Revolutionary Magic (with Bonus Content) (3 page)

Before Adam Smith could lodge a question, Ben took a moment to explain the circumstances of the investigation, telling the tale in a manner that entertained, even for me, who had experienced it firsthand.

"Can you elaborate on your hypothesis?" asked Adam with a wary eye cast in my direction.

Ben, who had relieved himself of the knapsack, placed his hand under his chin. I smiled despite myself and the lingering heat I'd gathered in my exchange with Adam Smith. Ben had a roguish quality that embodied the American spirit and inspired me to follow him down any path he laid our feet upon.

"Ours is not the only plane of existence," he said as way of introduction. "Like two soap bubbles brushing against each other, portals can form between these planes, allowing objects and creatures to pass from one to the other. These portals have been responsible for the increasing presence of magic and the creatures with which we have done battle."

"How can you know this?" I asked.

"Conjecture," he said, and then nodded towards Adam. "And a few facts that will currently remain unspoken."

Another time I might have argued with Ben, but Adam Smith's presence and our earlier conversation weighed heavily on my mind. I kept my face as unreadable as possible.

"Then we should be rid of her," said Adam, "so we can continue this conversation in earnest. These incidents seem to be coming more frequently, which puts a great emphasis on our need to understand them, so we may act accordingly." He looked to me. "You are dismissed, madam."

Ben stepped between us before I could launch a hailstorm of invectives. I had a particularly nasty Russian insult involving a cuckold and two suckling pigs readied for launch.

"Adam, I know you are opposed to her membership in the Society, but we need Katerina. We have flailed thus far at this mystery without much to show for our efforts. She has a peerless mind and does not brook sloppiness. Why, during our investigation at the Coopers, it was she who discovered that this Theodore was not capable of even understanding that his memory had been taken. Which again suggests that its origin is magical in nature rather than one of physical damage."

Adam shifted on his rear, face contorting through various unattractive poses.

Ben continued with palms towards the Scottish economist. "I must show her how we can detect this magic, so she might help us devise a trap that might discover its root."

"Hmmm..."

"None of the others are here," said Ben. "It's only the three of us, and events seem to be quickening."

"I suppose we must then," said Adam. "But I shall keep my eye on you, Princess. If you show the slightest indication that you are not who you say you are, we shall withdraw our protection."

"I am your humble servant," I said. "I will endeavor to earn your trust."

Adam offered a reluctant smile that he barely bothered to maintain for more than a breath.

"Well, then." Ben clapped his hands softly. "Let us show Katerina our greatest find."

The knapsack sagged when Ben lifted it by the straps. A quick twist of the fingers released the buttons. Ben sunk his hand into the darkness.

His attention focused on the object in the knapsack. He'd drawn quite serious only moments before, but I knew by the way he prepared to exalt what he had in his grasp that it was an invention of some kind. Whenever Ben explained an invention, whether his or another's that he admired, he displayed an effervescence that bordered on childlike.

While I was prepared for many things, I was not prepared for the object to be a silvery metal gauntlet of unknown design. The style was nothing with which I was accustomed.

Gazing upon it churned my stomach, making me want to look away. I felt dizzy and lightheaded despite standing on two solid feet.

Rather than interlocking steel links, or overlapping plates, the gauntlet was made of one solid piece. The cyclopean design held a chunk of the blackest night on the back. It was a smooth obsidian stone that grossly reflected my visage when I leaned closer.

"What does it do besides give me a gut-shot of the barrel fever?" I asked.

"As far as we can tell, it detects the presence of magic, though I have a suspicion that's not its only function," said Ben.

"Was there magic at the Coopers?" I asked.

"A lingering residue," said Ben. "Which is why I suspect a portal. The signature began and ended inside the house."

"Why would someone erase the memories of a customs agent?" asked Adam.

"Maybe not erased, but stolen," I said.

I caught Adam's surprised agreement, though he quickly hid it behind an impeccable scowl.

"What would a magical being want with Theodore's memories?" asked Ben. "I can't think of anything more boring than a customs agent. Theirs is the monotonous task of accounting the comings and goings of industry through the port. This Theodore Cooper would know nothing of the important workings of government, no secrets to lay bare."

I agreed with Ben, though something tugged at my thoughts. Before my exile, I'd spent a dozen years as the director of the Russian Academy of Science. I'd been given the position after the ineptitude of the previous holder. The former director never bothered with the bureaucratic necessities that kept an organization from falling into chaos, and it'd been my diligence that had elevated the academy to its current glory.

"Bureaucracy, though unloved, has purpose," I said. "Maybe there is some clue within his responsibilities."

"What if there are others?" asked Adam suddenly.

The three of us pondered his question in silence.

"How would we know?" I asked. "Can that gauntlet detect magic from across the city?"

Ben shook his head. "Only as close as a driver to a horse tail."

"Can you lean on your connections in the government to inquire about other incidents?" asked Adam.

"Under my grandson's name, I have less, but enough to get us an answer," said Ben.

"Then I'll take to the docks and spend time watching the comings and goings of goods," said Adam Smith. "Much can be learned about a city's economics by its trade."

"I could take that gauntlet and canvas the city," I offered, wanting to contribute to the investigation. "A block by block review might uncover more instances. Maybe the custom agent's loss was merely coincidence and had nothing to do with his government station."

Adam Smith shook a fist in my direction. "You'd like to get your hands on our most prized possession." Spittle formed at the corner of his lips. "If we gave that to you, we'd never see you again, and you'd hand it over to our enemies in Russia."

"Russia is not the enemy of America," I said, my voice rising. "I've no love for the current emperor—he's a tyrant and a fool—but Russia deserves a place on the world's stage."

"Always about pride with you Russians," said Smith. "Pride's a dangerous lure to the weak of mind."

I looked to Ben for support, expecting him to back me, but when I saw the deep wrinkles around his mouth and eyes and the hunched brow, I knew there was more they weren't telling me.

"How many secrets are you keeping from me?" I asked.

"Not really keeping from you," said Ben. "Word will get out eventually, but something's happening in Russia. We're not even sure that the emperor is in charge anymore. Our sources in Moscow have disappeared, the nobles are silent, the serfs terrified. What information we do receive appears written by madmen, though given the strange occurrences around here, it might be this plague of magic has a stronger hold in Russia."

A cold and bony hand seized around my heart. My son Pavel was a member of the emperor's court, and I had not received a letter from him in a few months. It'd been a heavy winter and letters might have been delayed, but they should have arrived by now. This news and the absence of communication from my son left me with dark thoughts.

Suddenly, Ben was beside me, while Smith left the room, glancing ominously in my direction before he disappeared through a door. Ben placed a warm hand on my forearm, giving it a little squeeze. He smelled like pine needles and hearth fires. I wanted to lean against him.

"I know this comes as troubling news," said Ben. "And I'm afraid I must impinge upon your wounded heart once again. Until the source of the recent events can be resolved, you cannot stay at the estate. There are other secrets you are not privy to, and your presence in the house will make it impossible to keep them from you."

The bony hand around my heart cinched tighter. "Then where am I to live?"

"I own a house on the south side of Market Street. The previous resident and I had a disagreement so she no longer lives there and I haven't been able or wanted to rent it out since then. It's a wonderful place. You'll love the bath, it has no equal in the known world," he said.

"I don't care for baths," I said.

"I'm sorry, Kat. It has to be this way right now. While we sort this out, which will happen sooner rather than later, I've taken the liberty of setting up the printing shop. It's only a few blocks from here," he said, patting my hand like a father with his wayward child. "I hired some porters to move your things to the new place. You should find everything you need."

He handed me an envelope with his seal stamped into the red wax. On the outside in a patient script was the address.

"I am to be cast out of the Society?"

He shook his head, features cast into an appropriately sympathetic frown. "A momentary delay."

"Well, then," I said, shivering despite the warmth of the room.

"Kat, I know you can still help us. Use that prodigious mind of yours and help us figure out this mystery. It'll go a long way towards assuaging the doubts of the Society," he said.

I pulled away, thoughts whirling through my head like a windstorm.

"I must take a walk to clear my head," I said, marching towards the front door.

"When you return, I'll give you a tour of your new business and home," said Ben with a hopeful smile.

The door closed harder than I wanted, the abrupt bang like a gunshot, leaving me to cringe. I didn't want Ben to get the impression that I wasn't appreciative of his defense and the lodging. Truthfully, I had much to be thankful for in the house of Ben Franklin. I could scarcely complain about the treatment I'd received from Ben, especially given the circumstances.

It wasn't the banishment from the estate that had left me deep in my thoughts. It was what had been said before, about Russia and the blooming of magic in my birthplace. The implications were varied and wide, and gave me great worries for the safety of my son.

But more importantly, this news troubled me for one simple fact.

I was a Russian spy
.

Chapter Three

It'd never been my intention to become a spy for the emperor of Russia. I'd thought my existence in Philadelphia a secret until a month ago.

While visiting the Camden yards across the Delaware River to watch the military airships take flight over the ocean in the predawn sky, I'd been standing along the stacked stone wall that kept the river behind me at bay. A man had strolled up and though I'd been aware of him, I had expected him to pass without comment.

When he said my full name, the one they announced at court, I knew I'd been found. He made it known that he carried a repeating pistol and that if I didn't nod in all the right places, he would dump my lifeless body into the river. After that, he explained how my cooperation would keep my son Pavel alive. When I asked what kind of information he was looking for, the spymaster didn't elaborate, stating that he wanted to know
everything
.

I regretted that I hadn't taken this information straight to Ben and the Society. I'd thought that I could handle the problem quickly, eliminating the spymaster and showing my worth to the Society, rather than weighing them down with new problems.

I began plotting my escape the moment the spymaster left. I resolved to send a letter to Pavel at the same time I eliminated the spymaster, so my son could escape and come to America. If Emperor Paul's reign was in question and unknown forces were at work, my plan was untenable.

Elimination of the spymaster would be my first priority. A letter would be sent to Pavel, but I couldn't wait for confirmation that it'd arrived, or that he'd fled to safety.

While I knew where the spymaster lived—it'd taken me the last few months to learn the location—a second complication waited. The spymaster had warned me that two assassins lurked in the city and if I tried to move on him, or told anyone about the arrangement, they would eliminate me and those around me for whom I cared for.

As I made my way to my new home to retrieve my rapier and pistol, I formulated a plan to extricate myself from the odorous employ of said spymaster. Upon reaching my destination, I found myself stymied by a strange door. Instead of a wrought iron door handle, a brass plate with three rows of buttons awaited.

Using the ivory handled knife in my jacket, I sliced open the envelope Ben had given me at the estate. The contents explained the method of entry and a few other notes, including partially incomprehensible instructions regarding the bath. I punched the buttons in the order suggested in the letter and gained entry to my new abode.