“No, I’m not,” Reginald agreed with a superior tilt of his chin. That got a chuckle out of Paul before he became serious.
“The things you said earlier, about the dead girls and how they’re tied to the murder of Mr. Speed’s parents… I know they cannot be connected but my instincts tell me to follow you, that you’ve found the answer. And I don’t know what to make of this team of yours or…computers?” He gave his head a shake. “You fascinate me but I also fear that you’re unwell and that I do you a disservice by not seeking help.”
“If you really want to know how you can help me…”
“Marston.” Even the look was pure Paul. He was irritated but couldn’t help himself and Reginald’s heart broke as a smile peeked from beneath Paul’s mustache.
“We both know you’re tempted.”
“I’m human, but in my experience, sex rarely makes things less confusing.”
“Not in our case. Everything always makes more sense when we’re together.”
“I’ve never told anyone about the bugs,” Paul said quietly.
“I’m not surprised. I only know because you told the FBI.”
“The FBI?”
“The Federal Bureau of Investigation. Your friend, Pinkerton, is going to be one of America’s first spymasters and he’ll create the Secret Service by saving a president’s life. But the Paul I married—”
“Married?” Paul laughed, then clapped a hand over his mouth. “You must come from a magical place, then. Nowhere that I know of could two men be married.”
“We have homes just outside of Chicago and Georgetown. And others here in England but we spend most of our time in the States. But, as I was saying, you work for ‘the Bureau’ and you’re a very important agent who answers only to a man like the Commissioner. In fact, America’s FBI is similar to Scotland Yard.”
“Hmmm…” Paul chewed on his lip thoughtfully. “And what is it you do again?”
“I’m what’s called a hacker and I work for Lavender as a sort of…personal assistant.”
“What does a hacker do?”
“Whew! That’s…” Reginald rubbed his forehead as he hunted for an easy way to translate the internet for a man who barely understood what a telegraph was.
That is a place to start, though.
“Alright,” Reginald said and freed his arms from the blanket. “You know how you can send a message from one place to another with the telegraph?” He waited for Paul to nod. “The telegraph is going to be improved to the point that we’ll be able to hear each other’s voices instantly on portable devices that will fit in our pockets. And each of those devices will be like a teeny, tiny library with all the world’s information at the swipe of a finger.”
“Truly?” Paul asked, excited as he sat forward. The moonlight caught in his eyes and Reginald could see the glint of wonder and a hunger to learn. That was why Reginald loved him. Paul was one of the smartest men Reginald had ever met but he never stopped learning and searching for new puzzles to solve.
“You could have me right now in that chair,” Reginald suggested but Paul gave him an impatient look. “I’m a bit like an internet librarian and I manage all of Mr. Lavender’s personal, professional, and financial affairs. I do everything from ordering his suits and his weapons to arranging his travel and laundering his money. I make sure nothing ever gets back to him and his life runs like clockwork.”
“Fascinating. I assume this is an illegal enterprise,” Paul said and Reginald shrugged.
“Depends, really. Sometimes, we work with you and the FBI. Sometimes, we work for the Queen.”
“There’s still a queen?”
“Elizabeth,” Reginald said as he held up two fingers. Paul whistled and sat back in his seat.
“Who else do you work for?”
That was an interesting question. Reginald suspected that this was another mental exercise of sorts and asked himself why Paul was asking him.
“We work for a man named Mr. Blink. Everyone does, they just don’t know it.”
“Even this…Speed fellow?”
“Yes. Speed works for himself—well, for revenge—and he works for Blink.”