Cuff inclined his head, though his mischievous smile suggested he still found her reaction amusing.
Other characters began to venture closer to the circle around Aurelia, including the two women from the mezzanine who had come down the spiral staircase to join them.
“Were my aunts the only people you’ve met in the shop?The only people other than characters from other books?”
Many around her nodded.
“I have only ever met Marigold and Lucy,” Marmee said.
“And I have only ever met Cristobel,” said Laurie.“This is my first time back in the shop since then.”
“Do you have any choice over whether you come here?”
“Apparently not.It was a surprising turn of events to find myself here tonight, but not unpleasantly so,” Vronsky said with a smile.
“Indeed, we have no foreknowledge as to whether we shall appear or not.We simply arrive here and return home as though no time had passed.”Cuff seemed unable to resist adding his account of things.
“That must be a bit alarming?”
“Oh, no.It’s rather an adventure,” Laurie insisted.
The others chimed in to agree.
“Do you know when it’s about to happen, or is it very sudden?”
“When it’s time for a visit, it feels as though a child is pulling at me, wanting my attention,” said Marmee.“Once I feel that, I know that within a few moments I’ll find myself here in the shop.The same happens in reverse—I feel a gentle pull when it’s time for us to return.”
Aurelia nodded, taking it all in and trying to order the dozens of questions that kept multiplying in her head.But she began to realize that no matter how well explained, she might never fully understand it.She looked around at the characters and decided she might as well enjoy the experience while it lasted.
“Could someone introduce me to the others?”she asked.
Laurie stepped closer and swept his hand forward, indicating that she should lead the way.
“Miss Lyndham, this is Elinor and her sister, Marianne.”
I must have slept for a good while if they’re already on a first name basis with one another, Aurelia thought as Laurie gestured to the two women who had been discussing Barton Park on the mezzanine.Nodding a greeting to each woman, she recognized them now as the Dashwood sisters fromSense and Sensibility.
“Good to meet you—and please, you should all feel free to call me Aurelia.”
“Well then, Aurelia,” Laurie said with a smile, “this is Rachel.”
He was gesturing to the other young woman Aurelia hadn’t been able to place.She had to think for a moment before remembering that Rachel was the strong female character at the center ofThe Moonstone.
A dawning realization spread over her and she swung her head around to look at the Recommended Reads table.Her eyes ran over the books, one by one.She looked up, taking in the roomful of characters around her.The only characters in the shop tonight were from the books on the table: Laurie and Marmee fromLittle Women; Rachel and Sergeant Cuff fromThe Moonstone; Elinor and Marianne fromSense and Sensibility; and Count Vronsky fromAnna Karenina.
Putting the pieces together at last, Aurelia remembered Aunt Marigold’s insistence that the Recommended Reads table and its display of books remain a fixture in the shop.Marigold must have wanted to ensure that Aurelia would discover the shop’s secret in time.She watched the characters as they began circulating around the room, talking and laughing with one another.A jumble of emotions ran through her—elation at this night and its discovery, frustration that it had taken her this long to find out about it, and, overriding everything, a lingering fear that she would wake up to find that it was, in the end, all a figment of her imagination.
Deciding to focus on her excitement, Aurelia walked back into the crowd of characters, resolved to enjoy this remarkable magic.
12
Aureliawoketothesounds of birds calling through the square and a loud lorry passing the shop.In her half-asleep state, her eyebrows drew together as she pondered this—lorries passed the front of the building, never her bedroom at the back.She opened one eye, then the second quickly followed as she sat bolt upright.She’d been asleep in the shop, tucked up on the window seat on the mezzanine.Checking her watch, she saw that it was nearly ten o’clock.She continued to stare at her watch, trying to process this information—nearly ten, nearly ten…
“Oh, damn!”
It was almost time to open the shop and Aurelia was still dressed in yesterday’s clothes, her hair matted from sleep.She jumped up from the window seat and started heading toward the flat before memories of the night before came rushing back.Walking to the railing of the mezzanine, she looked down to where she’d talked with Marmee and the others.Had it really happened?Could it happen again?
A loud meow from the flat brought her back to the present.She opened the door and Fezz burst through, sounding another meow of annoyance.
