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Phineas
tucked his new watch into his pocket and walked into the dining car
authoritatively. He looked around the cabin for any sign of Anabelle, but
couldn’t find her. He knew the team was waiting on the roof, but he didn’t know
how long. He would have to find her in a hurry if they were going to leave with
the others. Glancing around the room, there were people of all stripes in the
car. In one area, he saw a man in a tattered suit and plain hat, sipping a
glass of beer. This was probably the only train ride he would afford all year.
Still others were dressed to the nines, many of whom, no doubt, were
accompanying their considerable valuables to the banks in the city.
He would
have felt some degree of guilt looking at all the suckers he’d stolen from
today, but Phineas didn’t have the capacity for pity. He certainly couldn’t
pity the rich Vickies who benefitted tremendously from the society they’d
bought with their Traditionalist revolution. He could never feel guilty for
robbing the rich of their ill-gotten wealth. The only guilt he felt was that
every person on this train would have to go through needless interrogation when
it was discovered how much was missing. He felt bad for the poor man in the
corner.
He glanced
at himself in the mirror and decided his look was close enough to a conductor
to make a go at it. “Alright, everyone, we’re nearly at the station, so if
you’ll kindly return to your seats.” He spoke loudly so everyone would hear
him. He glanced at his watch as the room began to clear. The hands were not
moving. Probably hadn’t been wound in years.
He walked
past the poor man in the tattered suit. He smiled at him. “Can I help you find
your seat sir?”
“Oh, no,
I’m ok. Just finishing my drink.” He took the last swig of his drink and stood
up.
Phineas
put a hand on the man’s elbow as he stood to leave. He subtly slipped a gold
coin into the man’s jacket pocket. That would be the most exciting thing to
happen to this man in years. It was probably worth several years’ wages to him.
Once again feeling good about himself, Phineas followed the man through the
doors into the next car.
It was a
regular coach, seats on either side of a narrow aisle. An elderly woman in the
second to last row grabbed his sleeve as he passed. He stopped at her seat. She
turned and looked at him, “Will we arrive on time?”
“Yes, of
course, ma’am. A Lester train is never late.” He smiled broadly at the
gray-haired woman as he recited the slogan plastered at every station in the
city.
She
returned the smile, “Oh, thank you. My granddaughter is meeting me at the
station and I don’t want her to wait too long.”
“No
worries, dear.” He leaned down and said conspiratorially, “You might even beat
her there.” He used the opportunity to glance out the window, just in time to
see the train entering the tunnel. The car went dark.
“Pardon
me, madam.”
The oil
lamps in the car provided only a small amount of light. He certainly would not
find Anabelle now. He would need to just hope that she gets out alright. She
was resourceful, he was certain she would find her way out. Now he needed to
worry about himself. He looked around and spotted an open seat at the back of
the car.
His seat
was directly next to the door, which would allow him to slip off the train
quickly at the station. He didn’t know the city’s tunnels as well as Higgs, so
he didn’t think he would be able to find his way to the safehouse without going
to the surface. He would have to take his chances. If that meant running into
someone he knew, so be it. He wasn’t guilty of anything, as far as they knew.
The train
slowed as it approached the city’s central station. Phineas jumped out of his
seat and into the doorway. He opened the door and hopped onto the platform
before the train had come to a complete stop. He hurried without looking like
he was in a hurry. Up the stairs and into the light he went. He breathed the
air and was disappointed to find that it was not as sweet as the country air
had been only a few minutes ago. He reached into his pocket for his pollution
mask and his hand brushed against the coins he’d dropped in there on his way
out of the armored car. He smiled a little wider as he put on the mask.
He was a
few miles from the safehouse, but he decided to go by foot anyway. He didn’t
feel like talking to a cab driver or really anybody else. He walked along,
intentionally failing to see anybody else on the road. He was about halfway
there when he heard a voice call his name. “Mr. Derbyshire, is that you?”
He turned
to see who was addressing him. He instantly recognized one of his clients. He
politely removed the pollution mask, smiling at the man whom he probably owed a
great deal of money. “Hello Mr. Finley. Lovely day, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
Finley’s smile turned quickly to a frown. “Look, I will be straight with you,
Phineas. I would very much appreciate swift payment of my winnings.”
“Yes,
absolutely sir. I can do that for you.”
“When, Phineas?
I have heard that before.”
Phineas
smiled. For the first time, he could do something about this sort of
conversation. “I don’t have my books on me, so I don’t know how much I owe you.
You could follow me back to my office—No. That would be a waste of your time.
I’ll tell you what.” He pulled three gold coins out of his pocket and handed
them to the other man. “Take this as a deposit. If it is not enough to cover
the bet, I will send the rest tomorrow. If it’s more than I owe you, keep the
change. Consider it interest on a payment that was far too late.”
The other
man nodded and shook Phineas’s hand. “That’s not like you, Derbyshire. You’ve
never been so forthcoming with cash. Business has been good then?”
“It has.
It has indeed.” Phineas tipped his hat and kept walking. If only Finley knew
just how good it had been. For all Phineas knew, he’d stolen from Finley today,
which would make it all so much sweeter if he had. He walked the rest of the
way to the safehouse with an extra spring in his step.
Part 25 >
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