Revenge of the Brotherhood (Book 3 in the Tom & Laura Series) by John Booth Read Free Book Online Page A

back on his own.
    “There will be a hansom cab waiting for you at midday break. Cook has prepared a packed meal for you. It will take you to Ebenezer and will make the return journey starting at four o’clock. That should give you a good two hours to say goodbye to your friend.”
    Tricky left the room without saying a word. His head was abuzz with half thought out ideas.
     
    Tom woke early and tried to wash the guilt from his body with copious amounts of cold water. Despite his best efforts, all he managed to do was to get clean.
    He was not surprised to find Antonia sitting at the dining table eating her breakfast.
    She smiled. “Do you think today will be as educational as yesterday?” she asked innocently.
    “What did Tom learn yesterday?” Dougal asked as he entered the room.
    “You did show him your big toy, did you not?” Antonia asked. “It is typical of a man to want to have the biggest sausage in the world.”
    “I showed him the Hubris if that is what you mean,” Dougal sounded tetchy. “And today he will be one of the crew on her maiden flight.”
    Antonia switched looks from amused to eager in the blink of an eye. “Can I come too? I have always wanted to fly.”
    Dougal smiled. “And what do you think Military Magic would say if they found out I had risked one half of their best telepath team on an untested vessel?”
    “I would never tell them.”
    “I’m sorry, Antonia. Perhaps next year, when all the tests are complete.”
    Tom wasn’t that sure he wanted to go on the maiden flight. However, he was not going to say no after Antonia had shown such enthusiasm. It would have been unmanly.
    “I’m sure my education today will far outweigh anything I learned yesterday,” he said. Looking directly at Antonia he found himself adding. “And certainly it will be much more enjoyable.”
    Antonia smiled warmly at Tom, while her hand, below Dougal’s sightline, made a very rude gesture.
    Tom smiled sweetly back at her. While she had done things to him and with him that he would never have thought of, and brought him considerable pleasure in the process, he had to end their relationship because his heart was Laura’s.
     
    The cab took Tricky out of the heart of London to a grand mansion set in acres of landscaped gardens. There was even a lake in the distance.
    “You have two hours, sir. Don’t be late,” the cabbie said, checking the time with his pocket watch. He got down from the cab to feed his horse.
    Tricky nodded and ran to the door. There was a big iron bell pull, which took all his strength to use. Somewhere deep in the house’s interior he heard a bell ringing and a couple of minutes went by as he waited for someone to come to the door.
    A fat woman in a white smock answered the door.
    “Tricky, err, David Hart to see Ebenezer Sweeting, your ladyship.”
    The woman smiled at the use of such an inappropriate title. “You are expected. Young Ebb will be so happy to see you. Follow me.”
    She led him up a curved open flight of stairs and along a corridor before ushering him into a room and closing the door behind him.
    Lucy sat by the side of the bed with her hands on her lap. She and Ebb looked a little guilty as if they might have been holding hands before the door opened. Exactly five seconds before if Tricky was any judge. Lucy was two years older than Ebb and at 13 was showing signs of becoming a woman. Ebb looked in a bad way, white and thin, as though he hadn’t eaten for days.
    “Yes, we were. What of it?” Ebb asked as Tricky opened his mouth.
    Tricky closed his mouth again. Conversations were always a little complicated with Ebb.
    “Pull up that chair,” Ebb suggested as words formed in Tricky’s mind. Ebb was speaking in unusually precise posh English, which Tricky found perturbing.
    “Lucy has trouble following mi words,” Ebb said and grinned.
    Tricky nodded and when he opened his mouth this time, Ebb didn’t stop him.
    “Well, I am sure I can match you with