Welcome To London: An AC: Syndicate Fanfic

VIII

When Leiny woke, she could feel cotton beneath her head. She opened her eyes, but her vision was blurred and unaccustomed to the bright light that surrounded her.

After a while, this cleared. She found herself in a bedroom. A really, really pleasant one. Sheele's green wallpaper decorated the walls, bearing an elaborate pattern of cream and gold flowers throughout. A purple blanket with matching Sheele's green embroidery decorated the four-poster bed she had found herself in. A gaudy arm chair was positioned opposite the bed, along with a stunning oak wardrobe and matching table. Other decorations including flowers and ornaments were placed on nearly every available surface of the room. It was unnessicarily gaudy.

She had been changed into a cotton nightdress which felt almost as soft as the heavenly sheets she had been tucked into.

Leiny sat up, causing her head to spin. She touched the back, which throbbed painfully. Looking to the other side of the bed, she noticed fresh gauze and a vial of laudanum accompanied by a dessert spoon and goblet of water. Reluctantly, Leiny took the laudanum, which burned her throat, washing it down with the water. Her breath tasted stale, still metallic from the blood. She considered changing the gauze on her wound, but decided against it, as it was still too tender and the laudanum had not taken full affect. That was when she caught sight of a dress, corset, shoes and chemise that had been set out for her use. Judging by the style, she wasn't expected to be going outside at any stage.

Still confused and dazed, she felt it was best to embrace the generosity of whoever had taken her in and cared for her injury. She couldn't recall anything from what she assumed was the night before, other than hitting the ground. She felt her face, several spots felt tender but she could only locate two small cuts on her forehead and cheekbone. She sighed, slowly standing up.

It took about an hour for her to dress herself, the corset being the hardest part, but she managed to loosely fasten it. As she was pinning her hair with the pins she had found near a mirror, a knock sounded from the other side of the door.

"Come in?" It was more of a question of who was bothering her than anything.

"Miss Albright, I'm here to take you to the Miss and Mister of this house." A tall man explained, offering her his arm.

"How are they aware of my name?" She asked, "and where are my weapons?"

"All that will be explained when they receive you. Come, you must be hungry." He smiled at her like a cat stalking a small bird. She bristled, suddenly feeling very unsafe.

"As you wish." She agreed, following him but not accepting his arm.

He led her up stairs and across hallways, before finally stopping and opening one of the double doors to a room for her. It was wide, mostly wooden and a large table with many seats was set out alongside a delicious smelling breakfast. Two figures sat at the table, one a woman, the other male. The woman stood, walking over to greet her with a smile.

One she immediately knew not to trust, an impish glee danced behind her eyes.

"Ah, Madeleine. So nice of you to join us. How are you feeling, my dear?" She asked.

"Most pleasant. To whom do I owe my thanks?" Leiny beamed, voice sugary sweet. She knew this game, she had played it for most of her life.

"To myself and Mr. Starrick."

Crawford Starrick.

Leiny glanced over at him, her smile not wavering.

"I see. What shall I call you, Miss?"

"Miss Attaway."

Pearl Attaway. Of course Jacob would be fooled by a pretty face. Leiny had to clench her fists to keep her smile from faltering.

"Please, sit, eat." Miss Attaway offered, gesturing to the table. "My, you must be very hungry, having been in and out of conciousness for three days." She let out a shrill laugh.

Leiny sat down, opposite Miss Attaway and beside Mr. Starrick, who has still not spoken.

Like the devil himself, she noted, glancing sidelong at him. Leiny requested food from the servant nearest her, who piled her plate higher than should be considered proper, knowing there were starving children on the streets below. As she began eating her black sausage, bacon and poached egg and sipping an especially sumptuous tea, Pearl Attaway began speaking.

"So, Miss Albright, you must be wondering why you are here."

"Certainly, though your generosity has been somewhat unprecedented." Madeleine flashed another smile.

"Glad to hear it was to your liking." Crawford Starrick spoke up, with a voice like nails on a chalkboard.

"Unfortunately, we didn't bargain on your injury being quite so severe. We've lost a few days to that. However, I am sure now we can communicate readily with one another, we may still come to an agreement." Pearl took a sip of tea, before narrowing her eyes a little at Leiny. "I hear you have a relationship with Jacob Frye."

"A working relationship, yes." Leiny agreed, trying to keep her expression neutral.

"The way he tells it contradicts that." Pearl smiled slyly at the woman across from her. "He cares for you. Deeply. I met with him yesterday, he looked terrible, dark circles around those beautiful hazel eyes. Worried sick about his precious Madeleine." There was a note of cruelty to her voice, which made Leiny want to stab the butterknife she was holding into her eye.

"Pardon me, Miss Attaway, I fail to see the relevance...?" Leiny lied.

"He's searching for you. You will bring him to us, we will kill him, but that's not our only... offer." Pearl smiled devilishly, while Leiny raised a brow cooly.

"What may be this other offer?"

"To join the Templars." Starrick answered.

This time, Leiny actually laughed.

"I'm sorry, you're joking." She managed to calm herself down. "My father tried to raise me into one, I have no interest whatsoever."

"We suspected you might react this way. We've been intercepting your letters, recently. We have someone that may change your mind on this matter." Pearl gestured to the doors, which swung open to reveal a face that Leiny had seen only in her dreams of late.

"Leiny..."

"Ali..."