But when they got back to 11 Park Terrace, there was no need to send for the doctor after all.
“Justine is awake!” said Mrs. Poole as soon as they entered the Athena Club. “And look who’s home!”
Catherine poked her head out of the parlor. “Us, that’s who. Or whom, I can never remember which. We arrived at Charing Cross an hour ago and took a cab home. Just in time to join the fun, it seems. So we’re going to Cornwall? Before we leave, we have to telegraph Ayesha.”
“Why in the world?” said Mary, taking off her hat. “Welcome home, and it’s lovely to see you too! How is Justine? Is she doing all right?”
“What? Oh, politeness. Yes, it’s very nice to see the both of you and all that. Because Queen Tera was the High Priestess of the temple of Isis where Ayesha was trained to use energic powers—if anyone knows how to defeat her, Ayesha will. We do need to defeat her, right? Mrs. Poole’s account was a little garbled, but I understand that she reduced Dr. Seward and six other men to a sort of white powder. I wish I could have seen that! Come upstairs—Justine is awake. Beatrice pushed on her chest and then gave her something—some of her goop. I’ll have to stop teasing her about it—after all, it did bring Justine back to consciousness.”
BEATRICE: You tease me about that goop all the time.
CATHERINE: I’ll stop. I mean, when I remember…
Justine was sitting up in bed, drinking some sort of green concoction, and Beatrice was sitting by her side, saying, “Just a little more. It will do you good, you’ll see.”
As they all scattered themselves around Justine’s bedroom, Catherine and Diana on the bed, Mary in a desk chair she had pulled up, she thought of how nice it was to have all of them at 11 Park Terrace again. The Athena Club was once more together—except for its most recent member, of course. She hoped Lucinda Van Helsing was regaining her health and sanity in Styria. Thank goodness Lucinda was out of this particular fray!
But of course another member of their household was missing. When Mrs. Poole came up with a plate of sandwiches—cucumber and cress, egg salad, and potted ham—Mary thought of Alice, who would ordinarily have performed such a task.
“We have to get Alice back,” said Catherine, as though she had divined Mary’s thoughts. “Bea, I think we should telegraph Ayesha. You remember her story about Queen Tera, don’t you?”
“Yes, we should certainly contact her,” said Beatrice. “This Queen Tera sounds very powerful. What will my poison, or Justine’s strength, or Catherine’s teeth do against a woman who can wield lightning as her weapon? Justine, may I show them?”
Justine nodded and unbuttoned her shirt—Mrs. Poole had not tried to change her out of her male attire. It would have been difficult to put the unconscious Giantess in a nightgown! Beatrice pulled back the side with the buttonholes. There, on Justine’s chest, was a red mark that resembled the burn marks Mary had seen on vampires killed by Ayesha.
“You see?” said Beatrice. “If Justine had been as other women are, I believe such a blow would have stopped her heart. Ayesha understands these powers. She will be able to tell us what to do. Perhaps we can build some sort of weapon that will replicate what Queen Tera is capable of doing—or at least some sort of defensive mechanism, a shield of some sort. If Ayesha can send us instructions on how to fight her…”
“Mrs. Poole, do you have a telegram form?” asked Catherine. “We’ll have to send it to—the Hungarian Academy of Sciences? Where does Ayesha actually live? Do any of us know her address? Beatrice, do you?”
“Alas, I do not,” said Beatrice. “But remember, Jimmy Bucket sent her a telegram once before. He will know how to contact her.”
“That traitor?” said Diana, through a mouthful of potted ham. “If I ever see him again, I’ll kick him so hard—”
“No, you won’t,” said Mary, “because we need his help. But does anyone know where to find him? Remember, he was court-martialed by the Baker Street Irregulars. I haven’t seen him around since we returned.”
“His mother lives in Camden Town,” said Mrs. Poole. “She takes in washing and mending, including some of ours. I believe she has a basement flat on Hawley Street. Two rooms, for herself and three children, one of them sick with consumption. I don’t know how she does it, truly I don’t.”
“I’ll go,” said Diana. “I know where that is.”
“I’ll go with you,” said Catherine. “To prevent you from kicking the one person who knows where to send this telegram, among other things! ‘Queen Tera risen from dead how do we defeat her please advise’ should do it, I think. And after we send this telegram—then what?”
“First of all, I’m going to be the one who fills out that telegram form,” said Mary. “For goodness’ sake, could you be any more cryptic? And, Mrs. Poole, do you have two forms? Before we leave, I have to tell Mina what happened to Mr. Harker. She needs to know that her husband is dead. Second of all—well, second we go to Cornwall. Did you find out about the trains, Mrs. Poole?”
“There’s a train direct to Marazion, but you won’t catch it today if you still have to send a telegram and then pack your things,” said Mrs. Poole. “You’ll have to leave tomorrow morning from Paddington Station.”
“Then let’s start packing,” said Mary. “There should be an inn or hotel of some sort in Marazion. After all, it’s by the seaside. I’m sure it gets bathers on holiday, although probably not at this time of year. And I think Isaac Mandelbaum mentioned something of the sort.… Mrs. Poole, I’ll send you the address where we are staying as soon as we get there. Whatever Ayesha replies, assuming she replies, send it straight on to us. I don’t know if the high and mighty President of the Alchemical Society will have time to help the Athena Club—she was not particularly helpful the last time I spoke with her. In the meantime, we must do the best we can to save Alice, Mr. Holmes, and the Queen. Catherine, you’ll come of course, and Beatrice?”
“And me,” said Diana. “You are not leaving me behind. Not that it ever works, anyway.”
“And me,” said Justine. It was the first time she had spoken since Mary had entered the room. She sounded tired, but determined. “Do not tell me that I’m not well enough. I too shall fight Queen Tera, who has given me this scar.” She put her hand on her chest. “Her plan, as I understand it, is not only to become Queen of England, but to re-create a Roman Empire in the modern world. We cannot allow that. It would be worse even than the British Empire. Forgive me, Mary, but I am Swiss—I do not believe in empires. They are always systems of tyranny over subject peoples. Tera would spread this tyranny over the Earth. She must be stopped.”
Mary shook her head, but did not reply. She could not agree with Justine about the British Empire. Surely it had brought medicines, and education, and the benefits of religion to the colonies? Yes, there had been cruelties and oppression, but surely the Empire did some good as well? However, Justine was right—they must stop the Egyptian Queen. The question was—how?