Adam eyed Lily thinking things over.  He was half annoyed at the delay, but only halfway.  He knew he could send her on her way with relative ease but mayhap she could be useful right now.  He wasn't sure how exactly, not at the moment, but his mind was swiftly calculating what adjustments would have to be made to weave her into this pattern he was working.  He sat in silence a couple minutes, his strange eyes staring at her as the thought.

"Both actually" he said when he finally spoke, his mind made up to bring her into the situation.  "I am paying a call on a long time member who sent me a rather puzzling letter implying that her quite dead husband was very much alive."

He had the letter with him and handed it to Lily to review as he continued.

"It is quite impossible of course.  However I think there is more to it and I find myself suspicious.  I would be glad of the company if you wish to come; you may see something I miss.  However I also wish you to be sure this is something you actually want to do."

He paused before continuing.

"It is only a feeling, I have no confirmed data, but I suspect something less than savory.  The loss of her husband affected Lady Isabau deeply and I fear her isolation since has done her no favors either.  When I visited her last she was uncomfortably forward with her attentions; I felt it very much inappropriate as her husband was very recently deceased.  Indeed I might have termed her manner to be somewhat obsessive and manic.  Therefore I would caution you to be alert and ready for anything.  And I do mean anything.  The lady is a skilled doctor, her talent lies in healing but I fear she might have put it to a darker use of late.  It is my sincere hope that my suspicions are groundless."

He didn't add that the only pattern that made sense to him was if she was tied into something rather unpleasant.  If it wasn't her then there was someone, or something, behind her manipulating her.  The living dead husband would be the key to this whole thing if he could get her to open up about it.   

Lilian accepted the letter and read it as Adam spoke. When he finished talking she sat a moment in contemplation, allowing the information to soak into her mind and mix with other facts to see if anything connected. With the exception to familiarity with the name D'allende nothing else about the little information she was given stuck out to her. 

"Well. I can tell you you are quite mistaken about one thing. The dead returning is not completely out of the realm of possibility. Unless of course you were referring specifically to the late Mr.D'allende. In which case I would..." she cut herself off, a frown growing on her face as her mind sunk into thought. Despite the visceral death of the doctors late husband Lilian could think of at least one way a person could be brought back after such a... definitive end. "...still not agree..." Lilian returned the letter to Adam.

"I would very much like to assist you with this." She said as she reached into a pouch and pulled out a book with numerous book marks poking out of it from all sides. She picked a mark and opened the book to that page "I spent some time looking into Miss D'allende a while ago, before I joined the society. Her work was rather fascinating. But as you made it clear I am to not research members of the society without their consent I have no recent information her. So I'm afraid I have little to offer you in regards to confirming your suspicions. And any previously gathered information on her I am sure you're aware of. You probably know more than I in fact." she closed the book after making a note and returned it to a pouch. 

"I will keep my guard up around the lady... I can say that my past experience with doctors is that after a certain point they tend to begin to push boundaries they shouldn't for knowledge. At least the ones who spend their time searching for new methods rather than the sort that practice it." She took out another book from the same pouch, it also having numerous book marks jutting out of it. She opens it to a place at the back "I am not saying that that is what happened here with Miss D'allende. Only that if she took her husbands death as poorly as you suggest, then it is not too much of a leap to presume that was the push that moved her past her own line of morality. Just a thought." She began making notes in her book. 

"Yes" Adam said softly.  "I would certainly see that as plausible.  More than but I'd prefer concrete proof."

The carriage rolled along in silence for a bit as Adam lost himself in thought.  He was prone to do this when working through a problem and most who spent any time around him had grown accustomed to it.  Finally he roused himself again and spoke up.  

"There are other strange happenings around the city that I believe are tied to one another, along with the Lady we are visiting.  I'm not sure if she is the source or merely a point of interest.  But either way we should look for anything that might be out of pattern.  Including among her staff.  The easiest place to hide in a wealthy household is in the staff.  I believe we should consider making ourselves quite obnoxious to the staff to see what shakes loose."

He pulled a plain wax envelope from a pocket and pulled out a needle.  He rolled it in his fingers before handing it to Lily.  

"Here, take this and affix it to your sleeve somewhere near the wrist.  All those involved in investigations wear such and if looked at while using your Talent you see they look quite unique.  In case we get separated this will let others know you are safe to discuss the cases with."

Outside he heard the creak of rusted iron gates and knew they were turning onto the De'allende estate.  Now he would have answers to some of the questions that plagued him in the dead of night.  

Lilian accepted the needled and slipped it into place on one of her sleeves without looking up from her book. She jotted down a few more notes in the recently created 'De'allende: The Mad Scientist?" chapter in her "People of Interest" notebook. She kept notes on just about everything so of course she had immediately started making some for this case. The creaking gate caught her attention and she looked up and out the window to see what it was. She then made more notes in her book.

[i]Creaky Gate - Hypothesis of cause: Rust.
Implication- Lack of care of grounds could mean lax standards on part of owner of gate. 
Importance- If it was only recently that standards became lax this would lend credence to the idea that Mrs. De'allende has changed to some degree. 
Importance- Minimal. 
Actions - If able, inquire to servants regarding care of grounds. Personal thoughts: The creaking is annoying. Someone should fix that gate. [/i]

With that Lilian closed her book but kept it out, holding it close to her side. "You mentioned strange goings on in the city? What do you classify as strange? As frankly I have filled several books with the odd goings on of the city. I have a whole book dedicated to Crazy Clyde alone; interestingly enough his name isn't Clyde, it's Malcolm Holmes. He moved to the city ten years ago from-" Lilian continued speaking about the strange man who wanders the streets of Prague. Not that she remembered but she had already told Adam about Clyde twice before, however in those cases, like this one, she was not really even paying attention to herself as she spoke. She often did this to keep people from talking to her while she was trying to focus on something; she found it easier to talk about a random subject than to try and focus on her thoughts while also listening to someone else. Currently her mind was preoccupied with taking in the grounds. From her memory she could tell the grounds had changed quiet a bit since she was forced to cease her investigation of it and its occupants. But as that was several years ago the changes could easily be explained by time, so she threw the information out. "-and so people started calling him Crazy Clyde. Fascinating example of sociology and psychology no?"  She did not expect an answer to the question.

Adam had only been partially listening, in much the way Lily was using the chatter to think so too was he.  When they pulled up to the house Lily quit her monologue and Adam nodded briefly.  His eyes were cold when he looked at her, not because of the company but because it was duty that compelled him to make this visit and he really didn't want to.  He knew he had to push the outward look of that aside and he did, with an effort of will.  

"It seems we are out of time at this moment" he said when the carriage rolled to a halt.  "I shall have to update you on the other factors at a later time, perhaps it is for the best.  For now...let us see what we learn here.  I am anxious to hear your opinions formed with no prior knowledge of other oddities; and then see how they change when new information is brought to light." 

He climbed gracefully from the carriage, and turned to assist Lily, thinking as he did so how to introduce her.  Investigative scientist he decided was the best title to give her, and she looked the part.  That would do.  He turned back and nodded to his driver, Ren.  The man knew what to do.  He would be taken to the staff kitchens to await his master's departure as was the custom.  While there Ren would casually learn what he could from the staff.  Adam wished he had thought to ask Lily to do the same, she could easily claim the need to visit a retiring room or privy and from there she could investigate further.  But as the French would say cest la vie, they had plenty to keep them occupied just interviewing the Lady.  

He handed his card to the butler at the door, a man he had known quite awhile but formality dictated proper introductions.  

"Adam Ware and companion to see the Lady" he said.  For the butler's benefit Adam kept Lily's role secretive; the butler would wonder and speculate on the relationship between Lily and Adam.  He in turn would pass on his speculations to his mistress.  Her reaction when she greeted them would tell much.      

The butler showed both of them inside and closed the door behind them. With a bow he quickly disappeared around a corner and into the depths of the house. While they had a moment alone Lilian took the time to examine the inside of the house, walking away from Adam to do so. The inside of the house was what one might call extravagant; the carpets were of a complex pattern and clearly used golden thread in some spots. The paintings on the wall were numerous and the unnerving realism suggest only the finest artists where called upon to make them.  The molding fitted to the floors and ceiling were complex and would have taken a long time to make. The furniture and the items that sat atop them were all finely crafted and the styles came from all around the world. One might call the home extravagant, Lilian however, did not. To a noble walking through the house, more concerned with impressing the host, would not notice the feint signs of disrepair. The carpeting should have been taken outside and beaten free of dust months ago and the furniture's surfaces and objects upon them were coated with dust. She would need to see the rest of the house to be sure but at the moment her suspicions before regarding the gate were quickly being proven true. 

Lilian's inspection of a small stain on a painting was interrupted by the butler returning with his mistress behind him. Lilian quickly stepped off the chair she was using to get closer to the painting and stood next to Adam. The butler gave the pair an introduction to the lady, as if he hadn't already told her who they were when he fetched her, and was quickly dismissed by Mrs. D'Allende. As it had been sometime since Lillian had seen the Mrs.D'Allende she immediately began taking in every detail so she could update her profile of the lady. Overall the women looked tired and as if she had not left her home in a long time. Her skin looked pale an sickly; the makeup used to conceal the bags under her eyes looked as though it needed to be redone; Her hair appeared as if only the most minimal of effort had been put into tidying it up; And most noticeable -even by someone less observant- was that the dress she was wearing was a month out of fashion. All of these facts Lillian quickly made note of in her book before returning her attention to the lady. 

There was a brief, if uncomfortably long moment before anything happened. Isabeau smiled at Adam in a way that Lilian could only describe as fondness, which confirmed Adam's earlier remarks of how the Lady Isabeau was treating him as of late. Though for all Lillian knew that could simply be the way the lady smiled at everyone. A theory quickly proven untrue as she turned her attention to Lilian. It was only for the briefest of moments, but a scowl spread across her face before being quickly replaced with a, slightly less welcoming, smile. Lillian was not the best at picking up on others emotions and what their subtle inflections might mean. However there were some instances, provided the emotion in question was strong enough, that Lillian was able to conclude what a person's emotional state was. In this specific instance it was very clear, even if the truth only showed itself for but a brief moment, that Mrs. D'Allende was very unhappy to see Lillian in her home. Lillian lifted the book she still held and flipped it open to the newly formed chapter, quickly jotting down a note.

[i]Mrs. D'Alende is clearly unhappy to see me in her home – Hypothesis of Cause: ?
Implications- ?
Importance - High
Actions – Be careful while here.
Personal Thoughts - See actions.
 [/i]