"It really takes a lot -especially in our line of work- for me to feel alive, but you do that for me, Vivienne."
When psychically gifted Vivienne Salvatore is forced to flee to London from her home up north, she stumbles upon a "prestigious" agency...
CHAPTER ONE ~ welcome to lockwood & co. ~ vivienne salvatore
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To say my legs ached would be an understatement. After dozing off on the train ride to London, which meant being seated in the most uncomfortable chair I believe has ever been made for over six hours, I could actually barely feel my legs.
Not to mention the potent coffee breath of the man seated across from me, which seems to have stripped my sinuses raw, the sharp burn of the floral perfume of the woman seated beside me, and the frequent uncomfortable glances I received from the other man sat nearby.
Aside from my not-so-restful sleep, I spent the ride scrapbooking advertisements from local newspapers, scavenging for any psychical agency currently in search of a new operative.
This is the first time I've realised the intensity of The Problem. Back home, there was the occasional big case, but London seems to be full of them.
The articles of Fittes' constant successes seem to be plastered on every front page. I know better than to hope they'll hire me without identification or parental-permission, so I stop kidding myself.
I'll have to settle for a small agency, then see if I can work my way up. Of course, that is assuming I'm hired anywhere at all. My situation isn't exactly unsuspecting: "teenage girl without identification, references, or parents tries finding a job in a city she's never been to before, and knows no body in."
Great.
I almost flew off the train once we arrived at the station. Not because the driver hit the breaks as hard as he did, but because I felt unusually excited.
However, that excitement was quickly extinguished.
The first several hours of my time in London were spent being rejected by agencies. Small ones, too. My ego was bruised, and my hope was fading.
The only thing to soothe me was a cup of scolding hot tea which, in my opinion, was far too expensive.
There are only four agencies on my list that I haven't visited yet, but I hold little hope for those either:
"Jameson & Jones Psychical Investigations": They had been on the news back home after solving an infamous, 19-year-old cold case. The detail that they fail to mention is that it cost them five agents to do so. They were compensated generously for their troubles, which would mean high pay for me. Almost perfect - reputation and wages - but, if I die on a case, I don't want my death swept under the rug and my name forgotten like so many others.
