Persi nodded. “Again, I am honored by the standard of excellence in your generosity.”
“You are welcome,” the Captain said, leaning back. “I am anxious to hear your critique of the Yo-Yo, which I personally made.”
Persi wasn’t sure but it seemed the Captain’s voice carried a hint of ... was it annoyance? Frustration? Whatever it was, it did not put Persi at ease. She looked across the table to Boots, who sat next to the Engineer, ‘Eduard something.’ Though he looked at the man speaking of engine efficiency, Persi knew buy the tilt of her husband’s head he had been listening to Genevieve.
Glancing to Captain Grimm, whose face held an interesting expression, irritation perhaps, Persi guessed at a thought. “I’m not sure if you heard, Captain, but my husband Boots and I are expecting twins in a few months. I think this is why my appetite comes and goes.”
Genevieve stopped eating and looked at Grimm, then to Boots, then back to Persi. "C’est vrai?” she asked Grimm.
“Oui,” Grimm said, a smiling stretching out from only one side. “Quite true?”
She looked at her plate.
Persi had guessed correctly. The good captain had thought there was a romance between her and Grimm. It was jealously that had a hold on her.
“Well, that is good news, of course. Mr. Beacon, we will pray for a boy of course.”
“They may be either or both?” Persi said, a gentle reminder of the twins.
She clapped her hands and smiled a true smile for the first time. “Ahh, yes, your pardon please, you are doubly blessed. And, we must celebrate, later, after we finish with this damned abduction hoopla.” She turned to an older steward, “George, please ensure there are quesillo along with the yo-yo, for later, as well as Champaign.”
“Yes, Captain,” George affirmed. “I will send the message and have them delivered.”
Captain Bourdieu nodded and leaned back in her chair, relaxed.
Boots sat up, “Excuse me Captain, did I hear your fine steward say that food would be delivered? How is this possible?”
“We have a small ketch, the Horizon, that deploys from the hull. Its three-man crew will land on the roof of one of my houses, the order placed and food cooked, then it will rendezvous with us and off-load the cargo, in this case, the quesillo.”
“Fabulous,” Boots said. “Captain, with this ship you could stay in the air indefinitely.”
“As well as rule Venezuela, I think,” Persi added.
“Ahh, you are correct, Ms. ... Mrs. ...” Genevieve paused, “Shuttleworth, Beacon?”
“Though I have an official Certificate of Marriage with Mr. Beacon, let us leave it as Ms. Shuttleworth, it is ... complicated at the moment.”
“Very well, Ms. Shuttleworth.” The Captain cleared her throat. “It has been suggested I should use my talents and resources to secure my place as my country’s leader, however I am a loyalist and have no wish to do so. I am also a business woman, and have done quite well for myself. I have no desire to give that up. And thirdly,” She sat back and threw a leg over the arm over her ornately carved chair. “I am in power, and I maintain this power by ensuring stability to the current administration. With it in place I may do as I wish, I am free, and this is what I want - all I want, is my freedom.”
“Well then, we are many times thankful for your presence in our endeavor,” Boots said.
The Captain nodded, then looked at Grimm and winked. “This ‘Lady’ who has captured your crew cannot be allowed to enter my house without so much as a tap on the window. Again, it is about stability. The people feel safe when they know that they can trust the crocodile to always be a crocodile.”
Persi was still considering this a few minutes later when a messenger arrived on deck and handed Genevieve a note. She read the note and nodded. When the messenger left, she spoke to the assembly. “Crew and friends, we have established contact with two of the Nightwalkers. The ADRD has locked onto their aether signature, or in this case the lack of one, and is tracking them.”
“You’re sure it’s them?” Boots asked.
A man sitting to the right of the Captain wiped his mouth and spoke, “Quite sure, it is what the ADRD does.”
“This is Lieutenant Corbano. He is my second,” the Captain said.
Corbano nodded his introduction before beginning again. “It finds and locks onto person’s specific aether signature – the amount of specific aether in each living thing – then tracks it. In the case of your friends, we had to calibrate the device to detect an absence of aether, which was difficult since they tend to blend into all the inanimate materials.”
Before Boots could ask how, he answered it.
“What we found was that the vampire actually has a negative amount of aether. It actually absorbs aether from its surroundings, so without going into technical detail, we had to calibrate the ADRD to detect negative aether.”
Boots nodded. “Well done, a marvel actually. I can understand the military applications of such a device. I take it the device can relay data to weapons?”
“Just one,” Corbano said. “A dual-boiler .50 caliber steam rifle.”
Boots forehead wrinkled. “A single shot weapon?”
Corbano raised a finger, “A very powerful single shot weapon. In the right conditions, the Dinkerton single shot is accurate up to 1.25 miles. It shoots an eight-ounce steel jacketed lead bullet that can penetrate most objects, including steel plate.”
“But,” Persi raised her hand, “What could one do with a single shot. Seems like an awful waste of technology.”
“Can you not guess, mon amie?” Captain Grimm asked, his eyes still on Genevieve. “A single accurate shot of more than a mile?”
Persi thought, then her eyes widened. “Oh, my, it’s an assassin’s weapon. Capable of killing its target a mile away, allowing the shooter to be well gone.”
“And the British were building this, let me remind you,” Genevieve added. “Does it not make one wonder about the application for which they had in mind?”
“Indeed,” Persi said. “Hovering in a cloud bank a mile away one would be undetectable.”
Boots nodded.
“Well then,” the Captain stood, “shall we adjourn to the Control Room and see if we can put this Lady Westbury in her place.” She began toward the stairs, then suddenly stopped and smiled. “I believe the Dinkerton will get its first operational test tonight.”
Chapter 44 - The Crew is Found
The control room was dimmer than the last time the agents had been in the space. The only light glowed from several bright dials. A set of knobs, pipes and gears, just forward of the ships controls represented the control system for the ADRD. A crewman sat in a chair, his face pressed against a rubber cowl that reminded Boots of an inverted funnel, the wide end resting atop a well-polished wooden panel. The crewman manipulated two cranks on either side of the cowl.
“Negative 5 is headed west on Papagaio Street. Negative 6.7 is two streets over on Pardal, and paralleling Neg 5.”
“And where is our third friend,” Persi asked.
“This machine can only track two simultaneous targets,” Lieutenant Corbano said. “We have no idea where the third is, though we detected it initially and know its aetherial signature is negative 3.”
“Neg 5 and 6.7 have intersected and are now together running north on Papagaio.” His right hand moved the crank. “The device has signaled that another signature is in the vicinity, switching to detect mode.” The man’s hand shot up to a switch directly above the crank. “Yes, Negative 3 has joined them and they ducked into an alley and are stopped.”
“I wonder ...” Boots began but was interrupted.
The ADRD operator removed his face from the cowl and looked at us. “I cannot track all three Captain, without flipping between two of them, and in doing this, I may lose all. I recommend we limit our tracking to Neg 6.7 and Neg 5 since they are the strongest signals.”
“Yes, track 6.7 and 5. Thank you, Mr. Guzman
.”
The operator nodded, flipped the switch back to its original position and looked back into the cowl. “Targets are moving again, they are in an alley paralleling Papagaio and heading toward several large warehouses. Wait, Neg 5 has broken off to the right of one of the warehouse buildings, and Neg 6.7 is going down the back. I have lost track of Neg 5 but 6.7 has jumped to an upper window and has entered the building.” He removed his face from the cowl. “I will need to recalibrate.”
“Excellent,” Captain Genevieve exclaimed, with a nod, stepped to ships control and looked at the compass. “Helm, come left twenty-five degrees and make your course 275.”
“Coming left, to 275, Helm aye,” said the man standing next to the rudder wheel. He turned the large wheel until the compass pointed to 275 degrees.
She reached for a brass communications tube. “Engine room, all ahead full but be prepared for all reverse full.”
The voice from the tube acknowledged the order. She replaced the tube and reached for another tube. “Sargent at Arms, rig the ship for repelling. Prepare a party of ...” she looked at Grimm.
Grimm shrugged, “Seven?”
Genevieve gave a wry smile. “Prepare an armed party of five in preparation to assist in the retrieval of two humans and three vampires.”
When no response came from the tube, the Captain spoke again. “Mister Burke, did you hear my last?”
The deep Scottish brogue that sprang from the tube was unexpected, “Aye, Capt’n, but dih yah say vamp’rs?”
Persi look at Boots and Boots to Grimm. “Gregory Burke was a guest of the prison camp, even before we arrived,” Grimm said. “He never told us why, but put his life on the line during our escape, and many times since. The reason for his internment has become a moot point.”
“Yes, Mr. Burke,” the Captain answered, “and even though I suspect you cannot injure them, let us take precautions not to shoot them, as they may not understand you are there to help and I should not care to look for another arms master.”
“Aye, aye, Captain. We will be ready when you give the word.” Burke said.
Genevieve replaced the tube and turned, her smile visible even in the dim light. “What you did not see was his rolling eyes and shaking head at my suggestion that he could not single-handedly take on three vampires.”
“So he has not changed,” Grimm said.
“Not in the least,” Genevieve replied.
The Black Swan moved over the warehouse quickly reversing engines, and hovered at two-hundred feet.
“Boarding Party ready at ...” Burke’s voice echoed up the tube.
Captain Genevieve grabbed the communication tube and interrupted. “Mr. Burke, we have guests in the control room, sir.”
Burke corrected, “Excuse me, Cap’n, I misspoke, ‘Rescue Party’ ready to repel at your command.”
“Very well, Mr. Burke.” Genevieve said, then turned to Grimm, “How long do we wait?”
“Aucune idee,” Grimm replied with a shrug, “Continue to use the device, and wait for a sign, I suppose.”
“Then we will wait,” she replied.
Boots stepped forward and spoke, “Perhaps it would be prudent to deploy your ‘Rescue Party’ to the roof top to make their aid more immediate.”
The captain pursed her lips, then nodded and took the brass tube in hand. “Mr. Burke, deploy to the top of the building below but do not enter unless absolutely needed, or we signal you.”
“Understood, Cap’n. Descending to take positions on the roof until further orders.” His voice became distant, Ready men, on, three, two, one.”
The sound of wind erupted from the tube, followed by a second sound, perhaps that of a door slamming shut, then nothing.
“They are away,” the Captain said, “You can look here,” she said, flipping a switch on a panel. Just forward of where she stood, a six-inch metal tube rose from the floor and stopped with a hiss of steam. It had a cowl similar to that of the ADRD, but much smaller. The Captain stepped to the tube, flipped down two handles neatly folded to either side and placed her face against the rubber cowl. She smiled and stepped aside offering it to Persi.
Persi placed her face against the cowl and immediately saw ropes extending down from somewhere in the hull, like threads from a giant spider. Six dark figures slid down the rope headfirst then at the last moment, each flipped around to land on the roof, feet first. They immediately fanned out across the large roof, taking cover behind chimneys and hatch covers. Long black protrusions indicated they each carried some type of large rifle.
“Oh, my, a very well trained, eh, ‘Rescue Party’ you have there. Quite, uhm, synchronized.”
The Captain shrugged, “That is mostly Gregory’s doing. Apparently his desire to train a group of ex-infantry Scottish loyalists in this manner was part of the reason he was invited to Galloway Forest.”
Persi and Boots looked back at Grimm. “Mon Amie, a lot of time has passed, and if she wants information, she will get it eventually.”
Boots moved in to look into the optical scope. The figures were blobs of black in a hazy green mist on light colored background. “Why this is fantastic,” Boots exclaimed and looked at Mr. Carbano. “This device allows one to see in the dark.”
Carbano nodded. “Yes, it uses a similar technology as the ADRD. It detects a living things aetherial signature, which emanates from its body like a glow or aura, and displays it onto glass plates coated with a luminescent chemical. Though I don’t know the specifics of the device, I suspect it is something distilled from small sea creatures. The only drawback is that unlike the ADRD, it cannot see through solid objects.”
Persi and Boots both looked at Carbano, foreheads wrinkled in questions, when, as if on cue, the ADRD operator spoke. “Captain, my recalibration is complete. However, I am tracking Neg 6.7 and 3. As far as I can tell, Negative 5 is not in the building.
“Interesting,” Boots said. “The ADRD can see through walls.”
“Yes, of course,” Persi said, as though this were a common occurrence, “but where could he be?”
“To whom are you speaking? Do you mean John, how could you know that?” Boots asked.
“A guess, my love,” Persi shrugged. “I am simply suggesting perhaps the older the vampire the more negative they become. In this case, I believe Jane is the oldest, then John, and Aiyana the youngest. It could be reversed, the less negative number being the oldest, but either way, John is the middle number.”
“An interesting hypothesis,” Lieutenant Carbano said.
“Indeed,” Boots said, smiling at Persi. “She is as brilliant as she is beautiful.”
Persi smirked but dipped her head in recognition of the compliment.
“They have stopped,” the ADRD operator said, “and they look as though they are crouching. By the background signatures, I think they are outside a room, perhaps listening, but of course I cannot know that.” He pulled his face away, “Captain, request permission to recalibrate to confirm the contents of the room.”
“Yes, do it quickly,” Genevieve said, stepping toward him.
“Recalibrating,” the operator said. Two long minutes later, he spoke again. “Captain, there are at least seven humans in the room. Two in the center, unmoving, perhaps sitting, and five others milling about.”
Boots smiled, “No problem for the Nightwalkers, at least based on what I’ve seen.”
“Captain,” the operator said, “there are also three signatures that I cannot identify. They don’t seem to have the same type of aetherial signature as either the vampires or humans. I wouldn’t have thought the ADRD capable of detecting it but it has, and is doing so even though I already have the device locked on two targets.”
Mr. Carbano stepped to the ADRD controls, tapped the man on the shoulder and when he moved out of the way, looked into the cowl. “Hmm, interesting. Mr. Guzman is correct, I can see five targets – two vampires and three others. They are not standard aetherial signatures.”
&nbs
p; Guzman had no sooner repositioned himself when he barked, “Captain, the vampires are entering the room. They are moving toward the two-seated figures. The three other signatures are not moving, wait, no they are positioning themselves at the door, blocking escape.” He paused, then spoke, excitement in his voice. “The vampires are moving in such a way as to indicate they are fighting. Their speed is amazing.
Now they are in the room’s center, perhaps freeing the crewmen. They have turned and are heading for the door. They have slowed, apparently seeing the other unknown signatures.” Guzman pulled his face away and rubbed his eyes, then looked again. “They have stopped ... the room is getting brighter ... ahh!” Guzman yelled and threw himself back against the chair which tipped over. The machine popped and hissed as steam escaped began beneath the wooden console. Mr. Guzman lay still on the floor, his eyes blackened and smoking.
Grimm bent down and felt his neck. “Mon dieu,” he said, pulling his hand away and crossing himself. “But, he is dead.”
Chapter 45 – Poor Mr. Nicholas
“Launch the flare!” Genevieve yelled.
A crewmember standing to the left of the helm controls, lifted one side of a hinged brass cup from a panel, revealing a red button. He smacked it and they heard a pop from above decks. A second later, the control room window lit up in a green haze produced by the signal flare.
Persi watched through the optical scope as the men left their positions and headed for a hatch. Together they lifted it then two literally dropped through the open hatch. Persi estimated the drop from the roof, onto a landing was at least ten feet, but if it were open to the ground, at least forty feet.
The other men lined up as if they were all going to drop, when they suddenly backed away from the hatch and began pulling human shapes up through it. “It looks as though the Nightwalkers were successful.” Persi said. “Your men seem to be pulling my men to the roof.”
Genevieve grabbed at a tube and moved it to her mouth. “Engine room, prepare for all ahead Emergency. We will be leaving once the Rescue Party is onboard.” She replaced the tube and looked at Persi and Boots. “Come, we will meet them in the Repelling Room.”
The Lightning Lord Page 28