The Iron Man [Serial]

Confidence

I went into our rooms to pack our belongings. We'd traveled lighter than usual in coming to the Impero, but it still meant there were many small bags to pack and assemble at the door. And it also meant I had to touch Murphy's stray clothing and all his little of vials of this and that near the dressing table. A usual occurrence for me, but tonight reminding me that I had no certainty he would survive or wake.

As promised, the porters brought a trolley and loaded the baggage.

I did a last search of the rooms, looking under beds and near pooling window draperies for misplaced items. I tucked my sketchbook and colors in one of the last leather cases. I was about to stow the ribbon-bound Scipio, when whistles sounded from somewhere.

I went back to the window. There were the dark strongcars with the black and white stripes. I looked to Ken. "Did your people call them?"

"The Gendarmerie? Not likely."

Miranda came to the window. "Maybe it is just a routine raid."

"Even in a tourist area?" I asked.

"If it is near the ides or end of the month and their numbers--"

I interrupted, having got the idea already. "Miranda, go down with the porters, get to Angelo and Estatsi. Chopines are for acqua alta; they won't stop you. The Zephyr will have to leave as soon as possible."

"Jade?"

"Ken will be right behind you, and I will be on that ship with Murphy." But I could see and hear the running and scrambling. The shrill whistles. The tape. To let these Code-violators be taken while I escaped with a disguise and false papers was the easy choice, but not the most honorable.

"Can I help?" Ken asked, as Miranda was leaving. "The Mercantile cannot interfere, but if there's anything...?"

I turned from the window and smiled at him; I lowered my eyes before meeting his. "Do you...sometimes?"

"Not only." His voice broke. I worried my glance had been too suggestive.

"But sometimes. May I kiss you?" I saw Ken nod and I kissed him.

No details, but it was 'Number 8'* from Miss Nancy's Secret Guide for Girls, my sister's copy of which had been left in London.

I drew away from him, smiling. "Gives better confidence than your rum," I told him.

Ken swallowed audibly. "That wasn't really for me."

"Because your lips touched his last." It was true.

Ken left the room before me, rushing for the stairs. I held my Scipio in my left hand as I shut the door. In the hallway, there were guests rushing back and forth, some to stairwell, or lift, or into hiding. They were tossing contraband togs as they went: real silk kimono, keffiyeh they'd worn with French menswear, over-the-clothes cinchers. I badly wanted to take some.

As I approached the doors of the lift, a porter stumbled out with an armful of Carnevale props, "Masks for guests in need." I lifted a mask with the hook of my Scipio and walked into the lift...where I was immediately thrown against the iron scrollwork and barred from leaving by a bare limb ending in a brand new red velvet chopine.

Jean-Daniel shoved the lift operator out into the hall, then put his own hand to the lift controls to close the cage.

I took the pin from my tie and stuck it in his smoothly-shaved leg.

"You vicious beastie!" Jean-Daniel shrieked, withdrawing his leg, "That had better not be poisoned."

"It's clean." I glared as he slid the controller to stop us between floors.

"What?" He asked, glancing at the controls through the slanted eye-holes of his red columbina mask, then looking towards me. "You think I reached this lofty position without getting my hands dirty?" He made a flourish of his hands.

"What position?"

He smirked, "Which would you prefer me in?" He then hissed through his teeth. When he spoke again, I swear his voice dropped an octave, "Sorry. It is difficult to turn off sometimes. Before we go, tell me if it's true: Was it Tyron?"

My expression must have said the name was familiar.

Jean-Daniel laughed softly, "You are very bad at this."

I shrugged. "Well, I already knew you knew him in the past." I fit the green domino mask to my face.

"So, you have heard of me?" He asked, striking a pose against the bars of the lift. "He's with you now, yes?" When I didn't answer, Jean-Daniel continued, "You have potential, you know? When I saw you all crouched on the old staircase with those shoes, I thought, 'this is so éditorial!'"

I had no idea about what he was speaking. "May we go?"

"How was he?"

"It's not good." I stood facing the lift door and rolled my shoulders .

Jean-Daniel restored the lift's descent. "You have friends who need to get out of the city undisturbed. I too. I am going to miss him like I miss Tyron, but c'est la vie, I will find a new friend. I always do."

"I thought you had a rich friend these days."

"Duchess Charlie?" He made a gasp of faux-horror, "The hag's like a fly on me since her divorce!"

I laughed, mostly because I just then got his joke from hours ago about the swatter, but also because he'd said I was 'very bad at this' then given me a name. The doors of the lift began to open. "I am sure Smokey-eyes will miss you, too."

"Mon Dieu, I am a sucker for men in kohl!" Jean-Daniel winked from behind his mask. "You want to cause a commotion with me?"

"Jean-Daniel, you are a commotion."

"My new favorite word!" He said, then shoved me aside to exit the lift first, somehow managing to draw his oriental swords from beneath his kilt at the same time.

I unwound the ribbon from my Scipio. Chucking the scabbard at a gendarme, I joined the melee in the lobby.

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*blatantly stolen from I'm a Cyborg's Pet by The-Scrivener and RebMoreau

The media is Demi Lovato's video for "Confident". I've been wondering, as I work on recent chapters, if I should use the notes to describe what media is used, in case the link breaks or is not viewable in all regions.

The Iron Man was as high as 108 on the Science-Fiction Hot list this weekend, and has been read in as many as 11 different countries!