“We need a trusted representative over there to make a start. It could be that we have one right here with us.”
“Gentlemen, I’m honored, but I need further training before trying such an undertaking. In Scotland I hear of no small discontent over there with the British Crown and their practices. I’m no judge of such things, but would it not be prudent to wait until that’s resolved before venturing an investment over there?”
“Indeed it would, Ian.” said Henri and Von Brandt agreed, saying “This man might have been a merchant sailor once, but he seems to have a grasp for things that many people miss.”
The conversation returned to trusts and how best to use them. The object was to hold wealth anonymously in scattered places. The banks were eager to help in any way because it was in their own best interests to cater to wealthy depositors who would have funds on deposit for long periods of time. This gave stability to the bank, so it was beneficial for both parties. The banks in turn applied political pressure to the governments in their respective countries to be accommodating to the concept of banking privacy in general and toward trusts in particular. This worked to the advantage of shrewd Adepts and in reality it harnessed the resources and efforts of humans on behalf of a small number of astute vampires. Needless to say, it was most convenient for those who didn’t die, but had to move from generation to generation. Even kings were discouraged from peering into anyone’s banking business in Liechtenstein or in Switzerland.
The concept of interlocking anonymous trusts though was scarcely known among humans, yet it was the iceberg beneath the exposed tip of banking privacy to all knowledgeable Adept vampires. Ian was overwhelmed at what he had learned sitting with these two experts. He thanked them both sincerely for so educating him. Karl liked Ian and told Henri so after Ian had excused himself that night. He congratulated Henri as anyone would for having such a fine son.
The next day, Ian and Henri were to go to the capitol, Vaduz. He had some banking business there and then he would bring Ian when he attended the Council meeting.
The capitol, Vaduz was a beautiful and very clean city. Ian was favorably impressed with it as he was with the Swiss Confederation. Accompanying Henri on his business he mostly just sat in on the proceedings. Afterward they made their way to the place where the High Council would meet. Henri took the opportunity while they traveled the short distance to that place to counsel Ian for his testimony to the Council.
“To begin with, say nothing until spoken to, regardless of what is said. One might try to bait you just to see if you’re hot-headed or too quick to speak. Be certain to take off your hat when we enter the chamber itself. Hold your hat in your hand at all times. There is no servant or valet in that room to take your hat. If offered a drink, take it. It will be goat’s blood. If not offered, don’t take offense. You’ll be standing at all times. There are only nine seats in that room. Be brief and concise. Don’t give too much detail unless specifically asked. Don’t even hint at your ability to know when a vampire is looking at you. That is a talent unheard of. Don’t mention at all your ability to withstand direct sunlight. That too is an ability unknown among our kind. Don’t mention one thing concerning the Francoise affair nor of your loss of Cosette. We officially know nothing of that incident. Too many bigwigs died in that affair not to cause concern if it was known to be our doing. The Council majority wouldn’t approve of such a thing for the sake of orphan humans.”
“I hope I’m up to this.”
“You’ll do well. Timing is on our side what with the way things have gone, and with the information we’ll reveal today.”
They had arrived at a three-story red brick building which wasn’t notable in any way. However it did have a white domed top which was an interesting feature. It wasn’t overly large by the standards of the day and locale. Ian noticed that there was one entrance visible from the streets. The council building sat on a corner and all main floor windows had very heavy iron bars over them. There was an imposing iron gate comprised of two doors of heavy wrought iron. They were formed to fit an archway built in to the brick wall of the building and were wide enough for a carriage to enter or exit. It led around a blind corner to a blind courtyard which was surprisingly spacious with the necessary accommodations for horses including stables, hay, and even a well. The other buildings on the block backed up to this area but were for all purposes just part of a wall of privacy around the entire place. Ian noticed that there wasn’t one single window in the back of any one of these adjacent buildings. No one would be able to see who came and went from any vantage point overlooking the courtyard. In fact the other buildings were so constructed as to restrict visibility of the courtyard even from their rooftops. The only windows overlooking this inner courtyard were the few in the council building itself. They all had heavy bars, as did those at street level in the two sides of the building that faced the two streets. Two tall muscular looking Adept vampire guards let them through.
Henri took a box from the trunk of the carriage. Ian looked questioningly at it. “Sun glasses; a pair for each council member and a pair of ladies’ sun glasses for each of their wives, although two of them are bachelors. I won’t give them to my cohorts until the session is ended. Otherwise it would look like a bribe. I’ll bring the box in and leave it visible for all to see, but over to one side so that they know it wasn’t a reward after the fact for siding with me.”
“You think of everything, Henri. How did the guards at the gate know to let us through?”
“Have you noticed the little emblem on the two doors of my coach?”
“Yes. What are they?”
“They are a stylized version of the characters for the first letters of the words ‘Liechtenstein Trade Guild’. The guards know to let a carriage enter if it bears that emblem.”
They entered through an unimpressive entrance facing the courtyard. There were four large muscular Adept vampires standing inside the door. They were tall husky men, dressed like any business man of the day. Knowing Henri on sight they only nodded to him as he passed, saying “Herr Lafayette.”
“Those four look like they could handle anything that comes their way.”
“Well, they handle brooms and perform stable maintenance too, Ian. No humans ever get into this place.” They went up an unremarkable back stair case to the second floor and came to a spacious area with benches along a marble balustrade facing what had to be the chamber doors themselves. The area overlooked a view of the front entrance which was never used. There was an impressive marble staircase that ascended from the entrance foyer to this area just outside of the chamber. It was rarely used but was there only for appearance.
The chamber doors were plain but well-crafted heavy paneled oak. They had gold lettering in the German language which said ‘Liechtenstein Trade Guild’. That matched a very plain brass plate set into the masonry of the outer wall of the building near the corner.
For all intents and purposes, this was a private trade guild which allowed only members to enter. In fact there were elaborately constructed and written files containing supposed past trade forecasts and other sundry related subjects supposedly discussed by the guild which were all an elaborate fabrication to conceal the real business of this place. Those files were periodically updated so as to appear to be both historic and current. No vampire-related issues decided here were ever recorded.
Ian took a place on the bench facing the chamber double doors and Henri went in. It was no more than a quarter hour when Henri himself came out and beckoned to him to enter.
Chapter 59
Ian took his hat and entered behind Henri. He followed Henri to stand with him in the center of the chamber. The room was completely round and was beneath the dome itself. The dome had inserts of frosted glass to let in natural light. There were four stained glass inserts bearing the same logo as that on the doors of Henri’s coach. They were the same colors being a
purple shield, edged with gold and emblazoned with the stylized Latin letters L T G in gold. Facing Ian was a raised dais which had what looked like a curved marble judge’s bench with nine tall dark red leather seats behind it. There was no ornamentation of any kind in the room. Two flags flanked the bench, one being the crest of the ruling family of the Duchy of Liechtenstein and the other the crest of the Liechtenstein Trade Guild. Ian saw just the top of a single door behind the judge’s bench. Presumably the council members could come and go privately through that door. There were two large ornate tables with several matching chairs for each at the opposite side of the chamber. They were moved out of the way to hear a case, and then moved back to make it appear that some sort of committee hearings were done in the room. It was all done to eliminate any idle gossip should a human ever make it into that chamber.
All meetings were conducted in the German language as it was most common to all present. “My esteemed fellow council-members may I introduce Herr Ian McCloud, my most esteemed colleague.” Henri then introduced the chairman first, and then proceeded from Ian’s left to his right. To each one Ian gave a curt nod of his head after the name of that one was given. They each nodded in return. He met each one’s gaze directly when introduced and his neck prickled non-stop.
The introductions finished, Henri walked around the marble structure and up two steps to take his own seat. It was silent for a bit, and then the chairman said ‘Herr McCloud, how do you prefer to be called?” He was matter of fact, neither overly friendly nor hostile.
“Ian, sir.”
“Very well, Ian it is.” Henri tells us that you’ve assisted him greatly in dealing with one transgression in Marseille and that you found and dealt with a second one in Paris.”
“Yes sir.”
“This one in Marseille, did you find who had paid for the humans taken, orphan children I believe?”
“No sir.” I hope this is convincing them.
“How did you come to believe that a …rescue was merited, followed by a sanction being levied?”
“Sir, as Judge Lafayette told me, the King’s Gendarmes had been notified in writing by the headmistress of the facility. An inspector Rousseau had gone to the orphanage, inspected the place, and made an official report. We found out then that a second child had been taken and a second report initiated and sent to the Gendarmes. It was a clear violation of accepted rules.
“Indeed. Continue.”
“For the two cases to be quietly resolved and forgotten, it was deemed best to take the children back to the orphanage and to tell the Gendarmes that it was just a case of children who had run away from that orphanage.”
“I see. Don’t you worry that these girls will talk about what they saw?”
“No sir. It was at night and they were kept in a dark cell in a cellar. They could barely see each other. The two vampires took care to keep their abilities concealed from these girls.” He waited to see if that lie went across well or not.
“And how do you know that?”
“Madame Lafayette conducted private interviews with each one separately to determine what they saw. They’re terrified to this day that someone might discover that they were kidnapped and close the orphanage and throw them into a government run orphanage or out on the streets.”
Another council member then spoke “We all know of Madame Lafayette’s predisposition towards orphans and some of us are concerned that is a …weakness if you will.”
“Sir, I too was skeptical. Now though I’ve come to believe it has merit.”
“And why did you change your mind, Ian?”
“The more children who can become productive members of human society, the more stable that society becomes as a result. Other countries in Europe would do well to emulate what the Lafayettes have done in France, sir.”
There was a pause as the council members looked at each other. On the far right Judge Robert Milliken of Britain spoke. He was an ordinary looking fellow of medium height and weight, who could be thirty or forty years old. He had a slightly rounded youthful face and his eyebrows made him look as if he was always surprised. He projected an air of congeniality, much as Henri did. “Well said, Herr McCloud.” I’ve held that view for a long time. Will you tell us about the incident in Paris?”
“What exactly do you want to know, sir?”
The chairman said “We want to know how you found this place.”
Ian had dreaded this. Here is hoping that I can lie well enough to convince this council. Without looking toward Henri he said “It was quite simple sir. I was in Paris concerning business of Banque de Lafayette. I was walking past a sidewalk café and I just happened to be looking at the customers there who were dining. A chance reflection from the street hit the eyes of a young man sitting at a table with a young lady. He flinched and covered his eyes.”
“What was so suspicious about that?”
“The movement was entirely too fast to be human. Not only that, but he was facing the street and should have made certain that he was facing the building instead. I knew he was a vampire and a careless one at that for a supposed Adept. My curiosity was aroused and I waited some distance away to see where he’d go. I followed him to the house in question.”
“I see. That is commendable. How did you learn of his intentions toward this lady?”
“I eavesdropped after dark and heard them talking about it. The one I saw at the café said that he wanted her for his mate and that if she refused, they could all feed on her with him because she would deserve it for refusing him.”
“And these vampires didn’t hear or see you?”
“No sir. I wore all black clothing and a hood I made to fit over my face
“You took the time to do that? Why?”
“I feared that if I didn’t get them all, one might recognize me some day. That would be bad for Herr Lafayette. I also didn’t want the woman to recognize me at some future time.”
“So you intended to save her from the beginning?”
“My goal was to kill all of them. I thought that if she could be saved and safely gotten away from the place, so much the better.” That seemed to go well enough he thought.
“Did you take any other precautions before releasing her?”
“Sir, I spoke to her only after I had taken her very close to a hotel on the Champs Elysees. She hadn’t seen me attack and kill them because she’d already been knocked unconscious by one of them.. After I had killed and beheaded the six of them, I just wrapped her in a sheet and took her to that hotel. She was conscious when I untied her. I kept my hand over her mouth and told her that they were all dead. Then I told her to go to the hotel and to have the concierge get a carriage. I had her purse and there was more than enough money in it for her to do that. I whispered only one thing to her then.”
“What was that?”
“Sir, I told her that if she ever spoke of this that I would find her and would kill her.”
“And you think she believed that?”
Time for another lie. “Yes. She urinated all over herself when I said it. And I never once spoke except in a whisper.”
A smattering of laughter followed.
From another council member “Did you clean up the place then?”
“I did.”
“How did you determine that she might be missed?”
Time for another lie. “Sir, she was no street walker or whore. I heard a name and it was a name connected to a theatre production I believe. I had seen it in an advertisement somewhere. I feared that it would be reported to the King’s Gendarmes and I thought that it would be a bigger potential problem than the incident in Marseille.”
“Who is she?”
He thought Time for another lie and he gave the name of a well-known singer in Paris. He and Henri knew that he couldn’t get away with saying he had forgotten the name.
Another council member spoke and said “You went in alone kno
wing there were six of them?”
“Yes.”
“And you seriously thought to kill six vampires by yourself?”
“Yes.”
“Why were you so sure?”
“I had plenty of weapons and surprise on my side. Who among you would expect one of us to invade such a gathering in the security of your own home?”
At this time Henri spoke “Esteemed colleagues, this is the one you may have read about in one of your newspapers. He was a part of the party who rescued that Spanish ambassador’s daughter.”
There was a general nodding of heads, and some comments made from some of the council members to each other.
“So you were a part of that?”
“Yes sir.”
“And you had to kill some pirates that day?”
“Six or maybe seven.”
Judge Milliken said “Is that all?” Much laughter followed that. “You had weapons then? What did you have?”
“Five pistols, a dagger, a short sword, and a saber, sir.”
This time it was Nikola, the judge from the Balkan region saying “Is that all?” Even more laughter followed this time.
“Did they not all attack you?”
“Sir, I killed four where they sat and the other two ran. I had to chase them down to kill them. I caught the last one in the dining room.”
“You shot four vampires where they sat?”
“Yes.”
“How on earth did you do that?”
He gave a brief explanation.
“What? Shot two pistols at once?”
“Yes sir. I practiced doing everything I could left-handed while I was imprinting.”
There was a buzz of conversing between several judges and finally Judge Milliken spoke “So you can shoot equally well with either hand then?”
Henri spoke up then. “Esteemed colleagues; if I may say it, I’ve seen Ian shoot pieces of firewood thrown from behind him. He shoots them in mid-air no less, and consistently with either hand. I have seen him hit thrown targets as many as twenty times in succession without missing. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen him miss a shot like that. And one other thing is important that you know.”
Forever Young The Beginning Page 32