by D. B. Gilles
If you are reading this you had to have spoken to Tash and he told you where I left this letter. You either came to Paris to find out in the present – your present. Or, you have come back in time to find answers.
If it is 1889 and you are here, I must again say that I fear the powers of The Brimstone.
In the day I’ve spent exploring and savoring the Paris of October 5, 1889, I wanted to meet Emile Zola. You know how I so admired him. That was not to be. However, I was struck by the idea of trying to meet Gustave Eiffel. Tash spoke of a rumor that he was connected to The Brimstone Society. I felt that I had nothing to lose. Why? I wanted to tell him The Brimstone worked and that I came from the future. As a man of vision I felt he would be able to comprehend time travel.
It was a ridiculous idea that I could find a way to meet him, but it turned out to be easier than I thought.
I arrived in Paris early in the morning, excited to be here and full of energy. I spent the first few hours tracking down Monsieur Zola, but without any luck. Then I went to The Eiffel Tower first only to be one of thousands of sightseers from around the world. It was thrilling. I knew from research that Eiffel kept an office on the first level of the tower. Perhaps because of my bearing and that I could speak French fluently enough, I went to his office and spoke to his secretary requesting a meeting. She pointed out that Eiffel was booked solidly for the next eight days. I asked her to tell him that I was a member of The Brimstone Society in America. In New York. She passed the information on to him and within two minutes I was sitting across from the great man.
I warmed him up by talking about The Brimstone and the supposed branch I belonged to in New York. Once I sensed that he was relaxed, I wasted no time in telling him that I was from the future. He looked at me with disdain, until I removed The Brimstone from my coat pocket and placed it on his desk. His eyes lit up. He reached for it as if it were a precious gem and held it in his hands. He studied it with the expertise of a craftsman. He knew how to open it, which he did, manipulating the hieroglyphs easily, knowing where the Egyptian calendar was. When he finished examining it he looked at me in awe and asked one question.
“Where is the portal?
I told him about the obelisks. The news seemed to upset him. He said he had personally tried the obelisk at Place de la Concorde and it didn’t work.
That statement started an entirely new conversation when I asked him how could he try it without a Brimstone.
He said, “There is another. I have it at my home under lock and key.”
He said that he tried his Brimstone at the obelisk in the company of the three other members of the Paris Brimstone Society. They had set the date to the coronation of Napoleon III in 1852, but couldn’t get it to work. The others thought it was another fake. Eiffel wasn’t so sure. He felt they had not done something right. When I asked him to elaborate on what they did, step-by-step, I knew where they had gone wrong.
They did not wait until midnight. They tried it in the morning, around six a.m. when they thought no one would be around.
Dalton stopped reading and turned to Proctor. “That can’t be the reason. When Luger Pabst left it wasn’t midnight.”
Proctor considered the statement. “But it was night. Maybe there’s some kind of magnetic range. The closer to midnight one gets, there’s the possibility.”
Dalton nodded in agreement and continued reading.
Nevertheless, Eiffel held on to his Brimstone, not entirely convinced it was a fake.
Why do I tell you this? Because if you find yourself unable to return because The Brimstone doesn’t work, you may have another option with Gustave Eiffel.
It might be a slim one because The Brimstone in his possession may indeed be a fake. But if it’s real and handled in the proper steps, it may get you back.
You will find along with this a letter of introduction on Gustave Eiffel’s own stationary written by him to be seen by him. Present it to him and he will know who you are and what you want.
If you meet him know that he is a brilliant, but difficult man with little patience for foolishness. Showing him The Brimstone and letting him touch it softened him. He asked about the future, specifically about his own. I told him that he would become an iconic figure, that his tower would be forever linked with Paris and that it would be considered one of the seven manmade wonders of the world. I told him about Lady Liberty in New York which also pleased him. When I started to tell him about the scientific and technological advancements, he stopped me. He said he didn’t want to know. He wanted to be surprised.
With my sincerest regrets for getting you into this situation,
Your father
Dalton looked at Proctor. “Gustave Eiffel’s address is on here. In the Trocadero. We have to go and see him immediately.”
“It’s not that simple. He’s the toast of Paris. There’s a proper protocol. We’ll write him a letter. I’ll have it delivered to him by courier. We’ll have to wait for him to respond. Hopefully he’ll do so quickly.” Proctor paused. “If Monsieur Eiffel has a Brimstone and it works and he lets us use it, do you think Juliet will go back?”
“She’s in love with Luc. Her mother is a concern, but I don’t see her leaving. On the other hand, Eliza will most likely be going back too.”
The statement stunned him. “How would you know that?”
“The three of us talked into the night. It seems that while Eliza adores Paris, it’s painful for her to know the future. She’s become close to Toulouse-Lautrec. That she knows his destiny is disconcerting for her. My guess is that she’d jump at the chance to return.” He sighed. “Frankly, I might too.”
“You?” Dalton was dumbstruck. “I thought you wanted to live out your days here?”
“I do. I did. But I didn’t realize how difficult it would be healthwise. I find myself with a choice: stay here, which I’m enjoying to no end and live perhaps a year, or go back and with the wonders of modern science stick around well into my eighties. As one of my young assistants likes to say, ‘it’s a no-brainer’.”
Dalton nodded in agreement. “Does Juliet know you want to go back?”
“No. I’ve kept it to myself. What was the point of bringing it up? Until hearing the contents of your father’s letter there was no reason to even consider it.”
“We should tell Juliet and Eliza.”
“Not until we know for sure that Eiffel’s Brimstone isn’t a copy. Why get their hopes up if it turns out to be a fake? They’re still getting reacquainted. Eliza will be meeting Luc tonight. However, if we find that it’s real and that it works, we’ll tell them immediately.”
Dalton nodded in agreement. “The only way to know if it works is to test it. One of us will have to go back.”
“I’ll go. My medication has run out, but let’s not concern ourselves with going back yet. The letter we write to Eiffel will have to be worded carefully. The fact is, your father had his meeting with Eiffel yesterday. And now, one day later, we’ll be requesting a meeting. I’m concerned that it might make him suspicious. Thievery and cons are just as big a part of life now as they are in the future. Fortunately, we have the letter of introduction on Eiffel’s personal stationary. That should help.”
“What do we say in the letter?”
“I need to think about that.”
Proctor removed a notebook and pencil from his jacket and proceeded to work on the letter. All Dalton could think of was the brief glimpse he had of his father walking away from The Medici Fountain.
Chapter 64
Within the next three hours, Proctor wrote three drafts, showing each to Dalton to refine the wording and grammar.
It ultimately read as follows written in French:
Dear Monsieur Eiffel:
Attached to this letter is a letter of introduction written in your own hand to Dalton Hillyer.
You will recall, sir, that yesterday, the fifth of October, you met with a gentleman named Peter Hillyer who revealed to you an incredible
story involving The Brimstone and The Brimstone Society in New York of the future, plus his even more astounding journey through time. I am contacting you as a fellow member of The Brimstone Society of the future and on behalf of Monsieur Hillyer’s son, Dalton, who, as do I, resides here in Paris as a result of being stranded for more than a year after The Brimstone that transported us here was stolen.
Sir, that same Brimstone was what Monsieur Hillyer presented to you.
Peter Hillyer informed you that one day you might be contacted by his son. Due to the unusual ramifications of time travel he had no way of knowing that day would be so soon. However, his son and I are here and we need your help.
We have been unable to “go back” as it were because of an unfortunate set of circumstances during which The Brimstone that brought us here was stolen from us by an individual who used it to transport himself to another destination.
After meeting with you, Peter Hillyer wrote a letter to his son on stationary given to him by you in which he informed us of his meeting with you and the fact that you showed him The Brimstone you have in your possession.
We are requesting an audience with you for the purpose of finding out if your Brimstone is real and if it works. If it does, sir, we would like to borrow it to return to our own time.
Our ability to do so rests in your hands.
We await your reply.
Respectfully,
Proctor Newley
The letter was delivered by courier that afternoon.
That night Dalton, Proctor, Juliet, Eliza and Luc went to the Moulin Rouge’s grand opening. That they were sitting at the same table as Toulouse-Lautrec, laughing, drinking and talking with him, made the evening beyond surreal. So as not to confuse Luc, they spoke in code as they discussed the various movie versions of Toulouse-Lautrec’s life and the significance of the Moulin Rouge, the can-can and its place in Parisian history.
Later, Proctor treated everyone to dinner. It was the first time Dalton and Eliza had a chance to get to know each other. In anticipation of Eiffel’s Brimstone working, he veered the conversation towards whether or not she would return to the future if the opportunity arose.
“If I hadn’t found Juliet, I would’ve said yes. But now it’s a different story having family here.”
“What about your mother in New York?”
“Juliet and I talked about that. For me to return could be too overwhelming for her. And considering the Alzheimer’s, she might not even know who I am.”
“Would you go back if Juliet did?”
“I’m pretty certain Juliet won’t be going back.” She nodded towards Juliet and Luc canoodling across the table. “She’s found her soul mate. She’s here to stay. And since she’ll be here, so will I.” She sighed. “Anyway, it’s pointless to think about it because The Brimstone is gone.”
Dalton nodded, then wondered how she and Juliet would feel if Eiffel’s Brimstone worked.
Chapter 65
Eiffel responded by courier the next morning requesting a meeting that afternoon at his home at five-thirty. Proctor and Dalton made no mention of it to Juliet and Eliza.
Upon arrival they were greeted by a housekeeper and ushered into Eiffel’s study where he was waiting, seated behind his desk. There were no pleasantries, other than shaking hands and Eiffel asking them to sit down. He offered them tea and they accepted.
He started talking immediately. “The man who visited me two days ago, Peter Hillyer, told quite a story. I thought he was insane, but he was also quite persuasive. What prevented me from having him thrown out of my office was his knowledge of The Brimstone. He knew more about it than I.” He turned to Proctor. “In your letter you claim to be a member of The Brimstone Society.”
“I am. In New York.”
“The New York of the future,” he said suspiciously.
“Yes.”
“And you possessed, but lost, your Brimstone.”
“It was stolen from us.”
Eiffel hesitated for a moment. “The man I met two days ago: where is he now?”
“Dead,” said Dalton.
Eiffel adjusted himself in his chair then gently said, “And he was your father.”
“The day he met you, he returned to the future. He was uneasy about the power of The Brimstone. He attempted to return to Paris the next day with someone else, but in the process was struck by lightning and killed. The other person made it through. She is with us.”
“I am a civil engineer and an architect,” said Eiffel. “I consider myself a man of science. I believe in precise measurements. In exactitude. However, I am also a member of The Brimstone Society and I have more of an open mind than colleagues of mine might. That being said, I’m still having a difficult time comprehending how your father could have been here two days ago and that you are here now claiming to be from the future.”
“Understandably,” said Proctor.
“Actually, I want to believe you. Peter Hillyer informed me of great scientific advances not to mention that my tower still stands, which pleases me.”
During the construction of the tower, the City of Paris gave Eiffel a concession, which permitted the tower to stand for 20 years, after which it should have been dismantled. It was the sudden demand for a suitable platform from the newly emerging radio transmission technology, which saved the tower from demolition.
“He said that in the future I am held in high regard.”
“You are a renowned figure, sir,” said Proctor. “May I tell you the specifics of why we are here?”
Eiffel nodded yes.
Proctor explained how they intended to arrive on October 6, 1889, how The Brimstone had miscalculated and they arrived in August of 1888, and how they had been living in Paris these last fourteen months. He told them of Juliet and Eliza. He culminated by explaining the letter that Peter Hillyer wrote.
“This letter he left for you,” said Eiffel. “May I see it?”
Dalton handed it to him. “He asked for my stationary so I would believe you if you showed up at my door. You’re here and this is indeed my stationary.” With total concentration Eiffel read Peter’s letter, nodding his head occasionally. When he finished reading he said, “Despite my earlier statements, how do I know that Peter Hillyer isn’t at the café on the corner sipping a nice Bordeaux waiting for you two, hoping that you will trick me out of money.”
“We don’t want money,” said Dalton. “We want to see your Brimstone and find out if it works.”
“The only way to accomplish that is for someone to go back.”
“Yes,” said Proctor. “That would be me.”
“And what is your reason?”
“My health. To continue living here now I would surely be dead soon. I can perhaps count on more years if I go back.”
“Medical advances, no doubt,” said Eiffel, a curious look on his face.
Proctor nodded yes.
Eiffel turned to Dalton. “And why do you wish to go home?”
Dalton hesitated for a moment, wanting to find the right words. He knew that uttering ‘creature comforts’ would have no meaning to Eiffel. “The technology that I’ve become used to is difficult to live without.”
“Your father implied, as such.”
“Sir, I respectfully ask that we borrow your Brimstone. If it is indeed a fake, Dalton and I will not be leaving Paris and we will not bother you again.”
Eiffel nodded his head. “In the letter Peter Hillyer points out that the problem I had when I tried to use The Brimstone was that I didn’t go at the right time.”
“Yes. It has to be midnight. Monsieur Eiffel, may we see your Brimstone?”
He leaned to his right, unlocked the lowest of three doors and removed an object that looked exactly like The Brimstone that brought them to Paris.
Eiffel handed it to him. Despite the fact that he hadn’t seen or touched a Brimstone since the night Luger Pabst took it with him, he was quite familiar with it. His right index finger click the tiny
hieroglyphs at the bottom and The Brimstone opened. “It feels real and looks real. I have seen fakes before that were the right weight and had the right design, but ultimately there was some tiny aberration. Much like forged currency.”
Eiffel smirked. “That’s still going on?”
“Oh yes. I think it’s fair to say that everything nefarious and criminal that goes on now flourishes in the future. And with all the advances, much more. And much more diabolical.”
Proctor set The Brimstone on Eiffel’s desk and ran his fingers all over it, feeling for imperfections. The Egyptian calendar was there, the compass, the timepiece, the vinaigrette. They were all in the right place on The Brimstone.
“Whoever created this was a master craftsman,” said Proctor. “Tonight. At the obelisk at Place de la Concorde we must put it through the final test.” He leaned back and looked at Eiffel. “Quarter-to-midnight. Tonight. I assume you’ll be joining us?”
Eiffel nodded. “Of course.” He stood up. Eiffel walked Dalton and Proctor to the front door. “I have a friend visiting from England here to see the World’s Fair. I would like your permission to bring him along as an observer. He’s a man of science who I think would appreciate the experience.”
“Of course,” said Proctor.
As Dalton and Proctor left Eiffel’s building Dalton said, “We’ll need to tell Juliet now. And Eliza.”
“Not yet. There’s still a chance it won’t work.”
“But if it does, you’ll be going tonight. Assuming she doesn’t go, Juliet will want to say goodbye.”
“Let’s not sentimentalize this. If it works, whoever wants to return can leave tomorrow night. Meanwhile, I need to take care of a few things and it concerns you. Assuming Eiffel’s Brimstone does not work and I must remain here, I intend to leave the apartment to you and Juliet. I’ll put the lease in your names, as well as on my bank accounts.”
“Proctor...”
“There’s enough money and jewels to cover your expenses for years to come. However, if it works and I’m able to go back, we have to take into consideration that something could go wrong and you may not make it back. If that’s the case and you must remain here, you’ll have the security of the apartment and money.”