by Annie Seaton
Her gloved hand slipped on the brass knob and she impatiently removed her glove and pushed it into the deep pocket of her cloak. Fingers shaking, she tried again, turning the large circular brass handle as firmly as she could, and sighed with relief as the cogs inside the lock clicked loudly and the door creaked open. Entering the narrow dark corridor, she turned and gently closed it, leaning against the solid timber as her eyes became accustomed to the dim light shining through the high windows of the restaurant at the far end. Stretching on her toes, she reached above the brass lock with trembling fingers and slowly slid the large bolt into place. Sliding down onto the cold floor, she exhaled with relief, and reached into her pocket for her glove.
Gottverdammt.
The pocket was empty; her glove must have fallen as she opened the door. Pushing to her feet, Sofia turned around, torn between hiding here safely locked in, or opening the door and retrieving her black glove as she cursed herself for the vain SdV monogrammed on the inner flap of the leather. Foolish vanity could lead to her identification and if it were discovered that she, Sofia de Vargas was waiting in the station in the wee small hours, observing the delivery of her critical cargo, there would be many questions asked.
Merde, merde, merde. They were so close to an outcome.
Sofia clenched her bare fingers in the cold as her mind worked furiously. If she were caught by the mysterious man and his automaton henchmen, it would all be over anyway, so she was better to take the risk and claim she had dropped the glove on another occasion, if indeed it were even discovered. Deciding to settle in and wait them out, she pulled the folds of her thick woolen coat around her and leaned against the door once more. The cold air was creeping through the tear on the shoulder of her coat and she folded the material over for warmth. The restaurant was open to the elements on the northern wall and the cold wind whistled down the corridor. Her head and neck were warm, protected by the tight fitting helmet, although her eyes were stinging as the cold settled around her. Her goggles were in the carriage with Henri, her manservant
Placing her bare hand over her face, she cursed the events of the night. Not only had she almost been caught, she had not achieved the goal for her foray out in the cold pre-dawn.
Henri would be concerned when she did not return to the carriage as expected after the train’s arrival. She had not been able to raise him through the mouthpiece on her helmet, and was loath to try again, while ever the dark stranger was on the other side of the wall. It had been imperative that she know who was travelling on the train this morning with the latest delivery.
Her brother-in-law, Captain Zane Thoreau, Sheriff of Cornwall and official keeper of the Queen’s peace, had sent word her operation was under surveillance and had possibly been infiltrated but it was not known who was interested in their activities. Zane had sent her word a person well known to her—someone she would apparently least suspect, would accompany the latest cargo on the Paris train. A person who would be most interested to follow the cargo to its destination. No further clue to their identity was given and that was why she had come here tonight, and not sent one of her trusted servants. It had been emphasized the suspect would be clearly recognizable to her.
She had used the Paris train to move their products for over two years. Hidden amongst the fabrics and fashionable accoutrements for the salon of the highly respected Sofia de Vargas, it had been the perfect hiding place for the products destined for the laboratory in the lower level of Vienna University.
Society matrons and their daughters came from afar to visit her salon, to be dressed in the latest fashion as decreed by one of the most highly respected couturiers outside Paris. She even provided a dirigible service for the ladies of the colonies to visit Vienna and be outfitted in the latest European fashion. This had proven extremely valuable for importation over the preceding years.
Now thanks to the unexpected appearance of the stranger from the dirigible and his clockwork men this morning, she had achieved nothing and seen no one.
Were the two incidents related? Had it all been an elaborate trap? Had their indeed been anyone on the train? What was the stranger in the dirigible seeking? If—
Her reverie broke when the door pushed slowly against her back. The cogs of the knob rattled and clicked as someone attempted to push the door open behind her. Sofia held her breath, praying the bolt would hold as the door strained forward. The pressure on the door stopped and she let her breath out as the sound of footsteps faded.
SOME HOURS LATER, SOFIA pulled her cloak up around her neck and dropped her chin into the folds of the soft vicuña wool as she stepped from the side entry of Westbahnof onto the footpath of Neubauguertel. The high glass windows of the apartment buildings reflected the mid-morning sunlight and she quickly rounded the corner into Mariahilfer Strasse. She had stayed locked in the station corridor until the morning light had pierced the darkness and waited another hour before carefully unbolting the door leading back to the departure lounge. It had been timely. She had passed a man laden with trays of food, obviously heading for the restaurant when she had descended the stairs to the street level. He had looked at her curiously and not greeted her as she still wore her helmet and Sofia had put her head down and scurried past him.
Stepping into Mariahilfer Strasse, she paused in the shadow of a doorway and quickly scanned the street around her. All appeared normal, the steam tram was making its way along the street past the small businesses and delivering fresh produce from the outlying farms, and the shopkeepers were putting their wares on tables in front of their shops in the warm spring sunshine. There was no sign of automatons nor black garbed figures, nor were there any small dirigibles flying low over the street. Sofia removed her cloak and helmet, twisting her hair into a loose knot as she stepped out into the bright morning sunshine.
“Guten Morgen, fräulein.”
“Good morning, Hans.” She returned the greeting of the baker as he opened the doors of his establishment and the smell of fresh baked pastries wafted out.
“You are early this morning, Sofia. I didn’t realize you were about as I saw Henri with your carriage only a short while ago.”
“Just out for a stroll in the lovely sunshine,” Sofia replied, pleased to hear Henri was still out in the carriage and obviously looking for her. As they chatted, the baker’s wife came bustling through of the doorway and passed her a steaming mélange.
“Danke.” Sofia gratefully sipped the steaming concoction of frothed milk and coffee and smiled as Hans pushed a small croissant, still warm from the oven, into her ungloved hand.
“Are you setting new fashion, Madame Couturier? You are only wearing one glove?” He smiled at her.
Sofia laughed. “I dropped one as I was walking and I could not find it. Luckily it is monogrammed and hopefully will be returned to me if it is found.”
Finishing her coffee, she bid them farewell and strolled along the street as though she had not a care in the world and was a highly respected couturier out taking a stroll before her morning appointments. Hooves rang out on the metallic tram track in the middle of the road only a few hundred yards from the turn to Lindengasse where her apartment was located. Placing her hand over her chest to still the pounding of her heart, she paused and turned slowly. For a brief moment, it had sounded like the clicking of the automaton’s talons and she sighed with relief as Henri brought the horse and barutsche to a stop beside her. He climbed down and held her gloved hand assisting her into the open carriage, whispering close to her ear.
“Madame, I have been so worried. I have been searching for you since first light.” Her trusted manservant glanced at her as he flicked the reins and the horse broke into a light trot.
“It was a trap...but I am all right,” she reassured the elderly man as a look of concern crossed his face. “I am tired but I have appointments all day. I must meet with Professor Schmidt and the others as soon as possible. I need to find out what has happened and we must take extreme care.”
&
nbsp; “When shall we meet, Madame?”
“Organize a gathering for eleven this evening please, Henri,” she replied as the carriage pulled up in front of her salon. “At the university.”
“Are you sure, Madame? Will that be safe?” She quelled him with a steady look as she stepped down from the carriage and her voice was terse.
“At the university,” she repeated. “Have the carriage ready at eight. If the stable staff asks where I am going, I shall be attending a music recital at the Musikverein and you shall return the carriage in the morning.
SOFIA GLANCED INTO her salon as she made her way to her apartment above. Pulling the glove off and placing her cloak on the cloak stand in the foyer, she cursed once again at her carelessness in dropping the glove. As she moved through her apartment, her thoughts turned to the meeting tonight. It was most unusual for a woman to participate in any activities at the University; women were not allowed to enroll there and there were no female staff involved in any of the research. Sofia’s involvement at the university had begun when she had read the research notes her father had bequeathed to her when Indigo had passed them on after her marriage to Captain Zane Thoreau ten years ago.
Sofia smiled as she remembered Indigo’s wedding. It had scandalized society as she had been heavily pregnant with the twins, and Indigo in her usual brash manner had thumbed her nose at the society matrons who had expressed their displeasure. Nevertheless, curiosity won out and the ceremony and reception in the tropical biome was attended by all who were invited... with the exception of Duke Lorca.
Sofia had stayed in the manor with Mr. and Mrs. Grimoult to oversee the operations of the holiday complex while Zane and Indigo had travelled to Scotland for a brief honeymoon. She had enjoyed her time there and Sofia had spent the following year in the household assisting with the twins when they were born. Jago and Jory had their mother’s lust for life and created a multitude of work for the household.
She had been fascinated by Indigo’s biomes. Word of the passionflower pharmacologicals and their healing properties had spread across Europe and the colonies.
Indigo had shared the research notes with her and Sofia had been intrigued by their father’s writing on the properties of the moon flower and his belief that human life could be extended if the liquid from this rare white flower from the alpine region of Austria could be extracted. For years, she had carried the idea with her and a chance meeting with Professor Schmidt, an old colleague of her father in Vienna three years later had resulted in her acceptance into the elite ranks of Vienna University. A small group of scientists allowed her to became a part of their secret society in exchange for Professor de Vargas notes and Sofia had eventually led the research and still held control
A recent missive to Indio had described how close they were to achieving their goal. Sofia now wondered if she had been foolish detailing their progress in writing and trusting the missive would travel safely from Vienna to Cornwall, although she had camouflaged the true content in sociable family news.
My dearest sister
I trust this finds you in good health and I trust that Captain Thoreau and your four sons are also well. It is hard to believe that Jago and Jory are attending boarding school. I certainly enjoy reading their adventures in the letters I have received from them. Are young Kit and Ruan still enjoying their nursery studies?
I shall try to visit you in late summer as the twins tell me that their scientific experiments at New Cross College will be on display . It is amusing that although they are attending a naval school, their interests lie in the botanical research of their grandfather! Jory tells me they are researching the effect of the full moon on their experiments and that they are close to a result.
I am sure the officers of the naval college are less than amused, unless they see a future for the boys in botanical exploration, following in the footsteps of our dear departed papa.
I recently had an enjoyable trip to the Alps, and I made some new contacts in society for the salon. Business is blooming as the boys would say...and I have many new matrons taking up the dirigible flight from the American colonies, although the new war over there is causing some uncertainty.
I look forward to visiting you, my dear sister, and shall come and stay in the late summer after I visit the twins at New Cross.
Kind regards to Captain Thoreau and Mr. and Mrs. Grimoult. (and of course the boys.)
Sofia knew Indigo would decipher the information from the letter that her recent trip to the Alps had sourced enough of the moon flower, and the full moon experimentation were bringing them close to a culmination of their research. They anticipated success by the end of summer.
The ringing of the bell in the salon brought her back to the present and Sofia quickly dressed and proceeded down to the salon to meet her first customer of the day.
Chapter 2
The full moon illuminated the University of Wien as they passed the Rathaus Park. Henri had opted for a closed carriage from the stable, still concerned by the events of the preceding night. He smiled at her as he looked down into the carriage. Sofia had come from the music recital and in an aside, Henri had commented on her alertness after she’d bid farewell to her acquaintances. He had turned the carriage toward the Landstrasse district in case anyone was taking notice of their direction
“Rest, madam, we are still early and I will do a few circuits of the Ringstrasse in case we are under observation. I will be able to check if any vehicles or airships pay particular attention to us.”
His mistress was now dozing with her head resting comfortably against the padded side of the velvet-lined carriage. He glanced down occasionally to check that she was comfortable. Only a couple of airships dotted the brightly lit sky as he guided the two horses around the road ringing the inner district and the Hapsburg palaces, constructed when Emperor Franz Josef had ordered the demolition of the city walls and moats four years ago.
By the time eleven o’clock approached, and they had completed their third circuit, the sky was clear and Henri was content they had not been followed around the famous road.
Henri scanned the area alongside Rathaus Park as he pulled the horses to a gentle stop. He was reluctant to wake Sofia as she’d had no sleep the previous evening. She had worked with society matrons all day, before attending the musical soiree.
He shook his head, no matter how tired she was, his mistress was always kind and calm, and he held a deep affection for her. He glanced over at her, deep in sleep, her silver blonde hair fell in ringlets onto her bare shoulder and her pale skin was accentuated by the deep ruby of her velvet gown. Four small rubies were inserted in each ear, in a line following the curve of her ear.
Henri stepped down and entered the carriage and shook her gently, smiling as she stretched and her pale blue eyes widened in surprise.
“Are we there already, Henri?” Sofia yawned.
“We have done three circuits of the Ringstrasse, madam. It is just before eleven.” He stepped out and took her hand and they strolled together across the park, looking as though they were a father and daughter out for a late evening walk.
They entered a dark lane at the back of the university and Henri pulled her into a dark corner beside the building as he scanned the wide lawn lit brightly by the full moon, for any sign of activity or observers.
“All appears well, madam.”
He led her across to the next building and they walked along a winding path to a small wooden door set into an ivy covered brick wall.
Henri gave four short knocks, paused and then tapped two more short raps on the concealed door, constantly looking around as he checked there was no one following them.
The heavy wooden door groaned as it opened slowly and they entered a dimly lit foyer.
“Welcome, madam, it is good to see you again. Good evening, Henri.” Johann, one of the doctoral students, ushered them into a larger room. The light was brighter and Henri looked around as he escorted Sofia to the table. Pulling out a
chair, he glanced to the side of the room and Sofia nodded.
“Yes, please, Henri. I will need coffee to keep me alert. I fear this may be a long meeting.” As Henri poured Sofia’s coffee, he observed the others already seated at the long table.
Professor Ernst Schmidt who led the project at the university listened gravely as Sofia spoke to him in a quiet undertone. The two research assistants, Johann and Genevieve sat on the other side of the table, Henri placed a glass of coffee in front of Sofia and he sat at the table, ever alert, even though they were in a safe room.
SOFIA FINISHED HER coffee and pushed the empty glass to the side of the table as she looked around the room. Candles in sconces provided a soft light and the rich aroma of the coffee took away the musty smell of parchment that usually overwhelmed the senses in this old meeting room in the basement of the university laboratory. She looked around at the four people in the room and smiled.
People she would trust with her life.
Professor Ernst Schmidt sat at the head of the table, muttering softly to himself in his native German as he flicked through a pile of papers. Ernst had worked with her father in London, prior to his death in 1840 and had sought her out when she had moved to Vienna. He and his brother, Henri, had become like surrogate fathers since the professor had continued her father’s moonflower research. Ernst had published many papers on the science of the nature of matter and its transformations, but the moonflower research was known only to the select few inside this room.
She caught Henri’s eye and he smiled back at her, although she could sense the tension in his body. He had been on edge since the incident at the station. Henri was the indispensible assistant in her household and salon activities, and Sofia allowed him to think he fulfilled the role of her bodyguard.
Johann, a brilliant young doctoral student from the university at Bologna, sat across the table from Sofia, impatiently clicking his pencil on the side of his glass, obviously eager to start the meeting. His assistant and the chief illustrator for the project, Genevieve, sat still and silent, taking in the scene around the table.