Jack the Ripper Victims Series: The Double Event Read Online Free PDF

noisy.
    When a child, Elizabeth had learned to read, write, and speak some English from her aunt Tirtza, her father’s older sister. The aunt had served as a domestic servant in a British household when a young woman. Even so, she could not keep up with the conversation between her two male companions. Klaudio made little effort to include her in their discussion.
    He is still not interested in what you have to say , Liza said.
    Yes, but you’ve caught the eye of the Englishman , Bess said. Perhaps he will become fascinated with you, and carry you off to London where you can travel the city by rail.
    Robert stood six feet tall, had dark-hair, a thin face, side whiskers, and a turned up, boyish nose. He smiled for Elizabeth, glanced at her warmly, and made an effort to speak with her. She understood many of the words—although he did not speak them with a Swedish accent, as Aunt Tirtza had—and they came too fast for her to keep up.
    Again, during dinner, Klaudio poured tall drinks from a bottle of vodka he’d ordered. Elizabeth wanted the exuberant feeling she’d got at first during the last meal at the tavern. She would avoid, however, going too far with her drinking and becoming ill. As she ate her meal, she sipped her drink even though she wanted to gulp it. When finished eating, she wanted more vodka, yet she decided to quit for the night.
    Klaudio poured more in her glass before she could stop him. She didn’t drink from it. He seemed to notice, and made a toast in English she couldn’t understand. When she didn’t respond, he nudged her in a friendly manner, and said “Skål!”
    “Cheers,” Robert said, as Elizabeth reluctantly raised her glass. He downed his vodka, a couple of ounces. When she took only a sip, both men balked and gestured for her to turn the glass up and drink it all.
    Elizabeth wouldn’t have them think she didn’t know how to have a good time, so she took a larger drink. Still, vodka remained in her glass.
    Klaudio wants you drunk , Liza said. He will molest you again when you’re helpless.
    Elizabeth didn’t agree. The Englishman was with them. They were having a good time. The warmth of the drink spread through her in a comfortable manner and with it came an amorous feeling toward Klaudio. She thought of his naked form, the taper from his shoulder to hips, the muscular shapes of his legs and buttocks. Robert would eventually leave them—preferably sooner than later—and then she’d be present and aware when the lovemaking began.
    Klaudio poured a new round of vodka. When he got to Elizabeth’s glass, she held her hand over it.
    He smiled and set the bottle down.
    “You’re a pretty girl,” Robert said, and he raised his glass. “Cheers.”
    “Thank you,” Elizabeth said, but she made no move to take a drink.
    The two men were insistent. She looked at the liquid in her glass, a larger amount than she’d thought.
    Perhaps the effect will be less if you drink it quickly , Bess said.
    ~ ~ ~
    Short of becoming ill, Elizabeth was so intoxicated she had difficulty focusing her senses and maintaining her physical coordination. She mistook one man for the other several times as they both helped to support and guide her through the cold, wintry air back to the house in Ösp Lane.
    When finally she and her lover made it to bed, she passionately accepted him inside her. Their lovemaking, a slow exploration of the odors, flesh, and fluids of life itself, revealed a warmth of human touch finer than anything her hopeful daydreams had offered. Love for Klaudio swelled inside Elizabeth as a thrilling sensation gripped her, one that ebbed and flowed in waves of physical bliss before fading. Then, she lay spent until the dim world around her faded as well.
    ~ ~ ~
    Elizabeth awoke much the way she had before, in the blue room with the table and the beaten-up wardrobe, but beside her slept Robert. She leapt from the bed and scrambled after her clothing on the floor.
    Klaudio had tricked her