"I think so. Mrs. White never said anything bad about her, just that she was a bit...what's the word?" "Violent?" Jacob offered.
"Unpredictable?" I said.
"No, something that means she gets talked into doing stuff easily. Stuff that's not always good for her to do, if you know what I mean."
"Impressionable," I said.
"That's it! Impreshun-able." She frowned. "She hasn't stole nothing from her employer, has she?"
Jacob and I exchanged glances. He nodded and I nodded back. If we wanted answers, we'd have to at least tell her part of the truth.
"She might have stolen a book from Mr. Culvert on demonology."
"Demon-what?"
"Demonology. It's the study of demons and angels."
"Oh," she whispered. She glanced at Celia, perhaps because she thought her the normal one of the two of us.
"Rest assured we have nothing to do with demons," Celia said. "We only deal with good spirits, happy ones."
Jacob snorted but I admired Celia's ability to lie so convincingly. She was really very good at it. There wasn't a hint of a blush on her fair skin.
"Mr. Culvert would like his book back," I said. "Indeed, it's quite important that he does get it back. You see..." Oh dear, this was the point at which I should tell her about the demon on the loose. But her face looked so innocent with those big hazel eyes and pale, pale skin, that I didn't want to frighten her anymore than she already was. It was hard enough starting a new job and moving in with two strangers, I didn't want to be responsible for her nightmares too.
Celia, however, seemed to have no such qualms. "You see Mr. Culvert fights demons and the book is vital to his work."
"Why doesn't she just tell the girl he's invisible and can move mountains too?" Jacob said with a shake of his head.
I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. Jacob, seeing my distress, gave me a self-satisfied smirk.
"Vital?" Lucy repeated.
"Yes," Celia said. She set down the embroidery in her lap, all seriousness. Perhaps she even believed her own lie, or part of it. "Unless Mr. Culvert gets the book back, the people of London could be in grave danger from demons. So you see, if you know anything that could help us, we'd very much appreciate it if you would let us know. Your role is terribly important, Lucy. In fact, you could save London."
Jacob groaned and rolled his eyes. Since I was used to Celia's fondness for melodrama, I simply looked on, somewhat stunned because her method seemed to be getting results. Lucy's forehead crinkled, her brows knitted and her mouth twisted to the side. She was thinking hard.