It was all too much that it overwhelmed her to the point of her hands moving to cover her ears to attempt to block out the sounds.
Laughter, gasps of pain, horrific growling, that damn opera music on the background, the gentle humming she often heard in the Lockwood home. It was all rattling around in her head, so loud and so unsettling that she couldn't breathe. She could vaguely hear Lockwood and Lucy's voices yelling over the noises inside of her head, but she couldn't make heads or tails of what they were truly saying towards one another. Tears were welling up and spilling through her clenched eyes, her overwhelming panic preventing her from opening her eyes.
One moment she had her eyes clenched, the next after what felt like minutes, her eyes snapped open as the voices stopped and her head felt clear since the connection was made between Lucy and Annabel. She could clearly see George in front of the now open curtains and she could see the chair hurtling towards her spot in front of the table. She moved her backside back, closing her body underneath the table to avoid the chair hurtling towards her but the chair hit their supplies and for the first time in five years, Amelia Evans felt the fire around her all over again.
Sparks were flying all around her, heat hitting her body as the sparks soared around the room. She felt her eyes watering, a sob escaping her throat at the feeling of the heat and the fear that flames would begin and take her just like they had taken Henry.
"Lia!" She could vaguely hear George's panicked voice from across the room, but her eyes were still staring at the sparks that had started to die down around her. There were debris from their supplies and the chairs at her feet and she was sure that a couple pieces of wood had scratched her skin, but she was alive.
"I'm okay." Her voice wobbled and the feeling of dread ebbed away from her the longer the sparks were not in danger of hitting her skin. She couldn't make herself move out from underneath the table though and George could clearly see that as he crossed the room quickly to coax her from under the surface. His hands were soothing, his face worried, but all she could focus on now that the fear was gone was the way Lockwood was draped over Lucy to protect her. "I'm okay Georgie."
"He choked her to death." Lucy breathed out, completely unaware that the two teenagers behind them.
George was caressing her face, his hands trying to wipe away her tears that had fallen from the sparks that surrounded her and terrified her. His eyes were wide and his own mouth was trembling slightly because his sister was falling apart in front of him and he felt so powerless in that moment.
"Ames." Lockwood disconnected from Lucy and turned to see the normally composed girl in tears and his heart stopped quickly at the sight. He pushed himself towards her quickly, his body uncoordinated and his hands attempting to reach her only to be smacked away by George.
"I've got her." George declared coldly, not forgetting the way that Lockwood had run to Lucy's defense instead of Amelia. Sure he had been closer to the girl, but it was like he had forgotten Amelia had existed the moment that Lucy had made the connection with the ring. He had seen the betrayed look on her face and it was something that she would need to deal with in her own without Lockwood hovering over her. "You just go back to taking care of Lucy and I'll handle Lia. It's something I've always done and I can handle it well enough on my own."
"I'm okay." Amelia's words felt like ash on her lips, the lie stumbling out before she could stop it. She didn't know if she was attempting to reassure herself or the two boys who were staring at her like she would crumble without a moments notice. She leaned forwards onto George, her head resting on his shoulder, and she breathed deeply. "I'm okay."
They could all tell the words were a lie, but they didn't mention it. Lockwood nodded once, his face stoic as he took in the sight of his two best mates, one giving him the coldest look he had ever been on the receiving end of and the other staring at him with the slightest bit of hurt in her eyes.
Light flickered in the windows, highlighting the broken pieces of the teenagers that resided in Portland Row. Their edges were like splintered glass, so rough and biting as they tried to make sure they still fit together with the addition of the newest associate who had already frazzled their nerves.
Lucy Carlyle was rattled by the connection she had forged, the feelings lingering on her skin like a tattoo from the ghost's emotions.
George Karim was rattled by the sight of his sister in tears with fear prominent in her eyes.
Anthony Lockwood was defeated by the fact that he couldn't protect Amelia from the damage that had been done.
Amelia Evans was a shell of her normal self, her mind teetering closer to the edge of insanity than she had ever been before. The sounds had overwhelmed her, the dread consumed her, the sparks had frozen her in place. It was all too much and she didn't know how to put herself back together again. It didn't help that her confusion was palpable from the way that Lockwood had stared at Lucy Carlyle.
In the fresh morning light, four teenagers wondered where they would go from there and how they would survive the coming days.
•
before
Anthony Lockwood twisted the necklace in his hands, eyeing the shining stone that used to dangle above his sister's heart against her skin. It was something that she had been given by their mother and it had been around her neck when she had died. It was one of the things that he kept locked up in his room to remember the fact that he once had a family, something to remind him that he was once loved by someone. It was pretty and still shined after all these years as he had it cleaned after she had died and had been locked away in a box since. It was something that he had associated with her, but for some reason he could clearly picture Amelia Evans twirling the necklace between her delicate fingers and he knew that it was no longer something that belonged to his sister.
The sound of glass smashing down the hall had him leaping up from his bed, necklace in hand, and heart in his throat at the thought of someone coming into his home and harming the two people he cared about. He didn't pause at George's cautious eyes peering out from his room and he didn't pause until his eyes locked on the scene in the sitting room that they rarely used except for storage.
Papers were sprawled over the ground, boxes overturned, a table tipped over with trinkets smashed in front of the dull wood of the top. A vase that his mother had gotten from a coworker, one that she absolutely despised was crushed on the flooring, with glass glittering across the floor like diamonds. The room looked like chaos had erupted in the four walls and Amelia Evans was standing in the middle of the room with a horrified expression on her wobbling face and a bottle of the strongest alcohol from their kitchen in her dainty hand. The bottle faltered in her fingertips, almost completely empty even though it had been a third of the way full the last time he had checked, and promptly smashed against the ground once she let it fall in her horror.
Tears were already streaming down her face, creating small little trails over her delicate cheekbones that were shaded a burning red. Her eyes were staring at the vase in horror, so focused that she didn't even flinch at the sound of the bottle splintering on the ground.
"Ames." Lockwood spoke her name so softly but it sounded like a shout in the silence of the room. She was still crying, a sob tearing out of her throat at the sight of him when she tore her eyes away from the vase. She bent down, her movements sloppy and so obviously drunk that he was instantly worried, especially at the sight of her attempting to pick up the fallen glass. "Amelia, don't."
He stumbled into the room, the sound of glass crunching underneath his shoes as he reached for her. He tugged her body up, shuffling her back away from the broken glass and towards a loveseat that hadn't fit in any of the other rooms in the house. She was crying into his shoulder and he could only imagine the shock and horror that was plastered on his face from the sight of the room around him and the shaken girl.
The sound of the door moving got his attention and he could see George's saddened face as he stared at the sight in front of him. He was staring at Amelia in a way that made Lockwood know that he knew what was wrong with her but he should have expected that. George and Amelia were a set and he didn't imagine there were many secrets between the pair. George looked up and met his eyes, almost asking with his eyes if Lockwood wanted him to handle the situation but Anthony Lockwood couldn't bear leaving Amelia Evans in the state she was in. It must have shown on his face that he wasn't going anywhere because George sent him one knowing look with a nod before quietly closing the sitting room door.
"I'm sorry." Amelia sobbed and Lockwood sighed heavily at the heavy slur in her words. She was absolutely smashed and he barely knew what to do with a crying woman, but a sobbing Amelia Evans was a different level of terrifying for him to witness. "I broke your vase."
"My mother absolutely despised the thing." Lockwood shared softly, hoping that the bit of humor would make her sobbing stop, but the mention of his mother sent her into another wave of sobbing that terrified him. He wrapped his arms around her, shuffling her body so that her face was against his chest and he threaded the fingers of his hand not holding the necklace through her tangled hair. "I don't think you're supposed to be crying on your birthday Ames."
He didn't want to also say that he didn't think she should be absolutely smashed on her birthday either but something had obviously upset her. He could tell that her family was long gone but this reaction on her birthday was something that he didn't understand and it wasn't something that he knew if he wanted to understand.
"I've got you." Lockwood whispered into her hair, his lips tickling the crown of her head as he spoke. Her sobs were dying down but the tears were still falling heavily against his shirt. "I'm here whenever you're ready."
He sat there for who knows how long rocking her, his lips pressing into her head every few minutes and her fingers clutching his back so tightly that he was sure there would be a bruise in the morning from the desperate touch. He just held her, waiting until she was willing to tell him why she destroyed his sitting room.
"I was a twin." Amelia spoke up finally, voice full of gravel from her tears, and he nearly stopped breathing at the sound of her voice. "Henry and I were always the most cherished things to our parents. For the longest time we were happy and then we started showing signs of talents. I was more powerful than Henry but he had just enough to make mum and dad uncomfortable."
He felt his body collapse back against the loveseat, dread filling his heart at the story that she was setting up for him. Her head tilted, her red and bleary eyes staring up at him filled with such trust that he himself wanted to cry along with her.
"They never understood us, not truly, but we were happy. Henry and I enrolled in the training school for the talented children when we were eight. We were the youngest there, but Mr. Tobias always said I was his child prodigy." Amelia leaned her head against his shoulder, her body feeling exhausted against his own, and he tightened his arms around her. "Our twelfth birthday is when it all went wrong. I was at a session with Mr. Tobias, but we had planned to eat family supper that night. When he had brought me home I could instantly tell that something was wrong. My parents had never supported our talents, outright despised them honestly, but they usually had chosen to ignore them. I found my parents bodies first, their spirits hovering behind their closed door and waiting. My brother was in his room, I could hear him calling to me, so I thought he was safe."
Lockwood felt his breath halt inside of his chest, his own eyes growing a little misty at the sound of Amelia's drunken story. He didn't know if she would have told him this when she was without her liquor, but it showed him the darkest parts of her and he was glad she was telling him even if he felt the need to break along with her.
"He was hovering over his body, told me that my mum and dad went after him first before mom went mad and finished both of my parents off herself. I almost wanted to join him because I had nothing else to live for after that. I lost my parents and my twin and I was so angry at the world, but that isn't something that he would have wanted for me. Instead I told him that I loved him and I packed a bag and burned down my own house with the supplies that Mr. Tobias had given me. Fittes was called to the scene and Penelope Fittes herself was there to snatch me up to join Fittes Agency."
"Ames." Lockwood breathed out sadly, a tear sliding down his own cheek and hitting the top of her head. The whole story filtered through his mind, horror filling his mind about being able to talk to Henry and Penelope Fittes being the one to know about it. He believed her, fully on board with the idea because Amelia Evans had astounded him before. The first moment that he had met her he had been in awe and he could still recall the way that she had paused and stared at his sister's door, almost as if she could hear something there that they couldn't. Amelia was powerful and so full of sadness that he was worried that she would get herself killed from the warring emotions inside of her. "I'm so sorry."
"I should have been at home that night. I should have been dead but because I was more talented than the others, I wasn't there." Amelia spat bitterly, her words slurring even more and Lockwood eyed her to notice that her eyes were growing slightly heavy. "Now my birthday is a horrid reminder that my family is dead. Even though I have George now and he's my family too, I still miss Henry. We should have had more years together, but we didn't and I'm so angry. I'm angry at myself too because I know if it wouldn't have happened then I would have never met George or you, and I can't help but feel like I wouldn't trade the two of you for having them back."
"You didn't replace Henry with George. Your heart just grew to allow the space there for him too. You're always going to miss your brother and you're always going to carry him in your heart." Lockwood commented softly, fingers trailing through her hair in a soothing manner. "That kind of love doesn't just fade. Even the love you once held for your parents doesn't fade away even though they hurt you in the worst way possible. You feel guilty because you're allowing yourself to feel happiness and that's not healthy Amelia."
He eyed the torn up sitting room and understood easily. Amelia Evans felt guilty for replacing her family with them and finally allowing herself to feel a semblance of happiness. He knew how horribly she and George lived after leaving Fittes, small comments from the pair filling him in on the fact that they would have likely been dead if he wouldn't have let them stay. She was angry at herself for allowing that feeling of happiness inside of her even though she lost the most important person to her. It was like a mirror had been held up to him and he could see the best and worst of himself inside of her and he couldn't help but feel the gentle adoration that he felt for her grow just a bit deeper. He knew that she was a strong woman, but she was even stronger than he had ever known.
"You have one of the most beautiful hearts that I have ever seen Ames." Lockwood kissed the top of her head, happy to see that her tears were dried up now. "You care so much that it kills you on the inside. You're allowed to be happy, even though sometimes it hurts."
The necklace in his hand weighed him down and he held it up in front of her face, watching as her bleary eyes focused on the gleaming gem in front of her. He moved her gently so that she was pushed away from him slightly and he made gentle work of pushing her hair to the side and moving to clasp the necklace around her neck. It landed over her heart and he felt his heart stutter at the familiar sight.
"I know today is the worst day in the world for you, but I wanted to give you this. It's something very dear to me and now I hope it can be something dear to you as well." Lockwood watched her heavy hand move up to rest over the gem, a particular look in her eye that stumped him as she traced the gem. It was almost if she could sense something there and he wondered how long it would take her to figure out that the necklace once belonged to the two women that he loved most in the world. He leaned down and pressed a long kiss to the side of her head, the burning skin reminding him that he should probably get her to bed. "Happy birthday Lia. I know that today is horrible, but hopefully one day we can make your birthday something to celebrate instead of dread. Now, I think it's time we get to bed."
Lockwood pushed her body forward gently, his arms sliding underneath her knees so that he could carry her to his room instead of her stumbling and falling. She fell back against him as he stood, her head landing on his shoulder and her bleary eyes and tired smile staring up at him. He smiled down at her before moving slowly towards his room. He passed by George who had been waiting outside of the room on the floor in case something went wrong, nodding at him and sending him a look of approval. He gently kicked open his door and placed Amelia in his bed, tucking her tired limbs up inside of his blankets. The trash can was moved to the side of the bed in case she got sick while she slept and he used that as his excuse to climb in next to her and hold her against him.
He could tell himself that he wanted to keep an eye on her to make sure that she wouldn't choke on her own sick in the middle of the night but a part of him knew that he wanted to help hold her together while she fell apart and placed herself back together again. He had thought that she had fallen asleep, her hand still wrapped around the necklace he had wrapped around her neck, but he didn't even jolt when her voice whispered in the silence of his room.
"Henry was the last person that I had ever told that I loved them. I haven't even told Georgie that I love him. Sometimes I think that you'd be an easy person to love, that I could tell you that I do, but I think we're both far too broken for that."
Her words hit him in the decaying crevice that he called a heart. They gave him pause and his brain almost short circuited at the words. He knew that he had never wanted to leave behind someone who would wait for him to come home, but he had failed at that the moment that Amelia and George had shown up at his front door. George had become his brother and Amelia had become his something.
She astounded him, surprised him in a way that he had never thought possible before. He knew that he cared about her differently than he would a friend, some part of him caring about her in a way that scared him. It had come along gradually, so subtly that he almost didn't notice it at first but then she said things that sent his heart in a tailspin.
"I think I could tell you that one day too." The words were out of his mouth before he could comprehend them and he felt his whole body still at the sound of them, waiting for her to respond but sighed in relief the moment that a sleepy breath escaped her mouth to signal that she was asleep.
He stared at the back of her head far longer than he would care to admit, his thoughts on just how easily he could fall in love with the girl in front of him and just how difficult it would be at the same time. He could care about her like a friend, but he didn't know if he could ever drag her down with him if something happened to him, not like her brother had obviously dragged her down with him for years. He could care about her, but Anthony Lockwood swore that he would be absolutely sure that nothing would ever happen to him before he crossed that platonic line with Amelia Evans.
•
after
"The ring stays in the basement
until we take it to the furnaces."
Amelia watched Lockwood lock the ring up inside of a locket before closing it in the box, her arms wrapped tightly around her torso to protect herself from the vile creation. She wanted nothing to do with the ring, she wanted nothing to do with anything after the morning that they had. Her body was leaned back against the table behind her, ignoring the others and the seats that they had left open around the table.
"What?" Lucy exclaimed in confusion and Amelia shot her a nasty look at the fact that she wanted to continue on after what they had experienced. She had been on board with the idea for the briefest moment, but after the connection had almost harmed them all, Amelia wanted nothing to do with it any further. "Why would we stop when we're just getting somewhere?"
"No more pet projects. There's bills to pay." Lockwood declared lowly and Amelia dropped her head in defeat at the mention of the DEPRAC fine. She thought that they had agreed to keep the others in the dark for a little while longer until a solution could be made, but Lockwood had obviously changed his mind.
"Uh, what bills?" George had questioned lowly and his eyes found Amelia's defeated ones, something that he was unfortunately seeing a lot that morning. She looked guilty, something she very rarely did, and something was not sitting right with him. "Lia, you don't look too surprised by this, what's going on?"
"We didn't want you to start stress cleaning until we found a solution." Amelia's voice was void of emotion, something that sent a nervous shiver down the others' spines. She was rattled by this morning and she was rattled by the topic at hand. "We decided it was best to not mention it until later and I thought that meant in a few days, but apparently our fearless leader believes later is less than twenty four hours."
"Sixty thousand pounds?" George took the paper from Lockwood's outstretched hand, the latter leaning back against the table next to Amelia. His hand reached for her, but she shuffled slightly to the side to avoid the contact. She didn't want to be touched, not in that moment when her emotions were still frayed.
"What?" Lucy exclaimed and her eyes darted over the paper that she snatched from George's hands.
"In two weeks?" George exclaimed, his eyes locked on Lia's guilt form and he knew that's what her and Lockwood had been discussing the night before when they had closeted themselves up in his room. The two of them had always been more willing to share things with each other than with him, and Lia had always been the one to go over their finances when things became tight. "What the hell?"
"Why didn't you say something?" Lucy turned towards them outraged and her furious eyes were mainly staring daggers into the guilty frame of Amelia. The girl obviously had known about the whole thing, something that didn't sit right with her. "How come she got to know before us?"
"Because it's my name on the door and Ames has always been the one to deal with our finances. She knows because she's an important asset to have when it comes to numbers and I needed her advice." Lockwood commented firmly, his fingers itching to reach over to Amelia for comfort but she felt so far from his reach even though she was standing next to him. "It's my responsibility. I'll find a way."
"How?" George was staring between his two best friends, slight betrayal filling him at the fact that Amelia and Lockwood had kept something this big from him. Lucy was new, so he hadn't expected them to tell her, but he thought he was more trusted by the pair. "We hardly break even when things are going well!"
"What about a loan?" Lucy placed down the paper, eyeing the kitchen they were standing in and her eyes lit up with a solution. "This place must be worth a bucketload."
"That's not an option." Amelia declared firmly, her fingers reaching up and grasping the necklace around her neck out of worry for the boy next to her. While she had kept nothing from her family, Lockwood had immersed himself in keeping his own family alive in his mind by keeping the house that they resided in. It would kill him to lose the house, something that Amelia had sworn would never happen.
"This place is all that's left
of my parents." Lockwood avoided their eyes, instead turning to look at Amelia out of the corner of his. She still felt miles away from him, but the understanding that was shining in her eyes made him feel a sense of relief because she understood the sentimentality of the house they were in. They were two sides of the same coin but so vastly different. He wanted to remember his family even though it hurt and she wanted to bury the memories away until they did not exist anymore.
"Sorry." Lucy mumbled softly, eyes dancing between Amelia and Lockwood and contemplating what could have damaged them both beyond repair. The longer that she looked at them, truly looked at them, she could see that they were far more similar than she had initially believed. "I didn't realize."
"He's already borrowed against it
to set up the business." George sighed and realized that he was not only divulging information that the pair might not have wanted Lucy to know, but he was realizing why they had kept the information between them in the first place. Amelia truly had known that he would panic and that's what he was beginning to do. "Jesus, Lockwood, we're screwed!"
"No, we're not. All it takes is a few big cases." Lockwood was trying so hard to put on a front of optimism, but Amelia clenched her eyes shut at the sound of his voice. He could tell that he was far more nervous than he had ever been before when money was concerned, and like her, he had no idea what to do about the situation to fix their problems. The sound of the phone ringing had her opening her eyes and she shared a heavy look with Lockwood before he rushed out of the room. "Maybe that's one right now."
She waited a moment, her eyes on the space that he had gone through before turning back to the pair that was sitting at the table. George looked as well as she would expect him to, eyes wide and his fingers tapping nervously on the table. Lucy, much to Amelia's annoyance, looked like she couldn't quite believe how they could find themselves in that position. A position that was clearly her doing to an extent.
"I know that you two must be shocked to hear this, but you can't be too harsh on us for not telling you about the fine." Amelia began lowly, her eyes lingering on the pair, fully intent to follow after Lockwood after she said her peace. "George, you would try to think of every small thing that could help us and it would send you into a panic. We didn't want to worry you. And you Lucy, this wouldn't be a problem for us if you hadn't set our client's expensive home on fire. So no, we didn't tell you, we didn't think we had to right away, and I don't care if you're upset at us for it. We'll find a way to figure it out, we always do, but until then, you leave this to me and Lockwood. Stressing out over it won't make the money magically appear out of thin air and we don't need to set any more houses on fire to make things worse."
Amelia didn't wait for them to respond before she pushed herself out of the room to hear the tail end of the conversation that Lockwood was having on the telephone. It was obviously unpleasant, but the past two days had been unpleasant so one more thing was surely not going to break them.
"And why would I do that, Inspector?" His voice was tense as she came up behind him and she could see the stiffness in his body as he paced the length of the hallway in front of her. She leaned against the wall behind him, not particularly caring that she couldn't hear the other person on the phone even though she had a vague idea of who it could be. It had only been a matter of time before DEPRAC came calling for them. He paused, clearly listening to the other person and his own eyes met hers. "Surely you have bigger things to deal with?"
Amelia wanted to snort in amusement at Lockwood's comment. They had created a big problem by lighting a house on fire and she could almost tell by Lockwood's nervousness that DEPRAC had found something else to hang them out to dry over. She wouldn't have been surprised if they had found out about Lucy's lack of qualifications after her name had appeared on the case report for the fire.
"Come on now, Inspector." Lockwood had adopted a pleading tone in his voice but she sighed as he dropped the phone from his ear, the other person clearly no longer on the phone. His eyes told her everything that she needed to know. DEPRAC had found out about Lucy, one decision that could send their little agency to the ground because of the illegality of hiring her.
"I'm guessing that I don't need to make that call anymore." Amelia attempted to crack a joke with him but it fell flat between them. The air was tense and her stomach soured from the thought of the problems that were piling on top of their shoulders. "They already know about her."
"They know." Lockwood agreed and dropped the phone to his side, his whole face twisted in agony at the fact that all their hard work was slowly crumbling down around him. Even Amelia, who had been much frostier than ever towards him that morning, who usually looked like a beacon of hope to him in the darkness, was staring at him with such hopelessness that he didn't know what to do. "What do we do?"
"We figure it out together like we always have." Amelia didn't know what else to tell him. They had always figured things out together since she and George had come to reside in the home and that wouldn't stop once their feet were dangling over the fire. Sure, she might still be confused and slightly hurt over his obvious curiosity over their newest associate, but Amelia Evans was loyal to a fault and Lockwood had proven time and time again that he deserved that loyalty. "We mitigate the damage and keep our toes so far away from the line that they can't get us for anything else. We're not losing this house and as much as I dislike the idea, we attempt to keep Lucy out of the line of the firing squad that is DEPRAC."
Lockwood looked as if he could hug her, his eyes filled with so much relief from her unconditional support even though she was still cross with him and the fact that she would still stick her neck out for Lucy even though the girl had brought them nothing but trouble from the moment that she had stepped foot in her door. She could hear the others coming up the stairs from the kitchen behind her and she shook her head to the side so subtly that he almost missed it. The others didn't need to know yet, not when they could figure it out together like they always had.
"Who was it?" Lucy questioned softly and Amelia closed her eyes and forced a blank expression on her face as she turned her head to look at Lucy and George. She couldn't help but observe the girl in front of her once again, the girl who had brought them nothing but trouble. She was young and incredibly naive to the world they lived in, not understanding that Lockwood's way was much better than the agencies like Fittes had been. She thought that ghosts could be helped even after death and that alone was a death sentence. She had captured the attention of the one man that Amelia Evans had cared for in a non platonic way and had brought so much trouble to their doorstep.
Amelia Evans could honestly say that she disliked Lucy Carlyle with everything that she had but she could remember the look that she had when she showed up at their doorstep. She was scared and hungry and she reminded Amelia of the girl that she had used to be when she had lost her family and she and George had barely made it after leaving Fittes. She owed her nothing, not when she had endangered the only two people in the world that Amelia cared for, but she couldn't help but feel the urge to protect her from DEPRAC so that she didn't fall into the hands of one of the agencies that would surely kill her. No, Amelia Evans did not like Lucy in the slightest, but she couldn't help but want to protect her from finding out how cruel the world could truly be.
"Wrong number." Lockwood declared lowly, taking Amelia's shake of the head for what it was and withholding vital information from their friends again for the second time that week. He knew that she was probably thinking of a plan, she always had one to keep them out of trouble, but one was already stirring in his mind as he turned to Lucy and George again. "Listen, exactly how famous did you say Annabel was?"
"Why?" George questioned lowly, his eyes on the two people that he knew best in the world. Something was nagging at the back of his mind at the carefully constructed mask on Amelia's face and the look of contemplation on Lockwood's own. Something was being kept between them again, but he couldn't tell if it had anything to do with their newest addition that was standing next to him.
"He's thought of a plan to save our skins once again." Amelia muttered unhappily, while glad that Lockwood had thought of something, she was not thrilled to be poking around with the ring that had almost destroyed them all that morning. She had hoped to put the thing in the furnace and wash their hands of the whole nasty business, but Lockwood seemed to believe that the ring could help them so she couldn't doubt him.
She wanted to cry though because she wanted nothing more than to go crawl into her bed after a long night, but they obviously would not be sleeping at all that day. She resigned herself, knowing that she could no longer run from her problems and she would have to face them head on. Amelia Evans was in for a long sleepless day, unaware of how many of those days had yet to come.
unedited
word count: 12741
Amelia fell first and unknowingly while Lockwood fell harder. I also have when Lucy and Amelia truly become friends thought out and it's going to be so fun to write. Amelia has never enjoyed letting people in and Lucy is basically an intruder in her mind. I love Lucy so please don't hate me for the hate train that Amelia has for her right now. It won't last much longer and Lucy and Amelia will respect each other soon enough.