It wasn’t as though we were saying goodbye forever. We all know Zack would be sticking around. But it felt like it could be forever at the time. We hugged, twice, before he finally made it out the door. And just before it closed, he tapped his cane against the frame three times. I had my jacket and hat on, with no intention of taking either of them off for the time being. I left the door unlocked, and I waited.
Why wasn’t she waking up?
I moved in a bit closer. “Adeline.”
Seven, ten, twelve seconds. Nothing.
I moved in a bit closer. “Adeline.”
Three, five, six seconds. Her eyes fluttered open. One second, two seconds, she startled Stracha’s Steed out of me when she started screaming, so I started screaming. And then she screamed louder, and so I screamed even louder. When we finally got ourselves together, she scooted back against the wall and looked around warily.
“Whatcha doing in my cabin?” I asked.
She scanned my face for three and a half seconds. “Am I dead, too?”
Three and a half seconds was evidently enough time for her to realize who I was, and to remember that Feargus Finlay was supposed to be dead. “Uh—no?”
“Why don’t you sound certain?”
“I’m pretty sure I’m not dead,” I said. “Just confused why you think we are.”
“Because everybody thinks you’re dead,” she explained. “Except Enforcer Rhian.”
I knew that, obviously. But I couldn’t tell her everything about my situation yet, so I sat on the furthest corner of the bed and pretended to be bewildered by the absurdity of the suggestion. “Why does everybody think I’m dead?”
“Because Enforcer Rhian received a missive from Palisade saying you’re dead.”
I ran my fingers through my hair and laughed, like the whole thing was a bit silly. “Well, that’s awkward. I guess I should explain.”
So, I explained—sort of.
Adeline knew what my position was at Palisade, and that I’d sometimes have to work undercover. So I told her that I was on a job, and that certain important people were meant to believe I was dead, but that the information never should have reached Rhian.
She tilted her chin up, regarding me for a moment. I had to be careful, folks. Adeline was Delphi. Not to mention, I had a solid hunch she was a better telepath than her mother, and I wasn’t sure how free-spirited she was about using her power, yet.
After the explanation about my fake death, she told me about the part of Rhian’s plan I didn’t know: that she’d ordered Bells to return to Palisade and tell the Assembly everyone had died in the explosions. At least now I knew where Bells was, and I really, really hoped none of the non-allied Councilwoman came up with a reason to interrogate him.
At some point, I offered Adeline my snack drawer and a sip of Hocks.
“Where’s the man with the music?” she asked.
“Which man with what music?”
The lies, when would they stop? At that rate, probably never. Adeline explained that during her sleep, she’d awakened once or twice to find the man in the burgundy suit, the one who’d kidnapped her from the hill, playing the violin at her bedside.
“Did he have blonde hair?”
“The colour of honey, and he looked to be late twenties or early thirties maybe. He was quite fetching.”
I scrunched my brows and nodded, feigning deep thought. “And you’re sure it was a burgundy suit and not a purple suit?”
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
“It wasn’t maroon, or plum, or any other shade of purple. It was burgundy.”
“Well, actually—is burgundy a shade of purple or red?” I wondered.
“Both.”
My favourite answer. My heart skipped a beat. “Aye, I guess Zacharias Vonsinfonie could have more than one suit.”
“Zacharias Vonsinfonie, the legendary composer and performance arts master?”
“Aye.”
Adeline’s eyes widened and she had a look around, as if recontextualizing the entire scene. “You’re sharing a tiny house with Zacharias Vonsinfonie?”
“I don’t think so,” I said. “I’ve been away and just got back to find you sleeping in my bed. But that’s so weird—you didn’t hear or see anything else, just him playing violin?”
Adeline nodded. “That’s it.”
“Bit of a head-scratcher. It’s almost like he knew I’d need you.”
“Need me?”
I leaned in with a conspiratorial grin. She leaned in with a curious smile. And that’s when I asked, “How would you feel about a job?”
An Interview with Adeline Blanchett
“Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me today.”
“Of course! So far, I’ve only had the opportunity to sit on the other side of the keys. I think it’ll be rather fun to be interviewed. I hope Sebastian can keep up for the transcript.”
“I’m keeping up perfectly well, Adeline.”
“Well, let’s hold that thought for now, Sebastian, and we’ll loop back around to you at the end of this interview to see how it went.” — “So, Adeline. Tonight, we’re going to ask the hard-hitting questions, the things teh people really want to know. Are you ready?”
“I’ve never been more ready.”
“How was the selection of snacks in the drawer, really?”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Objectively, the peanuts were very stale. And I nearly cracked a tooth on one of those hard candies. But the variety was delightful, and I’m really not a picky eater. Subjectively, it was fantastic.”
“Was the bed in the cabin comfortable?”
“In general, or after sleeping in it for nearly two days?”
“Let’s give the people both again.”
“Then in general, no. And after sleeping in it for nearly two days? Absolutely not. But I did think it smelled quite good.”
“The people and I appreciate your candor, Adeline. Now, as promised, let’s check in with Sebastian.” — “Sebastian, how are things looking over there?”
“I made one typing error.”
Crew Placement:
Leberecht ? Alex, Rhian, Michael
Defector’s Lair ? Rhydian, Strauss
Palisade ? Bells
Man-cave ? Zack
Jaska ? Adeline
Busy ? Everleigh
??? ? Sebastian
So, as you might recall from Adeline Gets a Job, I accompanied Adeline to Jaska, and then to the Gander. She was talkative, which I enjoyed, because normally I’d be the one trying to fill the silence on long walks. We talked about some of our favourite things, and that she loved reading—especially the mystery and romance novels her mother brought in from Delphia. She also had a lot of questions about the brothel, and I decided to confess I’d once worked there as Jack Finnegan.
My reason for telling her was simple: she’d probably find out.
For the record, Adeline was aware the job at the brothel wasn’t just a job, that it was a job job. So I gave her a bit of a rundown on Tanis and the other employees on the way, but I told her she’d have to speak with Tanis about the details of the job job. I wasn’t sure how quickly Tanis would want to introduce the investigation, especially given she didn’t know Adeline yet. But I’d have bet my life that Tanis was going to love her, and that Adeline was going to have loads of fun. As you know, I’d have bet correctly.
Mates, now that Everleigh knew where I lived, I couldn’t hide from her anymore. That meant I had to find Sebastian after I’d promised her I’d keep an eye on him. I also needed the fifty notes a day she said she'd pay me. More than ever, now that my job was Adeline's. So, after leaving her at the brothel, I ran around parts of Amalia looking for Sebastian. I blew the whistle at his music note, and at two other music notes around the map, but nothing happened at any of them. I checked the theatre. He wasn’t there either.
I didn’t find Sebastian, but I reckoned I’d try another course of action tomorrow.
For now, I ran back to Oskari for my date with V.
Date Night With Ivana - Entry Log #1
“It’s crooked.”
“That’s normal.”
“V, since when is crooked normal?”
“In this situation, Jack, it is.” — “Careful. That’s too tight.”
“Is that better?”
“Yes, much.”
“You really think it’ll straighten out?”
“Well, even if it doesn’t, you can still put things in a crooked basket.”