The Agent, The Ghost And The Wardrobe

II: The Ghost

Chapter 11

6:48 PM December 25th

I checked the intricately designed mirror making sure everything was in place. Lifting the silky purple fabric to secure my salt bombs and iron fillings tied to my waist, I looked again and realized something important.

For a brief moment, I actually honestly believed Susan's strange whispered words after which she fastened a simple silver necklace around my neck. Even Jon smiled, which made my cheeks flare like bright red Christmas fires: I seriously think purple really did bring my eyes out.

I smiled and twirled a full 360 degrees, enjoying the light feeling without the usual jeans and cardigan weighing me down. So this was how Cinderella must've felt... Well, McKenzie was no fairy godmother but he certainly substituted for today.

McKenzie- their American make-up artist- added a bit of whatever it is you use to conceal things, to conceal the thin scar (which- I must say- hasn't improved since the night that started this all).

I brought my face closer to the smooth mirrored surface and lightly ran my fingers over the area where the scar should've been. I looked with a critic's eye to point out my numerous flaws covered with a stroke of the brush. Like real magic... I thought.

Initially, I refused to wear any amount of make-up but Lockwood and George convinced me that we needed to blend in with the crowd if this mission was to succeed. So I sighed and braced myself as McKenzie worked his magic. And I must've been his hardest project yet because he left with runny mascara and an added bonus to his check.

A cough coming from the door sent me to my feet, straightening my dress and already perfected hair. I prepared to give an apology speech I've been practicing in case I've been caught but it was only George. My prim and proper smile changed into a scowl that I knew would not look good with this dress.

George raised his hands to the air as if to surrender. "Whoa, Lucy. I haven't said a word."

But I scoffed, "I could see the insults forming in your head." I crossed my arms in a sort of ward against him, hoping he'd get the message to leave me alone. But that, apparently, was too much to wish for. Even on Christmas.

George stepped into the room filled with furniture much too expensive for my taste. The fire was warm as the wind outside howled.

I watched his deliberate movements as he made his way to the tall window, "Must be freezing outside." He said. Was this him trying to make conversation?

I was befuddled for a moment, wondering where this small talk suddenly came from. But the chance to make fun of him wouldn't pass by so easily.

"Now what's with this well-mannered George?" I stepped closer towards him with a sly grin on my face, "Just put on a suit on him and he behaves like a true gentleman? I have to say, I do miss the old one." And faked a sigh.

George mouth formed a shape of an 'O' as if to make a snappy comeback. I thought for once that I'd have one over him but it just wasn't my day.

He did look like a true gentleman though. In a crisp black suit and his blonde hair brushed, combed and carefully styled. He let go of his spectacles in case one of the officers might recognize him. His eyes polished his flabby fatty edges, actually making him look sharper and more commanding. Now I knew he always had blue eyes, but this was the first time I've actually fully acknowledged the fact. In the short period that I've known him, he never went out without his glasses. Ever.

He glanced at me up and down and clicked his tongue like I was some disappointing meatloaf. "And I thought that make-up and dresses made girls look prettier."

It was my turn to form an 'O' wider than his. I was about to retort and with my heels, I'd be a whole lot taller than him. But he only put his finger to my mouth and said, "Now, now. We wouldn't want all that make-up to go to waste, now would we?"

In one smooth motion, he picked the iron chain from the vanity, wrapped it around his waist and offered his arm to me. I gave a sound that was somewhere in between irritation and dejection.

Why did I have to play the escort of George?

But Lockwood would be waiting at the ball for George and I; the Christmas Party for the elite companies of England would be starting soon. I took George's outstretched arm and decided that next time, I would be the one wearing the chain around my waist.

Earlier on...

I guess buses weren't popular during Christmas.

The bus was practically empty even with the streets and shops filled with dozens of people. (Or maybe it was just ours.) The street seemed to blend with the sidewalk, people and bicyclists everywhere.

I ran the plan over and over my head again. When Lockwood said that he would take the case on, I felt like the weights slowly crushing me were finally lifted off. Lockwood and George were silent as well. Both contemplating what little I found in my search. The library was closed for Christmas, which meant that we would have to wait 'till tomorrow for the articles and records we needed.

George shot me a look that said, You were stupid enough to forget to check who died in that house? I responded less creatively, only sticking my tongue out.

To be honest, I didn't want to open the records. I always asked for them whenever I went to the library. But I never got past Mr. Jonathan's death. Pain and ache gripped my heart so tightly that tears blurred my vision before I got to flip the next page. In simpler words: I wasn't strong enough to read the gruesome stories.

Instead, we were off to MedTech in hopes to gather more information from the Jonathans. We debated and wondered if spoiling their Christmas would be such a good idea. But a phone call came from Jon wishing us Merry Christmas and I decided to put on my brave voice and ask if we could come over. Luckily, Mrs. Jonathan- er, I mean Ms. Sheila would be out; that meant privacy and discretion.

As we hopped off the bus, I inwardly let out a relieved sigh upon the sight of Emma's perfectly curled hair. She came up to meet us, bouncing in her red velvet cape. A quick exchange of 'Merry Christmas' came and Emma took hold of Lockwood's hand, guiding us deeper into the hospital.

Nurse Charlie greeted us just as we were about to enter, "Merry Christmas, Lucy and Lucy's friends!"

"And a Happy New Year to you!" I smiled.

"What brings you to MedTech? I know most people would avoid the hospital, especially during the Holidays." She asked with a puzzled expression.

I almost slipped up. Luckily, Lockwood covered it up with a dazzling smile. I was nice to finally have your friends back.

"We were just coming to visit Jon," I suppose not even Nurse Charlie was immune to his smile. She nodded and opened the door, letting us enter first.

Emma carried on, dragging Lockwood behind her. I grinned with a knowing smile as George entered muttering, "Prick..".

Jon definitely was surprised to see us come this early. The smile on my face quickly melted upon the sight of his worried frown.

"Jon?" I started. But Emma's smiling face filled my vision and I was immediately spun around the room. At some point, Emma had let go but I continued twirling around until the world was a blur of spinning colors.

Susan laughed as she greeted us a Merry Christmas. Lockwood and George introduced themselves and Nurse Charlie leaned to support me before I fell onto the carpeted floor.

It seemed that Susan, Emma and Jon were the only one's who stayed for the Holidays.

"Peter and Mother are in a meeting, you see." Susan smiled apologetically as she pushed a plate of biscuits towards us. George rubbed his hands but Emma beat him to it as she grabbed them and took off to watch some telly. George glared at her direction but she never turned once to acknowledge him.

I hid a snicker but I saw Emma hand a dispirited looking Jon a cookie and my smile faded. What was wrong with him?

"Mother and Peter are to attend a party for Agents of all the well-known companies. I'm afraid their schedule is full for today."

Lockwood only nodded in understanding, "I guess we'll have to come back tomorrow." He stood and began to thank Susan. George and I followed, though George was more reluctant as he hasn't had the chance to touch his tea.

"Susan! I don't want to go to the party. That awful Lucinda's going to be there, isn't she?" Emma whined.

"I'm sorry Emma. We have to. How would that look if only Peter arrived?" Susan bent down to look Emma in the eye.

Lucinda… The very name sent shivers down my spine.

"Lucinda Miller?!" George and I looked to Lockwood with questioning looks. A million thoughts seemed to jam in my head, making me unable to grasp anything clearly.

"Not that lady with the fake lashes!" George huffed.

"How do you know, Lucinda?" Susan looked at us suspiciously. Surely that couldn't be the same Lucinda. There were dozens of Millers in England!

"Blonde hair that looks like a cotton candy machine spat her out?" Emma asked. Lockwood only nodded.

George and Emma burst out laughing. Even Susan couldn't help smiling.

"But Lockwood," I turned to see him deep in thought. "I don't see how this could help."

"Mrs. Miller is an old friend of Mother's. She was the interior decorator of our cottage and we always ask her to clean out our furniture and antiques." Susan said, still not understanding our part of the story.

"And she hired us for a mission a few days back. There were a couple of Ghosts haunting her attic and she called Lockwood and Co. to fix the Problem." I could see George getting the picture, even Jon was inching closer to hear more.

"But I don't see…" I began, but George cut me off, "And Lucinda visited asking us to finish the job as Lucy didn't seal the Ghost properly."

Even Emma was getting the picture. I groaned in frustration. Susan nodded and said, "We need to get you to that party."

"But I still don't see why we have to gate crash!" I furiously whispered to George as another couple turned the corner.

George sighed as an employee in a black and white suit passed by, "Mrs. Miller is an old friend of Mrs. Jonathan. She was also our client on that fateful day you decided to lock yourself in the room."

"I told you it was the Ghost!" I made a move to stomp his foot with the heel of my shoe.

"Oww!" He glared at me but I continued looking straight ahead with a satisfied smile on my face.

"Continue!" I was about to say, but the grand double doors swung forward and we entered a completely different era. I guess Cinderella would've been overwhelmed on her first party as well.

Ladies clung to their escorts with silver and iron jewelry glinting in the light. Agents strode past with polished rapiers hanging from their waists. I could bet you everything I own that every Agent here hasn't been on the field for a long time. Well, every Agent except for Lockwood and Co. The violins were soft enough for George and I to talk properly but upbeat enough to set several couples dancing in the center of the enormous hall.

Everywhere I turned, a whiff of Jasmine caught me by surprise which- now that I think about it- shouldn't be so surprising anymore. No doubt the walls and tall ceilings were lined with pure iron to keep unwanted Visitors out. I had to laugh at that.

The very atmosphere of the room was enough to take me by surprise yet George didn't look the least bit intimidated. The look I must've been giving him was one of disbelief as he only smirked and said, "I'm too used to these sort of things."

Before I even had the chance to make sense of his words, a hand grabbed my shoulder and I spun around.

"Lucy! You finally arrived!" Lockwood paused for an awkward minute, and I worried quite a bit; unsure of whether or not he'd like the make-up. Well- wait! Why was I the one to worry? He and George were the very reason I had to wear these bloody heels in the first place.

But in the end, Lockwood let out a wide grin and I felt that hey, maybe dressing up this once wouldn't be so bad after all!

I could see George roll his eyes out the corner of mine.

"So basically, we split up; find Mrs. Miller and question her in a way without looking like those three urchins she hired off from the street." George said with an air of finality.

Lockwood sighed which made me want to smack George in the head, "Must you put it like that? Well yes. It goes without saying. If she realizes that we're who we are then she'll have us thrown out in an instant. Oh- and steer clear of Mrs. Jonathan and Peter."

With that I was left to scour the other end of the gigantic hall alone.

I could barely hear Lockwood's warning as he faded with the crowd. "Don't forget! We have until midnight to gather all we can from Mrs. Miller!"

Another song passed by and I realized the night growing warmer and warmer. I could spot George holding a plate and trying to grab as much doughnuts as he could with his mouth. Lockwood's deep blue suit stood out. He too wore a chain around his waist. It was a fashion among men nowadays but it was also for protection in case a Ghost pops up out of nowhere. (Hopefully, that won't have to happen on Christmas.) It looked awful on some chubby blonde boys but suited Lockwood perfectly.

He was doing remarkably well with a crowd of girls who were chatting him up. The sight made a small ball of fury erupt from my stomach and I looked away to try and drown the feeling.

I saw her sitting alone with a bottle of champagne in her grasp.

"Hello, Mrs. Miller?" I sat beside her tentatively.

"Huh?" She grunted and looked at me like I was the most uninteresting gum on the sole of her shoe. Her wrinkled face was thick with powder. She reminded me of the great-aunt Helen who lived in our village. She did love powder.

"Who the bloody hell are you?" She spat out, before taking another swing of the bottle. I felt bad for it.

Instead of walking away with a disgusted look on my face, I smiled pleasantly and said, "I heard you were a great interior designer! The one who arranged Domus Ignis, isn't it?" Anyone passing by could obviously hear the forced interest in my voice but I didn't need to fool a sober woman right now.

"Oh yes! Nice to see someone finally taking an appreciative action to my works." And another swing from the bottle and I might've slapped it away. This reminded me of the pointless conversations with my father. You could smell the alcohol radiating off this woman a mile away.

Putting on my brave face (Which wasn't too far from looking repulsed) I tried again, "Do you happen to know of the pieces of furniture Mrs. Jonathan asked you to clean a few days ago?"

"Eh?" She looked at me suspiciously and I panicked for a brief second.

"Well- uh.. I mean, she's a good friend of mine and I was just wondering so I would know when to clean my own- things..." I mentally slapped myself. There's no way she would buy that.

"Oh, I see." She hiccupped. "Well there's the usual. She wanted them cleaned out you see, after they visited about a month ago. Mahogany does not look good unless you give it a good polishing every now and then." I had no idea what she was talking about. And in times like these, the only thing you had to do was nod.

"So there were six pieces of vases. Three sets of tables and chairs. All of their silverware. Can you believe the nerve? Even their bleeding silverware. Couldn't they hire a couple of maggots! With the money they've got, they could buy the whole of England in an instant." And she gasped like it was such a scandalous thought. I realized I was liking Mrs. Miller less and less by the minute.

"And there were some book shelves and this big arse wardrobe with a broken mirror inside it. Also a chandelier with about a hundred different crystals hanging from them. Do you know how much man-hours it would take to-"

"Wait!" I exclaimed, cutting her off. "Shut up a minute! What was that about the wardrobe?"

"Are you deaf, girl? I said it had a broken mirror. But ohh you can't imagine the smell. Even my toughest workers paled at the very sight of it. They say they get a bad feeling about it."

"A bad feeling…" I echoed.

"Yeah, now about that chandelier…" She was about to begin but a sinking feeling took hold of my gut and I realized I was putting pieces of the puzzles together without even trying.

The orchestra melted with the old hag's drunk ranting. I couldn't remember thanking her and pardoning myself from the empty table. But I moved through the crowd still lost in my own thoughts.

A chime from the bells came and I realized it was already midnight. It was as if I were in a trance. The spell would be almost over.

I looked up to see a mass of bodies pushing me around and I stumbled forward blindly. These heels made it harder to navigate with the crowd and I was so sure I would've sprained my ankle if not for Lockwood who caught me in time.

"Lockwood! I found her! Mrs. Jonathan sent the wardrobe to get it cleaned and I think I-" I was breathing heavily, wondering how my chest was still holding up when my head was feeling so light.

"It's okay Lucy. George and I were standing by and we heard everything. As of now, George is finishing the conversation you had; so we can relax and enjoy the rest of the night!" I knew his smile would've been enough to comfort me but I still wasn't done.

"But what about 'till midnight?" I asked.

Lockwood's smile widened (if that were still humanly possible), "Mrs. Miller usually passes out at midnight so it was a good thing we caught her at just the right time!"

I blinked a few times and wondered how unbearably obvious this was becoming. I looked at my glittering heels with my cheeks catching fire. Lockwood's hearty laugh made me blush harder.

"You did great, Lucy. Job well done, I'd say."

The blush turned crimson red and I felt a surge of pride for finally getting something right. Well I guess Cinderella can stay up past midnight, just this once.

Author's Note

I must apologize! I have been trying very hard to get some writing done! But I have this stupid summer homework and I haven't even started on that either. Well I can't make up excuses. I guess my creative juices were running out.

Also! I was thinking about this Doctor Who and Lockwood and Co Crossover! If you'd like *Shamelessly promotes* you can come read it! The title is Agent Who!

So I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I will try so very hard. It won't be long now! Almost getting there!

Thanks a lot and don't forget: I like reviews :3