The Iron Man [Serial]

Coffee

I woke to a warm palm and fingers splayed across my stomach; I thought it was a dream. I saw then it was only Murphy-- I'd called him the name so long it was difficult to think of him otherwise. I took hold of his wrist and moved his hand to the cushion on which I rested. "Did you just...?" I began to ask, thinking I had fallen asleep in the time he excused himself to pray, but I saw it was morning. I could smell coffee and several panels of our tent were rolled to allow sunlight to enter.

"Wear something snappy today. You need to go to town with us before your swimming lesson." He was half-dressed in clothing he'd worn the day before. If he'd slept it did not seem to have been near me.

Sleepily I asked a question, "Is this to be normal?" And though I did not intend it from the start, my fingertips grazed the flesh of his chest.

Murphy watched my hand as I withdrew it, and then looked me in my eyes. "We are hardly strangers now and I'm covered navel to knee. If your sensibilities think me immodest, how will you go swimming with Alpha?"

My eyes widened, for this was a question I would ask myself. And to my shame I turned the conversation back to his faults. "How is it you showered with him?"

Murphy's mouth fell open. He sat back then, and I saw his eyes look past me to check for eavesdroppers. He whispered, "Our fathers served Egypt together in the war, but I met him at University in Cairo. We shared a passion for knowledge and conducted some experiments. I believe I proved his theory. But that phase of our work ended when I left to study in Europe."

I nodded. Taken at face value or not his explanation clarified much. "He still shows some concern or interest in your education."

"No more or less than in yours." Murphy smirked.

"I see."

He leaned away from me and then rose to his feet. "Get dressed," Murphy said, "Ghat has your papers."

I did not have many clothes, but I dressed in garments I'd taken from the dhobitorium and Molly's tea house. Garin was only just outside the tent sitting near a fire with some of the others and monitoring his printer as he sipped from a mug. Before I could ask, he reached to his side and took up a stack of papers, and then offered these to me.

"Why are there so many-?"

"I just give you the papers. Murphy handles you."

I still found his manner jarring. "Thank you." The papers included new proof of identification as well as several party invitations. I did not yet see Murphy; he had left the tent when I dressed.

"You want coffee?" Garin asked, "I've got another pot on."

"I don't usually...I mean, yes, please."

Garin crept toward the fire in a crouch. "The junior tog cogs usually fetch orders from the café?" He asked and I nodded. "Same everywhere. In Arabic it's qahwa for the drink or sometimes the place."

"How do you say coffee in Armenian?"

"Soorj." He smiled. "I've had Italian coffee; it's brewed with steam pressure. Murphy says in other parts of Europe they serve weak coffee." Garin wrinkled his nose, then pulled the small pot from the fire, looked at it, and placed it back again.

"In America we drank cocoa, but it's not common in England, so I learned to drink tea." I saw Murphy exit one of the storage sheds, straightening his tie, as he walked toward us.

"I drink tea when I'm sick." Garin pulled the pot from the fire and dispensed the coffee into a small mug. "They might have cocoa here."

"Ha. We got ours from the Iberian colonies."

Murphy came to my side. "Papers."

I passed these to Murphy, just as Garin offered my coffee. "Let it settle a bit, then sip."

"These are good," Murphy said of my papers.

"I know," Garin said, sitting down near his wirefax machine. He then added, "Alpha does the anti-forgery marks by hand."

I whispered, "He forges anti-forgery marks?"

"His work is haute."

Murphy whispered, "And they don't trust just anyone with the inks."

I sipped my coffee. It was nothing I was accustomed to drinking, intensely flavorful, sweet, vaguely spicy, with a slight foam on the surface. I liked it.

"You need to memorize what's on the identification," Murphy told me, gesturing with the documents in hand. "And keep the invitations in a separate pocket. They are to be used if you get caught in a Code violation."

"I am to say I'm on my way to a fancy dress party?"

"Whatever the invitation says. Beauty pageant, dress rehearsal, dance contest...that's how they do things. A lot of the Mediterranean coast cities attract university students or upperclass types on holiday, especially in the summer months." Murphy handed the documents to me and I tucked them inside my jacket pockets. "We'll find real kapareghora," he continued, "but also swells and toffs in minor violations. The Gendarmerie know it, too, and they patrol. But the locals like the tourist income, so they distribute invites that excuse some of the common violations."

I stooped to put my mug near the fire.

"Come along, Jules," Murphy called, "We have shopping to do."

Garin waved his hand at me then pointed the nearby wooden crate where fresh mugs were stacked and used ones overturned upon saucers.

"Thanks, Garin!" I followed example and set the mug on a vacant saucer.

I followed Murphy around the side of the tent. Alpha came from the nearby shed at a jog. He fell in step beside me as we walked to the cab where Prim and Dolores waited. "Here," Alpha said, pushing some paper currency into my hand. "Murphy's got money for what you need, but this is yours. For the weeks you've been with us."

--------------

The Iron Man was ranked #337 in Science Fiction last night! Thank you everyone who has supported the work so far! I sincerely appreciate it.

Reader Participation Time:

I have many plans for continuing, but as a thanks to my readers, I will take requests for future chapters. Comment with one or more of the following: 1) an historical non-American invention or inventor circa 1850-1950 2) an historical LGBTQIA person, concept, or event circa 1850-1950 3) A period fashion circa 1850-1950 4) A city or landmark existing 1850-1950 within Europe, Northern Africa, Middle East or South Asia; I will find a way to write it into future chapters of The Iron Man.

Note, if you are thinking about suggesting a certain Serbian inventor, airships, solar balloons, or The Great Pyramid I am possibly already working on it. :)