by Michael Rigg
I stopped, my jaw hanging open. I wondered how ADAM knew such things so quickly and with such affirmation. "Indeed, ADAM." I lifted the paper and re-read what EVE had told me. "As you know, my father is ailing and my sisters are preparing to take the reins of our corporate merger with Thorne Industries."
"Adeline and Savannah Landry will become the chief executive and financial officers of Landry, Thorne and Landry."
I smiled. "I thought Landry, Landry and Thorne had a better—"
"EVE's calculations are law. Landry, Thorne and Landry."
I smiled, my attempt at humor lost on the centuries-old behemoth. "Very good, sir. Um..." My smile faded when I consulted the paper yet again. "EVE told me something that has given me concern. Her expertise has always been one of a military jurisdiction yet she made inferences to future issues involving the corporations of the east coast."
I heard clicking and humming from deep within the machine. "Explain concern."
"Yes, ADAM. Um... EVE mentioned," I read directly from my notes, "Landry Holdings will maintain a mark of the presidential seal despite the formation of the Landry, Thorne and Landry Corporation."
Clicks. Hums. "Indeed."
"So it's true that Adeline is to maintain a separate corporate holding outside of our joint efforts with Bradford Thorne?"
"Indeed."
"May I ask why?"
"You may ask."
I sat back and blinked. "Why?"
Clicks. Hums. "EVE has calculated an 81 percent chance that Bradford Thorne will attempt a hostile takeover with an advancement made in the Landry, Thorne and Landry laboratories."
"Laboratories?"
"A segment of the corporation devoted to the study of infectious diseases, contagion, blood-borne viruses and magic."
"What?"
"A segment of the corporation devoted to—"
"No no, I heard you." I swallowed hard. "Why will Landry, Thorne and Landry invest time in such an endeavor?"
"To stave off the rise of the ghoul population in the undercities."
My mind flashed back to the final battle of the last Civil War and rumors that Bradford Thorne had taken in an intelligent ghoul to fight at his behest. The monster had been killed, and since that time, no one had seen nor heard of another ghoul. Awareness of the monstrosity even drove open witches back from public view. I had even lost track of my old friend Pandora not long after I received word of Clayton's fall.
I stopped and sat back. I rubbed the whiskers of my goatee, pulling on them as I thought this through. It was good that ADAM and EVE predicted that Landry, Thorne and Landry would work toward such a goal, but that one was needed at all sent a chill through my blood.
After a long pause in which I was deeply lost in thought, ADAM spoke. "General Landry."
"Hm."
"Your time is precious. The president requires your presence at a meeting of—"
"Yes, yes," I said as I quickly gathered my thoughts. "Tell me, ADAM, will the ghouls be a threat?"
"They will not."
Something in those three words chilled me even deeper. It was as if ADAM knew the ghouls themselves wouldn't be a threat but that something related to them would be. "Will Thorne be a threat?"
"He will not."
"Can you tell me—"
"My apologies, General Landry, but your connection is severed."
I heard a click, a high pitched whine, and the ear cups suctioned to the sides of my head went deaf. "ADAM? ADAM?"
I sat there for a long time pondering this. ADAM and EVE had predicted turns and advancements very well, but they never came out and said what would happen. Any time a user got close to asking, as I just did, they'd shut us down. To simply offer their predictions, EVE once told me, would be to throw in a calculation that would introduce chaos to the mix. ADAM and EVE were born to form order out of chaos. They weren't born to form chaos. That was apparently the job of us lowly humans.
I got up from my chair and stepped out into the hall. Jeanette was just returning from her stroll out into the daylight and greeted me with a wide smile.
"You knew I'd be finished so quickly?"
The attendant smiled and bowed. "Thank you for the opportunity to see the weather, General. It was quite lovely. My best wishes to your mother and father."
“Thank you, Jeanette.”
“It would be good to hear your father up and about again, treasure hunting and all.”
I chuckled. “Landry Holdings has never been in the treasure hunting business, Jeanette. I'm afraid it's nothing but boring property acquisitions in places as cold as this or hot as blazes.”
“Well, still.” The young woman smiled and nodded back toward the door. I caught a mischievous twinkle in her dark eyes. “I thank you for giving me the opportunity to see the sun today.”
"Any time, my friend."
"Your sisters await you in the monuments."
I smiled. "Thank you, Jeanette." I dug into a pocket and gave the woman a tip. "I shall see you next week when I consult on Landry Holding's Alaska acquisitions."
"Very good, sir."
I made my way outside, past the rows of bronze plaques dedicated to the founders of ADAM and EVE. I always found it curious that one of them gleamed more than the others. There was something about the plaque of Raymond Simcoe that intrigued me, but I couldn't quite place what it was. It wasn't just that his was the shiniest of the monuments. It was something... deeper, like a long forgotten memory.
The stone garden of black monoliths was constructed by order of the Thinking Machines to commemorate the lives of those spent to see the Republic sewn together. The flat-topped pyramids covered several hundred acres surrounding the property and included nearly a million stones to honor every life lost in the formation of our great nation from the time the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter to the final shots in the air over the Atlantic Ocean.
Back out in the welcome heat, I found Adeline and Savannah not far from the path that wound between the tall stone monoliths. I was glad I didn't have to walk the miles through the stones to locate them, but then again I really didn't think I was involved with ADAM and EVE all that long.
They were standing with a woman dressed smartly in a white uniform. Double rows of silver buttons decorated her chest, epaulets gave her the rank of captain, and the gold stripe down her tight white uniform slacks designated her as a commander in the defense of the Hall of Thinking Machines. I had seen the woman before. She had always caught my eye due to my admitted fondness for redheads like our own President McFerran, though I of course couldn't pursue a relationship with Lydia, even back when she was a Lady. There were staunch rules about such things and, besides, she was happily married to President Silas Kennedy at the time, though I didn't know it until she took over his office.
"Thank you, Addy," the woman said. Then she looked at me. Her emerald eyes seemed to glint with a hidden charm, or perhaps a wisdom beyond her years. I couldn't be certain which. Perhaps Savannah and Adeline were telling secrets on me. I made eye contact with the Captain on a few occasions before but we never spoke. In fact, I don't recall ever hearing her voice.
Savannah turned at my approach. "Oh, good. The Great Consulter has returned." She bowed mockingly before stomping past me toward the lot where Lucien waited with the aerocar. I called out to her, "You behave. Don't you be messin' with Lucien now."
She waved over her shoulder. "Just hurry on up."
Smiling, I turned to Adeline and the Captain. Both were smiling at me. Adeline had a look on her face I had seen countless times before. Then it occurred to me... she was about to play Cupid. I gave her a sidelong warning glare, but she quickly turned and patted my shoulder before following after Savannah, leaving me with the Captain and
a potentially embarrassing situation. I couldn't simply turn and follow her. Such a thing would be rude.
I nodded to the Hall guardian. "Mornin', Captain."
She smiled brightly. "General."
I clasped my hands behind my back and bounced on my heels. Then, realizing I looked like a nervous fool, I stopped myself and smiled crookedly. "It sure is a lovely day."
She blinked up at the sun before returning her smile to me. "It certainly is. Hot."
"You must be lucky to be posted here," I said with a nod to her spotless white uniform.
"How so?"
"Well, you don't have to freeze inside and you don't have to broil outside." I raised an eyebrow to her simple comment on the weather. “If it gets too hot you could always go in to cool off.”
She laughed. Her smile and dimples tugged at me. "Oh no, I can freely move about the Citadel and catch my death of cold with the change in temperature. The difference is likely to make it rain in the foyers." I laughed with her and held my smile. "You are quite charming for a guard captain. And your accent... Northern gal?"
"Yes sir. From Chicago originally, but don't let my Yankee upbringing color your impression of me. I am a lady of the South at heart."
"Indeed," I smiled.
"Indeed."
"Have you been here long?"
"About five years or so."
"Mm."
She studied me for a time as I tried not to study her. In truth, I couldn't look away. Finally, she said, "General Landry?"
Snapping out of it, I said, "I'm sorry. There seems to be somethin' familiar about you. Like I'd seen you somewhere before."
She shrugged. "I would imagine so. I've seen you come and go from here most every other week for the past five years." She tilted her head, “But it's funny.”
“Funny?”
“I was going to say the same about you.”
"Interesting, indeed.” My eyes lingered on her smile. “You said you've seen me come and go? Did you feel the need to spy on me, guard captain?” I said it with a smile and an eyebrow raised in the hopes she would take my words for what they were, simply veiled curiosity about the young woman with a dash of teasing.
She could barely hide her blush. "It's not hard to miss a dashing Confederate officer."
I smiled brighter. "And it's not hard to miss a beautiful guard captain... even if she is a northern gal." She laughed again and fanned herself. “Oh, General, please. You flatter me backhandedly.”
I laughed. “Oh, it wasn't backhanded at all, my dear.” I shot her a wink. “I've never had a problem with northerners. Well, besides that scalawag Bradford Thorne.”
Her forehead wrinkled at a thought. “Now there's a name that seems as familiar as you. Has this Thorne been to the Hall?”
I chuckled. “Not likely. Poor deluded Imperial just likes to count his money—what's left of it. I don't think he ever leaves the Center of Trade towers.” The Captain turned from me slightly and stared off into the distance as I told her about Thorne. When next she spoke it was as though from a daydream. “It's odd. I have a vague memory of being in New Yorke, but don't remember any details.”
“Do you recall when it was?”
Her chin pushed up her lower lip and she barely shook her head. “It was probably when I was a little girl, or about the time of the war before last. I tend to be a little phased on my memories since I started my post here.” She offered me a look that I read as distant and sad. “To be completely honest with you, General Landry, I don't remember much at all before that.” She nodded toward the Citadel wall behind me. “It was part of my indoctrination here, I think. ADAM and EVE put me through my paces back in the day... All I really know is this place and my duty.”
“And a noble duty it is, Captain.”
She met my eyes and bowed her head slightly. “Thank you, sir. That means more than you know.”
I bristled slightly, longing for her to drop the businesslike pretense while simultaneously kicking myself for not being more of a gentleman. “Oh, please don't call me sir. I'm not stationed here and we're not from the same branch.” I practically winced. Good one, Bryce.
Her smile was beautiful, bright, and warmed my heart as much as it seemed to bring enough chill to ward off the stifling day. It was a comfortable, familiar beauty I couldn't quite place. “All right, General. Would you be terribly offended if I called you Bryce despite our differences in station?”
“Offended? I'd be honored.” I opened my uniform coat and reached into the pocket inside to withdraw my kerchief. I dabbed my brow, and offered the Captain a smirk as I glanced to the sun. “I suppose I'd been inside where it's cool a trifle too long.”
“If I didn't know better, I'd swear it was more likely you were hiding a blush.”
“Blush?” I puffed out my chest and raised an eyebrow, still dabbing to hide the sudden rush of heat to my face. “Officers don't blush, madam.”
“Mm.” That was it. Her sudden smile was so bright, her perfect teeth so heartbreaking, my jaw and kerchief hand both dropped in slow motion. I had to shake my head and glance around at the monuments to memory in order to regain my composure.
The Captain nodded and changed the subject, perhaps to let me know that my perspiration or embarrassment wasn't a bother to her. She did seem to have more important things on her mind. "It was delightful to meet your sister, Addy. She's quite an effervescent young woman."
"Effervescent?" I repeated with a chuckle as I returned the kerchief to my inner pocket. "I'd never heard of Adel being called that before." The Captain then gave me a rather Landryesque wink and smiled. “I think your sister likes playing at matchmaker.”
I looked over my shoulder and noticed Adeline on top of the rise just outside the start of the monument circle, shading her eyes with her hand. When she saw me looking at her she quickly turned, lifted her gown and jogged toward Lucien and the waiting aerocar. I smiled at Adel though she couldn't see it. “That she does.”
I turned back to the Captain to find she'd been studying me. “I can imagine she told all manner of tales about me before I came out here.” The Captain blushed slightly herself. I had to fight to keep from bouncing proudly on my heels. “She did, but I assure you she painted you as nothing but a gentleman.”
“Oh, I'm sure,” I laughed. Then I did something I hadn't done in decades. I asked a woman if she would enjoy my company.
"Would it be untoward of this General of the Borderwatch to ask this Captain of the Citadel out for some sweet tea some time?" I don't know where it came from or how it flowed so freely, but it felt good to ask it despite what her answer may be. Still, I looked to her hopefully, my hands clasped behind my back in true attentive soldier fashion. “I know a lovely place not far from here with a wide shaded porch and high backed chairs facing--”
"General Bryce Landry, it would be my honor and pleasure." She clasped her hands behind her back to mimic my pose and bowed slightly at the waist. “I admit there is something curiously intriguing about you.”
“Precisely mirrored, my dear Captain,” I mused aloud. “A delightful repast of sweet tea and a light lunch might be just the welcome retreat for us both, and give us the opportunity to get to know one another.” She nodded sharply. “Agreed. Though I can't tell you much more than you already know about ADAM and EVE.”
I smiled. “That's just as well. I'm more interested in their guardian.”
Her smile was tight but as warm as ever. Her heart-shaped face was so lovely, so adoring, even framed atop a starched uniform that spoke only of business. Clicking my heels I bowed to her with a smile. "I shall call upon you here tomorrow evenin'. Will that suffice?"
Her dimples showed more when she smiled and bit her lower lip. "It would. You are very gallant
, Bryce Landry."
I nodded and slowly turned to leave, reluctant to trade the vision before me for that of my butler on the crest. Just a few paces away, I turned back and said, "I'm sorry, Captain. I usually avail myself to be a gentleman but I neglected to ask you your name." She smiled with a slight lift of her chin. "ADAM and EVE give new names and identities to their elders, keepers and guardians. It's a security measure."
“And what would yours be, dear Captain?”
“You may call me Alice.”
My smile brightened. I couldn't say why, but I almost said Alice just as she said it. Perhaps she looked like an Alice. I couldn't be certain. “I will see you tomorrow evening, Alice.” I waved to her and continued on my way.
“Bryce!”
I turned and saw her crouch to pluck something off the path. Perhaps I'd dropped a coin when I withdrew my kerchief. Happy to approach her again, I raised an eyebrow. “Did I lose a button, or....”
She stood and held something between us. “I believe you dropped this.”
I don't know how or why but I became transfixed. When I first saw Captain Alice I was struck by her poise and beauty. As she spoke, I felt a curious familiarity. Now I was stunned into silence as our eyes locked together on the item dangling from her fingertips.
There, at the end of a chain, was a heart of bronze.
THE END
Of the first Heart of Bronze Story
A Taste of Book 2
What follows is an excerpt from the second Heart of Bronze book. I'd share the title with you, but it may give away more than a “taste.” It may also change before I publish it. Who knows? What you're about to read could change too. So, consider this a “collector's item.” Enjoy.
Oh, and I should point out that it's really, really, really rough.
I mean... Draft -1 Rough.
Still. I couldn't update Clockwork Looking Glass without sharing a taste of the next book with the readers who made it this far, and who have asked me for updates. I hope it keeps you interested.
