Mina was consumed with curiosity about what would transpire at the séance, but had to wait until the following morning to find out. She saw now that she had been excluded from discussion of the event because her mother, imagining that it might be a day or two before Mina heard of it, wanted to learn everything she could, so as to be prepared to offer a complete refutation.
The next morning Mina did not need to prompt her mother to tell the tale, for she was regaled at great length across the breakfast table with an account of Miss Eustace’s wonderful triumph. The lady had been surrounded with sympathetic well-wishers, who had applauded her and pressed her with many gifts, and Phoebe had later appeared wearing gorgeous robes and a glowing crown studded with jewels. The spirit had spoken to them all, and even kissed Professor Gaskin’s hand. Their host, said Louisa, had offered a full explanation for the events of the previous night, which showed that Mr Jordan had been labouring under a delusion as to what had really occurred. Not only had Professor Gaskin written to all the Brighton newspapers with a detailed account of the incident, but he had also composed a small pamphlet, which was being printed as he spoke and would enlighten anyone who had heard the false accusations.
That afternoon, the professor’s pamphlet, its ink barely dry, appeared in newsagents, libraries and reading rooms all over Brighton. The title was ‘Miss Eustace, vindicated; an explanation of spirit phenomena.’
It was with considerable curiosity and a heavy heart that Mina obtained a copy and took it home to study.
Professor Gaskin commenced his address to the denizens of Brighton by stating that a certain intolerant hostile and ignorant person, whom he declined to name, but whose character was perfectly described by the fact that he did not hesitate to use violence to endanger the life of a virtuous lady, had suggested that Miss Eustace had been exposed as a fraud. Nothing, he declared, could be further from the truth. Jealous persons, persons who perhaps were interested in promoting rivals to Miss Eustace and hoped thereby to make their fortunes, had tried to destroy her reputation by spreading a false rumour to the effect that the materialised form of Phoebe had been found to be Miss Eustace clad in glowing robes. This was not at all what had occurred, and in the interests of scientific enquiry and progress he felt obliged to set the record straight.
Miss Eustace, he advised his readers, had but recently recovered from a severe cold, which had greatly decreased her available energy, but such was her selfless devotion to the world of the spirit, she had, in order to please her many admirers, recommenced her séances a little before her full powers had returned to her.
It had been determined to secure her to a chair before she entered the trance state, a duty that was always carried out by independent volunteers, and had this been properly done, nothing untoward would have occurred, but it now appeared that the men who had tied her had not carried out their task as well as they should have done. Indeed one of the men in question was the same man who later created the horrid disturbance, and Professor Gaskin suspected that the failure to tie the medium properly was not due to ineptitude at all, but was actually deliberate. His studies had led him to the conclusion that it was always best to tie the medium when a materialisation was to take place, not as a test of her veracity but for her own protection, in case she started to wander about the room while in a semi-conscious state.
When Phoebe’s form had been produced on previous occasions it had been made wholly out of etheric matter drawn from Miss Eustace’s body to create a complete materialisation. On the night in question, however, because of Miss Eustace’s fragile state of health, there had been insufficient matter to create the whole figure. It was his belief, although he had never previously witnessed it, that in order to arrive at a full materialisation, the process had to pass through a stage of transition, which was not usually seen by sitters, since it took place in a cabinet or behind a curtain. Miss Eustace, although in a semi-trance, and therefore hardly responsible for or even aware of what she was doing, was anxious to meet the expectations of her circle, and rather than disappoint them, the process had commenced, but due to her weakness, it had paused during the transition stage and never achieved full materialisation. At this point, she had produced only sufficient substance to produce the outward appearance of Phoebe and had used it to drape her own form. This amazing material can usually be instantly moulded to adopt any shape; however, on that occasion, the shape that it adopted most easily, as causing the least distress to Miss Eustace, was that of the medium herself. The knots about her wrists failing, Miss Eustace had in her unconscious condition emerged from behind the curtains, only to be attacked with great savagery and almost killed.
Professor Gaskin took upon himself the entire responsibility for the unfortunate outcome of the sitting. He had allowed Miss Eustace to conduct a séance when not in full health, had inadvertently admitted to the circle a person of dubious reputation and harmful influence, and had then failed to ensure that the medium was properly secured and protected. The one person who should bear no blame at all for the incident was Miss Eustace herself.
Mina’s mother had also obtained a copy of the pamphlet, which she studied with considerable satisfaction. Mr Jordan, so her friends had informed her, was beside himself at this development. Not only had he failed in what was practically an attempt to assassinate Miss Eustace, but the gossip about the incident and the circulation of the pamphlet had only increased that lady’s fame, and demand for tickets was more intense than ever.
Mina, in despair over her quarry’s triumph, retired to her room to consider what to do next. It was very apparent now that adherents of Miss Eustace and perhaps of all mediums could, in face of the most blatant exposure, explain everything away in terms that would serve to maintain and even reinforce their belief. There was no hope for them, and she could do nothing for them; indeed Dr Hamid was quite right, she had no real obligation to anyone but her own intimate circle as well as the helpless and the needy. It was not her place to save strangers from the consequences of their own foolishness and vanity. She tried to write, but unusually the words would not come. She had thought of composing a new tale, about a medium who turned out to be a thief, but what good would that do? It was after all a story, and anything might happen in a story.
Mina briefly considered asking for a private sitting with Miss Eustace, but even if she could bring herself to part with two guineas to the medium she was sure that any application would be refused, or if accepted, the sitting would have an inconclusive result. It was hardly possible for her to attend a séance in disguise.
Although she had heard nothing from Richard, she soon learned that he had been busy with his new pursuits. An advertisement had been placed in the Gazette, in the form of a letter from a satisfied customer of the new and sensational Miss Foxton, who had recently, so it was claimed, concluded a successful tour of all the major cities in the land where she had astounded everyone with her supernatural demonstrations. Miss Foxton was shortly to astonish Brighton, and tickets could be procured at very reasonable cost. A box number was given for enquiries. Mina thought that when she finally caught up with Richard she should at least be permitted to see the demonstration as a guest.
Richard soon swept back into her life like a burst of intoxication. He had the ability to both raise her mood and drive her to despair, often at the same time. He laughed heartily at the discomfiture of Mr Jordan, whom he did not see as a danger to himself. ‘Let him come and welcome!’ he said. ‘Let him do his worst! In fact I shall send complimentary tickets to him and his friend Mr Conroy to ensure their attendance.’
‘So you feel that you have nothing to conceal?’ asked Mina with some surprise.
‘Oh my dear girl, we have everything to conceal, but we will make a better job of it than Miss Eustace.’
‘I have heard a rumour the truth of which I have been unable to establish, that the lady has been in prison, though under another name,’ said Mina.
He laughed again. ‘That would not surprise me in the least.’
‘But I am afraid I don’t know that name,’ said Mina seriously.
He made an airy gesture. ‘A woman such as she probably has a dozen.’
‘I only wish I could find out some way of discovering that name and if the story of her being in prison is true. Do you have any idea as to how it might be done? You always seem to be full of ideas.’
He gave the question a few moments’ thought. ‘Well, you might waste your money employing a detective, but even if he found out the whole story and bellowed it from the cliff top, what would be the result? Miss Eustace’s tribe of followers would refuse to believe it, or see her as a martyr to the cause of truth and a victim of persecution by the ignorant, and they would cling to her even closer. Those who do not as yet follow her would flock to see her and she would be more famous than ever. Those who want to believe will believe. Those who do not will not.’
‘Then what can I do?’ she pleaded.
He hugged her. ‘Oh, Mina, you cannot save the world from itself! I know you are concerned for Mother and that is very good and right of course, but you are not Miss Whinstone’s keeper, or even her friend.’
‘I am Eliza Hamid’s friend,’ said Mina.
‘And she has a loving family to protect her,’ said Richard.
‘She has been very ill these last few days,’ said Mina. ‘I believe that she caught a cold from Mr Clee who is young and well able to shake off such a thing, but it has affected her lungs.’
‘Mr Clee will not be allowed near her again,’ said Richard, firmly. ‘When she is well I will get Nellie to entertain her with some conjuring tricks. Perhaps Miss Hamid can host a salon of magical entertainment that will be amusing but not as tiring as a séance. And she will forget all about Mr Clee’s phosphorised handkerchief.’
‘Phosphorised?’ asked Mina.
He shrugged. ‘How else do you think it glowed in the dark? It’s an old trick. I am amazed that people are still taken in.’
‘Do you recall the Davenport brothers?’ she asked, thinking of Dr Edmunds and his mystification at the coat trick. ‘They caused a great sensation only two or three years ago. People still talk of their confounding the laws of science.’
‘Oh, who can forget the magical Davenports and their cabinet of wonders!’ he declared. ‘I fear they went to some expense for that. Never trust a medium who has his apparatus specially constructed. Well – never trust a medium. Yes, they had a startling and novel array of tricks but in the end the whole act boiled down to just the one. Only allow that they had some means of getting their hands free, as any good magician can do very quickly and easily, and all is explained. But I cannot fault them as businessmen.’
‘Richard,’ pleaded Mina, ‘don’t you think you should consider some means of income which would be more – well –’
‘Respectable?’ he asked.
‘Yes. And less likely to result in your being put in prison,’ she added. ‘Mother would never forgive you.’
‘Oh, you know she would, and so would you! But prison is an uncomfortable place, and I promise I shall make every effort to avoid it.’ He jumped up. ‘And now, my dear, I have a dozen things to attend to, and you may be sure to receive your ticket very soon.’
‘Where is this event to take place?’ asked Mina. ‘At Miss Gilden’s lodgings?’
‘Oh no, the rooms are far too small. But I have made some enquiries and found a little band of spiritually minded ladies who like to meet and talk ghosts over their sherry and biscuits, and so I smiled prettily at them. One of their number, a Mrs Peasgood, who has a delightful home in Kemp Town, has been kind enough to let me use her drawing room gratis. There is ample space for both guests and performance.’
‘Mrs Peasgood the surgeon’s widow?’ asked Mina.
‘Why, yes, do you know her?’
‘She is one of Mother’s new friends!’ exclaimed Mina, in alarm. ‘Will you be there?’
‘But of course! I am the master of ceremonies for the evening.’
‘Richard, you cannot do this!’ said Mina. ‘Supposing Mother goes, or Mrs Bettinson or her other friends who all know you, as they very well might! What then? Mother would never be able to hold her head up again, and she would find some reason why it was all my fault.’
Richard was unperturbed, and planted a kiss on the top of her head. ‘Have no fear, my darling girl! I have thought of everything!’
It was some hours after he left that Mina noticed that the oriental vase in the front hallway had vanished.
Despite accepting the fact that there was nothing further she could do for Miss Eustace’s dupes, Mina was still curious enough to pay a visit to Mr Jordan. A Brighton directory and a few discreet enquiries soon provided the information that he was the proprietor of an emporium supplying suits of clothing to young men of fashion. He and Mr Conroy, who dealt in ties, cravats, cummerbunds and hats, had once had separate establishments and had long glared at each other from across the way, but one day they had met by chance, struck up a crusty sort of friendship and gone into partnership. This had flourished so well that they had recently taken another shop next door for ladies apparel, the supervising angels being Mr Conroy’s wife and Mr Jordan’s sister.
Mr Conroy was a bluff uncomplicated gentleman, with a talent for putting his customers at their ease, but Mr Jordan adopted a manner that was both imperious and condescending, as if to suggest that while the customer he was serving was neither noble nor royal there were others who were. He employed a hard-pressed assistant, but was always in evidence, looking on with a hard critical eye and making sure to give the wealthier customers his personal attention. The word in Brighton was that Mr Jordan was little more than a jumped-up tailor, although no one would have said it to his face.
The shop was redolent with the acrid, nostril-stinging scent of new freshly steamed wool, with a citrus hint of gentlemen’s cologne. When Mina entered she found Mr Jordan overseeing his assistant, who was showing a gentleman a display of fabrics. His watch was in his palm as if he was timing the exercise, but when he saw Mina he snapped it shut, and put it in his pocket. ‘Miss Scarletti, how may I assist you?’
‘If you have a moment, Mr Jordan, I would be interested in discussing your encounter with Miss Phoebe – or should I say Miss Eustace, since I understand that you claim they amount to one and the same person.’
He grunted, and beckoned Mina away to one side of the shop, out of the earshot of his customer. ‘You are not one of her acolytes?’ he said with an unattractive sneer.
‘Not at all,’ said Mina, choosing to ignore the rudeness of his manner in the interest of extracting information. ‘In fact I had a recent experience when I stumbled and fell against the spectre, and was thereby convinced that it was a living person, and female. It can only have been Miss Eustace. I understand that you went further than this and deliberately clasped her.’
‘I did,’ he said with some dignity. ‘May I assure you that it is far from my nature to treat a lady in such a rough and indelicate fashion, but then Miss Eustace, whatever her pretensions, is not a lady. I cannot be sure quite what she is, or indeed who she is, but honest and selfless as she likes to claim, she is most assuredly not.’
‘And you were quite certain that Phoebe is just Miss Eustace in draperies?’
‘Oh beyond a doubt,’ he assured her, with a short barking laugh. ‘The supposed spectre struggled and kicked me most unmercifully as I took hold of her. She has all the good manners of a fishwife. I will admit that I cannot explain the mechanism of the imposture, but that is not my business.’
‘Do you intend to take any further action against her?’ asked Mina.
‘No, none,’ he declared. ‘I have written to the newspapers of course, but my efforts are swamped by those of her credulous adherents, and she is now unassailable. Really, if these people wish to be parted from their money then I can only leave them to their fate. And now, I understand that there is to be a new sensation in town, a Miss Foxton and her – well, I hesitate to say what he might be – her theatrical manager shall we say, a Mr Ricardo. Are you acquainted with these people?’
‘I am not familiar with anyone of that name,’ said Mina, truthfully.
‘He has sent me a letter today with a free ticket, and of course I shall attend and they must look to it or I will show them up to be the cheats and charlatans they are, and if I can see them both in prison I will consider my work well done.’
‘I may well attend myself, as a matter of curiosity only, of course,’ said Mina. ‘And what of your partner Mr Conroy? Did your actions convince him that Miss Eustace is a fraud?’
‘Mr Conroy prefers not to speak of that night,’ said Mr Jordan, shutting his mouth with a snap no less firm than his watch.
Mina was naturally abiding by Eliza’s instructions not pay her a visit, although she was anxious for news, and after leaving Mr Jordan’s she turned her feet towards Dr Hamid’s baths, which was not far distant, hoping that someone would be in attendance who would be able to let her know how her friend was progressing. Although Mina’s exercises, which she continued with a dedicated determination, concentrated on developing her shoulders, back and chest, there were some that strengthened her legs and Anna had encouraged her in her usual habit of taking short refreshing walks. Mina still limped, and accepted the fact that she would always do so, but at least she could now limp faster and for longer and without pain.
As she approached the baths she noticed two gentlemen standing outside the building peering closely at something in the window but making no attempt to enter. Initially she supposed that it was an advertisement, but as she drew closer she saw that the interior of the establishment, seen through the glass, was in darkness although it was well within its usual hours of opening. A sensation of cold dread settled over her.
The gentlemen stood aside as she approached and she saw that they were looking at a notice bordered in black. ‘It’s closed up today,’ one of them said, and they turned and walked away. Mina, her eyes clouded with emotion, could barely read the sign, which offered apologies for the fact that the establishment was closed due to a family bereavement, and promised that it would reopen on the following day. For several minutes she leaned against the door, making no attempt to control the tears that were coursing freely down her face, and ruminated on how cruel life could be. She thought of Eliza’s sweet face and quick mind, and their lively conversations. She thought of how much she had looked forward to writing stories for her friend and encouraging her to seek new amusements. As she stood there several people came up and read the sign and went away, and some asked her if she was well and needed any assistance, but she said that she would recover, it was due to the shock of the bad news. One kind lady, who was a friend of Anna’s and had known of Eliza’s illness, confirmed what Mina had feared, and they talked for a few minutes until Mina felt able to leave.
She did not want to go home unless she could be certain of being able to escape to her room in order to be alone with her grief, and that was far from sure. She thought it likely that her mother would be entertaining her friends that afternoon and did not feel equal to feigning politeness in the company of Mrs Bettinson and her like; neither did she want to carry the tragedy home as if it was simply another piece of town gossip to be bandied about by chattering ladies. She walked instead towards the seashore, where she could best think about the muddled uncertain line between two worlds, and what might happen when crossing from one to the other.
Brighton was beginning to welcome the first of the new season of visitors, but on the eastern side of the town it was not so busy. A great swathe of building work had cut through the approach to the old Chain Pier and carved it away to make room for the new aquarium, but the new truncated entrance to the pier was not unpleasing. Close by, one could stand and take in the sight of the great iron structure that seemed to power its massive way into the sea like a steam train, and see the waves beating against its supports. In mild weather, as it was that day, the waves appeared to be caressing the pier with a firm but approving affection, but Mina knew that they could suddenly turn to rage and resentment. She saw the figure of a man standing alone and looking out to sea, and recognised him as Dr Hamid. She hesitated, then approached him.
‘I have just come from the baths,’ she said. ‘I saw the notice. I don’t know what to say. I am so very sorry.’
‘I must apologise for closing the business today,’ he said quietly.
‘Please, there is no need for any apology,’ she reassured him.
‘There are patients who rely on us for regular treatment; some are elderly, some in great pain. I have a duty to them.’ He sighed. ‘Anna is at home making all the arrangements, and I would help her but I think I am not very useful at present; at any rate she suggested I go out and take the air for a while.’
‘Do you mind if we talk?’ she asked. ‘If you would rather be alone, let me know, and I will go at once.’
‘No, please stay. You were Eliza’s friend, and even in such a short while you came to know her better than most. Towards the end, she said what a comfort you were to her and how she hoped that when she was well you would meet again. She liked the stories you sent her.’
Mina hardly dared look into his eyes, the irises like fractured marble, with splinters of pain. ‘I was so looking forward to seeing her. She helped me with a story I was writing, and I thought perhaps we might write one together.’
‘When she was a child,’ said Dr Hamid, ‘my father was told that she would most probably not live past her twentieth birthday, but we gave her the best care we could, and she had a not unpleasant life, filled with interest. She inspired me, she inspired Anna and by her example we became better than we might have been and more able to help others.’
‘That is her monument,’ said Mina. ‘She will live on through you and your sister. Please let me know when it would be appropriate for me to call.’
‘Of course. I know Anna would like to see you.’ There was a long silence as they both looked out across the rolling sea. Carriages rattled past, like ships full of merriment and the promise of delight.
‘Too many losses,’ he said with another heavy sigh. ‘Too many people taken away before their time. Eliza might have lived another twenty years, Jane another thirty. It is so cruel and unnecessary, when there are evil people in this world who live long and good people who do not. I wish I knew why that was! I can only pray, and …’ For a few moments he looked as though he was biting back tears. Not so long ago they had sat beside each other in a circle and clasped hands, and she felt she wanted to reach out and touch his hand as a friend, but it would not have been right. ‘When Jane died it was like a light that had illuminated my life going out,’ he said. ‘I would like to think that somewhere, somehow, that light is still burning, and that one day I will be able to see it again and go towards it. I need to believe. Surely we all do?’
Mina waited for him to say more but he did not. ‘I hope,’ she said, ‘that you are not considering going to see Miss Eustace again?’
‘And why should I not?’ he demanded with sudden ferocity.
‘You know why not,’ said Mina, trying to speak as gently as possible.
He shook his head. ‘One of my patients told me that he went to her for a private reading and received information that could have come from no one other than the deceased.’
‘So some people claim,’ said Mina, ‘but I am not convinced it is so.’
‘Well, you can hardly blame me for seeking the truth,’ he said obstinately.
‘No, I cannot, but this is not the time to do it, when you are in pain and wanting to believe anything that will give you comfort. Please tell me you will wait awhile.’
He closed his eyes as if to shut out the world and be alone with his misery.
‘I would like to walk a little way,’ she said. ‘Will you assist me?’
‘Yes, of course.’ He offered her his arm, and they turned and walked along the Marine Parade with the sun reflecting off the bright white hotels to their right and the sea crashing like shards of blue-veined jasper to their left.