Monsters, p.7
Monsters, page 7
part #2 of Gwen Farris Series
Then she turned on Gwen looking serious.
“Freaking brilliant. We didn’t know if you’d be able to pull that off, as good as you already are. Bethany bet me ten mets that you would. Not that I’m saying you should have thrown the whole thing, but I don’t think I’m going to bet against you again anytime soon. We don’t get paid that much.” She gestured towards the bench in front of Gwen’s wooden armor rack. For several minutes they worked together to get the blue metal off her body before Heather spoke again.
“Tomorrow you need to do about twice as well. Darrick’s going to ramp up the fake anger, so be ready for that. By the end of the week we want you able to at least walk out onto the field of combat, since that was the original plan. We’re on for tonight at three again too, so get to bed as early as possible. After you finish scrubbing all the dishes from dinner, of course.” There was a grin with the words, but they weren’t playful by any means.
That wasn’t the most fun thing in the world, having to do all the dishes, but it shouldn’t be that bad. There were only twelve of them. If she could help with dinner enough, the pans might not even have stuff burned to the surface. Not too much at least.
As she came out of the shower area, feeling a little shaken from all the falling down, Gwen realized that she really needed to run, if she wanted to be back in time for lunch at two. She had to get to the Vernor’s, get some clothing from her trunk, maybe with some make-up, recharge the teletransport sphere and get back inside five hours. It was doable, but she wasn’t going directly to Park Street, where the Vernor’s lived, instead she was going to end up across town at the staging center. That meant she needed a ride.
It made sense to do that first, since it would take about forty minutes for the driver to get there, lorries being pretty slow for the most part. Normally that would mean calling James, but for all she knew he and Ella would already be underway, or at least be busy packing up. It meant going to Darrick’s office to make the call, which felt awkward, given the screaming earlier. That hadn’t been real, but it was hard to separate the acting from what was genuine for some reason. The whole thing left her feeling nervous and unwelcome, but she still had to go in, since that was where the Telestator was.
He smiled at her when she came in, a slightly cool thing, but given what she’d seen earlier, she decided to pretend it was just his happy face. Before she could ask to use the Telestator in the next room he stood and walked towards the door gesturing for her to come along.
“I have the sphere on my desk, the time schedule is a little tight, but a woman is expected to be a little late to a first meeting such as this. I don’t for the life of me understand why, but that’s the way it’s done. I’d suggest you recharge the sphere as soon as possible and use the rest of the time readying yourself for your mission. It would be best if we had more intelligence on the boy for you to use, but I imagine that you’ll be fine. Just…” He didn’t blush, but the face he made certainly looked like he was considering it.
“Um, well, just suggest to him that you might be available for sexual relations, and I’m sure that will get his attention in a positive manner. From what I understand, things have been a little rough on the boy in that regard and a fellow that age is pretty easily swayed by a pretty face.”
Gwen blinked.
“Ah… OK. I can see how that would do it, but, um, seriously, I don’t know how to do that kind of thing. I…” How did she explain that she just never had? She’d never even kissed anyone romantically, her mouth had been too messed up before for anyone to feel comfortable with that. It made sense to promise things like that, but the guy was going to be right there for weeks or months and they’d probably see each other regularly. That meant if she was promising things, he’d have every reason to expect her to do some of them eventually.
Gah.
Maybe Beth and Heather could give her some tips? Useful things... like how to do things like that without passing out? Because that would make Christophe feel wanted, wouldn’t it? Her keeling over every time they did more than held hands?
Darrick didn’t answer or ask more, just giving a single chin raise instead before going on.
“I understand. I’ve been briefed on your situation by Bethany. You’ll work it out. I have great confidence in you to finish any mission set.” The man’s smiled turned to something colder then, but somehow more genuine.
“I don’t totally understand why, mind you, but so far, no matter the situation, you’ve done as well as anyone I’ve ever seen would have. Keep that up. I know that forcing yourself to have relations with the boy might not be an ideal situation, but at least he’s pleasant looking. I can’t promise you that the next time this happens that will be the case. We may have to pair you off with some ancient fisherman to get the data we need, or perhaps have you pretend to be a courtesan. But, as you’re no doubt aware, we must serve as best we can.” His look was sad as he shook his head then. Somber.
“Wait…” She held up her right hand to touch the central metal globe of the five on the Telestator and pushed the button with the other to activate it. “You’re actually teasing me, aren’t you?”
The man didn’t agree or disagree, but smiled far more playfully than he had before, eyebrows going up. “Would I do that to you?”
The operator came on almost instantly, which was faster than expected given there was normally a ten to thirty second wait, and Gwen gave the code needed from memory, but didn’t know who to ask for exactly. She just explained that to the operator, as if they were old friends or something. It worked pretty well and not five minutes later James spoke from the air in front of her, sounding almost as if he had turned invisible and was in the room with her.
“Miss Vernor! What a wonderful surprise. Did you call to check in on the progress we’re making towards moving house?” He sounded enthused enough about the idea at least. Happy even.
Gwen shook her head, but reminded herself to speak. She wasn’t used to talking this way yet. Back home she’d owned a phone and even had a cell, but that didn’t mean she’d used them a lot.
“No, I need to be picked up for a quick run to Park Street, I can leave from there. Just running in to get some clothing. Is there anyone available to drive me, do you think? I know that you must be busy, but…”
“I’ll be right there ma’am, where…” Trailing off made his point well enough, and was kind of heartening to hear.
He wanted to know where to go to get her, and was willing to try and drive across half the Kingdom to do it, at need. James was just that kind of guy. She hurried to fill him in, giving the address and letting him know that she’d be waiting for him out front. He didn’t ask how that was supposed to happen though, not at all.
Darrick walked in with the dull gray metal ball she needed, which was about the size of a small orange, and dropped it carefully into her palm. She’d never gotten to hold one before, but noticed the little button on the top right off.
“Just hit the button?”
“Exactly. It only goes between two places, one being the Gollingston depot, the other being the lawn here, in front of the residence. You can, obviously, activate it from anywhere else, and it will automatically take you to the location farthest away from you. Again, keep it charged and in your possession please. These aren’t a high theft item, but losing one would make for a lot of paperwork. They're rare and very expensive, but useless to most people. Since I’d rather avoid extra work, well, you’ve already proven yourself trustworthy, so I’m certain it won’t be an issue.”
He waved at her hand, which Gwen took as a sign she was supposed to activate the thing. The button slid down easily, making a soft click as it connected, causing her whole body to feel an electric tickle all at once. It was kind of pleasant, but made her blink. More than a simple closing of the eyes, it was as if she couldn’t help herself at all. When she opened her eyes again the room had changed, and she found herself in the familiar, but totally barren, depot.
It had all the charm you’d expect of a place with no furniture other than a slightly dinged up wooded bench, if the lights had all been left off and some of the windows boarded over instead of repaired. They’d gotten broken when some mercenaries had broken in once. The bench getting scratched and dinged had all be her fault. The door wasn’t far at least, about a hundred feet away and the daylight through the intact high windows was bright enough to let her see things. When she got to it, the handle turned easily, the complex not being locked at all. There was nothing to steal after all and people just didn’t walk into places run by Westmorlands on purpose for the most part.
Outside it was raining however, so she just stood in the open door, waiting. It took a while for James to drive up, sitting out in the weather on top of the lorrie in his funny looking coat, which had a large hood on it and was all done in black. It looked almost like a cloak, but it fastened in the front and had sleeves. At least it wasn’t snowing anymore, since that had turned getting anywhere into a hassle and a half, instead of the normal one it was right now.
She ran up before he could even stop the thing properly and waved as he worked the controls and applied the manual hand break that made the little carriage in the front stop pulling him along. It looked nice enough, a small white box with two wheels on it, pulling the larger box behind it, which looked a bit like a four person buggy with a roof, or a real old fashioned carriage. It was “her” vehicle. The one that the Vernor’s let her use. It had been Katherine’s, so running around in anything else would look a little suspicious. Unless she traded up to something better at least, but that would be kind of wasteful. It was a nice machine, but required a driver. Really, Gwen decided, if she could find the time she was going to learn how to do it herself. It wouldn’t do to get stuck somewhere just because she didn’t know how to drive, would it?
“Ma’am!” James called out, moving to get down from his perch and let her in the door. When she was wearing a dress it actually helped and with the bigger lorries is could make all the difference, but today she was actually dressed to move, so she waved him back and hoped up lightly, opening the door at the same time.
“Hello James! I’ve got this part, time crunch today, I have to be back for a…” The words froze in her mouth, but she steeled herself and took a deep breath. It wasn’t that big of a deal, was it? People did things like that… Real people did at least.
“I, uh, have a date. For lunch. Just a picnic.” She blushed, but did it with the door open so the driver couldn’t see it. Thankfully.
“Oh? Very good then ma’am. We’ll be right along then.” If he wanted to know more about the situation he didn’t ask. Then, he wouldn’t have, would he? The man was paid to drive a lorrie, which was actually something of a good job in this world, not a low position at all. The man was also Katherine’s bodyguard, though the Vernor’s hadn’t exactly mentioned that part at any point. It was kind of obvious. None of the other drivers she’d seen looked ready to fight in particular, but James had a hard look about him. He was supposed to look out for her, when she went out, but it was a bit more than that. Gwen guessed so at any rate. Not spying exactly, but the man knew who she really was and hadn’t said anything about it. That should be enough to get him a raise if nothing else.
She’d have to check that with the Vernor’s and see if they hadn’t done that already. Not that James would talk either way, but it couldn’t hurt to reward people for doing what you wanted if you had the resources. The whole unit started to move, slowly, as she settled into the front facing seat to wait. A bit of rain had hit her, leaving her feeling just a little damp on the nice leather seats. The highly polished wood trim what the same, but it all looked expensive, with a few bits of brass work to round it all out and make it feel rich and luxurious. Then, for this world, it was.
They didn’t speak, since he was outside, in the elements. None of the lorries even had awnings for their drivers for some reason. It was just an odd thing that she’d always wondered about. It would take minutes to build something like that, no more than an hour or two if it had to look nice, but it was like no one had ever even thought about the idea of comfort for the driver. They also didn’t have lights to see at night. They had the basic technology for it, but no one had ever put it all together for some reason.
Blinking she decided to see about getting some of it done. It could be that no one wanted things like that for some reason, but it would be neat to try it out on this particular lorrie, if the Vernor’s didn’t mind. That and make a real showerhead for personal use. It was little stuff, but of all the things she missed from her old life, it was showerheads that didn’t just douse you with a single hard stream of water… and computers. Television too, but at least she was able to keep busy enough most of the time right now to not really miss it that much. The world felt slower here though. Or it had. Things were looking up, what with the teleporting around suddenly. That reminded her of the sphere in her right hand pocket. It needed to be charged for the trip home.
That would require focus and a release of personal energy, but it didn’t take long, only about twenty minutes. She felt the small crystal hidden in the center of the device push back at her before they even got into the circular drive of Park Street, which was the name of the whole complex. It was huge, about the same size as the Duke’s estate, but nicer, on the outside at least. Inside the Duke’s place she didn’t know. Not yet. Hopefully she hadn’t alienated poor Christophe so much he’d run away again. It would make the mission harder, and really, this was only the second date she’d ever had, and the first nearly real one, so she didn’t want to screw it up too badly. It was actually making her nervous, even if it was just supposed to be for work. For a second butterflies danced in her middle, but she forced herself to relax as the carriage pulled up near the front door, then hopped out before the lorrie stopped completely.
“James, would you come in with me? Just for a few minutes?” She spoke loudly enough so that someone else would hear and no one would fret over the lorrie being left in the wrong place. The machines didn’t have reverse, so if someone was in your way, you either got them to move, or waited. The man hopped down himself and covertly shook the rain from his coat before they could even knock. The door opened without warning, and Charles Winslow, the butler, stood waiting with a polite look on his face. He did manage to seem a bit shocked to see her, but didn’t ask any questions about the situation, so she patted him on the shoulder when she got to him, a half push, but smiled as she did it.
“I just need some clothing, the Special Service hasn’t kicked me out yet or anything.” She said the words quietly enough, she thought, but the man didn’t get a chance to reply before Ethyl Vernor swept into the front hallway, slightly breathless, clearly having run to meet her.
“Katherine!” A warm hug followed, since she was, after all, supposed to be her mother. The woman was only in her low forties though, and looked good. Not television actress pretty maybe, but then, a lot of actresses didn’t age as well as she was doing, so it was possible she could have made the cut.
“Mother!” It beat calling her Ethyl, so Gwen went with it. The woman had asked her to, and it did help sell the lie, didn’t it?
“I have a date with a Duke’s son. Apparently the King decided to do a bit of matchmaking and wanted to see if we’d hit it off. Christophe Phillips? I don’t know if you’ve met.” Would they have even met the same people? It was hard to know really. The Vernor’s were rich, and it wasn’t new money, but that didn’t mean knowing all the nobles and their kids or anything. Not as far as she knew at least. Gwen was about to feel silly about having asked when Ethyl frowned.
“Oh?” She smoothed her hands down the front of her dress nervously. “I’ve heard of him, of course. He… has an unfortunate stutter I hear, and… weak genes.” The last got whispered as if it were something shameful.
Gwen blinked. Then she did it again several times.
“Wait, you mean the whole low magical ability thing? Hardly a crime. As for the stutter, that’s only a problem when he gets too nervous. He seems nice enough over all.” She sounded defensive, but then the woman in front of her had never said an unkind word about anyone that wasn’t actively planning to kill one of the family, as far as she knew. Weak genes sounded suspiciously bigoted for some reason.
“I hear he doesn’t have any real talent at all dear. True, a Duke someday, but is that enough, do you think? It could make it hard on you until he reaches that position. And… Well, there’s the matter of children. It should be fine, you being so strong yourself, but that can go either way. It would be better if you had a partner with a higher rating…”
Gwen raised her eyebrows and then looked at the men to either side of her who were both looking away, as if trying not to be there.
“Right. Well, we aren’t getting married tomorrow, regardless, but if your real plan is to drive me into his arms, you’re doing a wonderful job of it.” The tone was a little sharper than she’d intended it to be, her mouth just spewing the words out on its own. Her fake accent even slipped, which it didn’t normally do. It got Ethyl’s attention pretty well, and seemed to remind her that no matter what it looked like, Gwen both wasn’t Katherine, and would get defensive if she felt like someone was being treated like a second class citizen.
