“I wish we could get into it now.” She turned her head to look up at him, crooking her arm over his chest and cradling her chin against the roll of her fist. Her full lips pursed. “Or climb on top of the balloon. We could hide up there while they wonder where we went, and hang on until they fly back to some port.”
Thoughtfully, Thom nodded. “We could, at that.”
“I wasn’t serious. That was a not-so-clever suggestion.”
He knew. Between the cold, the wind, and no knowing where they were going or when they’d get food, the top of a balloon could be a death trap. “It’s better than other options we have.”
She sighed heavily against him, acknowledging that sad fact. “Is there anything on Oriana that you can bring up? Perhaps something that we could attach to the bottom of the platform—or to the tether, just below the surface—and keep it hidden until we need it?”
Offhand, he couldn’t think of anything that wouldn’t be noticed. “I’ll look around.”
“Be careful, though. It isn’t worth your being trapped in a wreck.” Her eyes were somber as she regarded him. After a moment, a faint smile curved her lips. “It’s odd to say this, Thom, but despite not yet having an escape, and despite Southampton’s threats—I am happier at this moment than I’ve ever been.”
He was, too. “I’ll be happier when we are away.”
Georgie laughed and dropped a kiss to his chest, directly over his heart. “I will be, too.”
And she was full of more smiles and kisses after they rose from the bed, as she helped him into his diving suit—and when he teased her, full of laughter and blushes and cries of Thom!
Until sunrise, when Southampton knocked at the door—and told Thom that if every single coin wasn’t aboard the airship by the end of the day, he and Georgie would both be dead.
* * *
Within an hour, Georgiana was watching the sea again, endlessly cranking the pump. On the other side of the coiled air hose, Mrs. Winch sat at the edge of the platform, her bare feet dangling into the cold water and a cigarillo between her lips.
Unlike Mr. Blade, she obviously had no interest in harassing Georgiana. They’d barely exchanged any words since the platform had descended.
That suited Georgiana. Her worry for Thom kept her company—as did thoughts of escape. But she hadn’t yet figured out how . . . and if they didn’t delay Southampton’s leaving for one more day, she and Thom would likely never find the opportunity.
Tonight would be their only chance, and the submersible was their best hope of securing that extra time. But Georgiana didn’t believe the machine would tempt Southampton. Though valuable, the twenty or thirty livre it might bring at market would be nothing to a man who would soon possess thousands of gold coins.
It would be a hefty sum to mercenaries, however—probably more than Southampton had paid them for this job.
So Georgiana would try to tempt them, instead. Over the noise of the pump, she said, “I hope Thom will bring up the submersible as well. It’s worth quite a sum. Not as much as the gold, of course—though if Southampton gives all the coins back to the Crown, I suppose he will walk away with nothing extra.”
For a long second, Mrs. Winch studied her through a small cloud of smoke. Then she nodded and said, “I don’t understand bringing the gold up at all if his lordship just gives it away.”
“I suppose you would earn a larger percentage if Southampton also recovered any treasure for himself. If there was something coming up from Oriana that Southampton wasn’t giving away, its value could make up for the additional time you’ve spent on this job.”
Winch’s eyes narrowed. “Are you trying to buy me off, Mrs. Thomas?”
Georgiana hadn’t been, but she wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. “Yes. Could I?”
The other woman smiled and shook her head. “In my profession, there’s only two things that matter aside from the money: the job you’re doing, and the next job you’ll get. And anyone who gets a reputation for sinking one job when a bit of gold is flashed in front of her won’t be getting another job.”
“Then I suppose it would take a lot of gold to persuade you—enough that you’d never need another job.”
“Yes.”
Georgiana wasn’t that well off. And giving Mrs. Winch the gold coins wouldn’t secure her help. If the mercenary would betray her employer, then she would likely betray Georgiana and Thom, too.
But Mrs. Winch might extend a job by one day, if she knew there was a possibility of earning more money. Not changing Southampton’s plan to kill them—just benefiting from delaying it. So Georgiana would let the knowledge that a valuable submersible waited below simmer in Mrs. Winch’s head for a while.
Cranking the pump, she shrugged and sighed. “It was worth the attempt. I doubt I could have paid more than a man like Southampton. I’m sure you will be very well compensated.”
“You’d think so.”
Georgiana nodded, as if she hadn’t detected the edge in Winch’s reply. “He seems a fair man. Despite taking us against our will, he has treated us well. Thom and I have no complaints, especially as he’s promised to return us home. I’m sure that Southampton is fair in his dealings with you, too.”