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slipped and thudded to the floor.
    â€œLet’s be certain it’s mine.” Ellis offered him the baggage claim ticket. Once again she felt the eyes of the crowd following her, and she felt her cheeks grow warm.
    â€œIt’s the only piece here, girl.” He looked about for a porter and then bent to struggle with it again and gazed at her from his awkward angle under the trunk. “I’m sorry, Ellis; I should have known you wouldn’t recognize it. It’s just that we have so few travelers stopping here, it just couldn’t belong to anyone else.”
    Ellis nodded politely wondering what he was talking about. Few travelers? The station had been jammed with people when she arrived. She stole a glance at the now-thinning crowd, many of whom were now openly staring at her.
    â€œEllis.” It was a deep, husky sound murmuring her name behind her. She turned to see a man stepping out of the crowd. He was handsome—too handsome, Ellis thought, in the way that some women wear too much perfume. He was clean shaven, but there were the shades of a dark beard remaining about his strong jaw and cheeks. His hair was carefully groomed but long in a way that was no longer fashionable. His manner suggested that he did not care about fashion. His eyes were a striking light blue, intense and somehow sad, like a dog that had been beaten and did not comprehend why.
    â€œDon’t mind them; they are all agog about any outsiders,” he said with an ingratiating smile. He was certainly older than Ellis. He wore a morning coat, waistcoat, striped pants and, incongruously, bowler hat.
    He strode up with a young woman on his arm. She had luxurious blond hair beneath her wide-brimmed hat. She was about Ellis’s age and gazing at her with a look that left Ellis uncertain. At the man’s words the crowd began to dissipate.
    â€œMerrick. How good of you to come.” The doctor allowed the heavy trunk to slide to the floor once more. Ellis wondered exactly what she saw in the old man’s eyes as he spoke to the younger man. Fear? Respect? The look was gone like the shadow of a cloud moving across the sun.
    â€œI wouldn’t have missed this for anything,” Merrick sighed through a beaming smile that made Ellis blush.
    â€œMerrick, would you be so good as to take this woman’s baggage to my auto?” Dr. Carmichael gestured to the large trunk beside him. “It appears to be too heavy for this old man.”
    â€œNot until we’ve said hello.” In a breach of decorum he snatched up her hand before it was offered. The smile he beamed down on Ellis was at once charming and sad. Ellis gauged him to be a number of years more mature than herself, perhaps almost thirty, but could not determine his age. She took in the look in his piercing blue eyes, which both terrified and thrilled her at once. How ridiculous I am , she thought, mustering common sense and brushing off the fleeting tingle up her spine.
    â€œOh! I believe we have met,” she stated simply, feeling she finally understood the situation.
    â€œWhy, yes! Do you know me?” Merrick pressed in close to her, too close, retaining a firm hold on her fingers. Ellis retreated a half step. He gazed down on her so earnestly that she wished she could tell him yes, if only to escape his intense scrutiny.
    Lucian stepped in toward them. “Merrick, I believe it’s quite obvious that the young lady is being polite. She doesn’t even know her own baggage yet. Allow me to reintroduce you: Miss Ellis Harkington, this is Mr. Merrick Bacchus, benefactor of the entire town.”
    Merrick tipped his hat graciously and let go of Ellis’s now-numb fingers. “Glad you’ve safely arrived, Miss Harkington. May I see you safely to Summersend?”
    Ellis surprised by the offer, wondering what he could mean, looked up at her uncle.
    â€œNow, Merrick, we’ve talked about this. I will take Ellis to her