Grantville Gazette, Volume 7 Read online

  "Who gets to play Colette?" Lou Giamarino glared at Joe. "You can't hog her all to yourself, Joe."

  Jerry Calafano raised his hand. "Me!"

  "Like hell! I get her first," Bart Kubiak said.

  Vince Masaniello spoke up. "Wait a minute! Age before beauty!"

  "You calling me a pretty boy, Vince?" Bart asked in mock anger.

  Colette laughed gaily. "Please, gentlemen, please. I'll play all of you. But how to choose . . ."

  "Where we came from, Colette, we often did things in alphabetical order," Josh pointed out.

  Colette smiled at him and nodded. "In that case, let's go in alphabetical order, by first name. But since I've already played Josh and Joe, they're out."

  Bart Kubiak waved her over. "B as in Bart, young lady. I'm first."

  But parish chess club meetings were not just about chess. They were also social gatherings and it was expected that multiple topics would be discussed throughout the afternoon. What everyone did not expect, however, was the direction it would take when it was Jerry Calafano's turn to play Colette. No one noticed when it started, but after awhile it became apparent that Jerry and Colette were no longer really speaking English, nor were they playing chess.

  They were speaking mathematics.

  It became most obvious when they got paper from Joe's computer room and sprawled on the floor, drawing diagrams, writing equations, and jabbing excitedly at each other's work.

  When Jerry finally left, promising to bring some of his math texts and other books the next day, Colette was more aglow than Josh had ever seen her.

  "Josh, do you realize what this means?" She was positively effervescent.

  Josh smiled and shook his head. "No. What?"

  "I will be the first person in Europe to understand the calculus! From what Jerry said, it was not really formalized for another fifty or sixty years. And the merging of algebra and geometry using coordinate geometry. Descartes has not even published yet! And non-Euclidean geometries! Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"

  Josh laughed. "Just so long as you don't try to explain it to me too much. I had a tough time just getting through a couple of semesters of business calculus for dummies."

  Josh had a thought. "Wait, I've got something for you." He went into the kitchen and got his briefcase. He'd stuck it under the kitchen table. He opened it and took out his Ti-30 solar calculator.

  "Here. A gift from me to you. It's solar powered so you can use it anywhere there is enough ambient light. Should last for at least another ten years if you don't drop it too much."

  Josh leaned over Colette's shoulder and placed the calculator in her hands. He started explaining the basic keys and functions. After a few minutes she looked up at him. Her green eyes sparkled. She caressed his arm.

  "Thank you, Josh," she said softly. "This is a wonderful gift. I will treasure it forever."

  Inside Josh smiled. Who would have thought that the way to a woman's heart would be through a calculator?

  * * *

  "My shoulder is healing well, Colette." Henri and Colette were sitting in Joe's small backyard. The fence around the yard was six feet high, just tall enough to prevent passersby from observing them as they sat at the wooden table with its large blue umbrella. "We can leave tomorrow if you wish."

  Colette was playing with her hair, a far-off look on her face. "I am not going, Henri," she said calmly. "And neither is Colas. You may do what you wish. We will stay in Grantville."

  "But your father would have wanted . . ."

  Colette stopped him with a gesture. "My father is dead, Henri. There is nothing else for me. If I could get to Amsterdam . . ." Colette shook her head. "No, not even Amsterdam attracts me now. The Ring of Fire was a sign from God, Henri. If it had not happened when it did, Colas and I would be dead. I am certain of it."

  She gestured around her. "This will be my home for now. The people in Grantville will need our help, Henri. They are master mechanics but they are very few in number."

  Henri looked at her skeptically. "You expect this Joshua Modi to marry you? Like you expected Etienne to marry you?"

  Colette stopped playing with her hair and glared at him. Then her glance softened. "I loved Etienne, Henri. As much as you loved either of your wives. He would have married me if he had not died at Dessau. I am sure of it. But I have mourned him long enough. And Josh Modi is not an unattractive man. His family has been left in another universe, except for Joe. He will be totally alone when Joe dies."

  "Eh?" Henri grunted. "What do you mean?"

  "Joe told me the first morning we were here. He has a disease that requires medicine they cannot manufacture anymore. He will live no longer than three months." Colette reached out and touched Henri's hand. "Henri, I need your help."

  Henri sighed. "What do you want of me, Colette?"

  Colette gave him three packages of letters. "I have written several letters. This first package is to be delivered to my aunt, Annette, at the béguinage de Hermee in Liege. She is executing my father's will and she must know where I am so she can forward the monies from the selling of his businesses. I have decided to sign over the house on the Rue Chodelistree to the béguinage de Hermee. That is the second document I have in there. Once you reach a secure Thurn and Taxis post house, I want you to send the second package of letters to Marie de Gournay in Paris. The third package of letters is to be delivered to my uncle, Louis de Geer, in Amsterdam. He has a keen eye and an even keener nose for business. What I have told him about Grantville in these letters should catch his interest. Grantville will have a need for wealthy patrons I think."

  Colette looked at him. "Will you do this for me, Henri? The letters to Annette and Louis de Geer must be hand-delivered. I dare not take the chance that they might be misplaced or lost."

  Henri nodded. Simon Dubois, Colette's father, had died in Henri's arms in February of 1631, a victim of the political infighting in Liege. Henri had promised to look after Simon's family. Henri had taken Colette and Colas back to his home in Magdeburg when men associated with the political machinations began hunting them.

  "I will, Colette. I promised your father I would take care of you. But do not expect to see me for several months. I will send word by post when I have accomplished what you ask. Do you want me to wait for return messages from your aunt and uncle?"

  Colette shook her head again. "No. I trust my aunt and I know that what I have written to my Uncle Louis will be sufficient for him to come here as soon as he can. He may be in Sweden at the moment, though. I expect him in Amsterdam within the next few months." She smiled at Henri. "You would not mind waiting a few weeks in Amsterdam?"

  Henri laughed. "No, not at all."

  Colette reached across the table, serious now. She clasped Henri's arm. "This is very important to me, Henri. But so are you. Ride safely and may God be with you."

  Henri sighed. Oh, to be twenty years younger. You would have a fight on your hands for this young woman then, Joshua Modi. Indeed you would.

  * * *

  In the second week after the Ring of Fire Josh met with the machine shop owners and their employees. Colette and Amy Kubiak sat in the back of the audience to provide moral support. The most critical points in Josh's lecture concerned the importance of good cast iron with a high silicon content for steam engine cylinders and the need to make their own cast steel, since that process in Europe hadn't been introduced until the mid-eighteenth century. When alloy steels were brought up, Josh laughed.

  "That will take some time. Tungsten we can get from the tailings of tin mines, according to the encyclopedias. Chromite would be damn useful, but the deposits are spread all over the place, from Kemi in Finland, to Turkey, to Baltimore. If we could get to Maryland, the deposits there would be pretty easy to get. Vince Masaniello even has a brochure of a nature preserve where they used to mine it. Just a few problems, of course. Like getting to the sea and then crossing three thousand miles of ocean."

  Josh nodded towards Greg Ferr
ara. "Here's Greg to help refresh you on metal chemistry."

  Josh moved to the back of the room. Amy moved over so he could sit next to Colette.

  "How'd I do?" he whispered to Colette.

  "Excellent," she whispered back. "Having Vince and Monty speak was a good idea. They seem to be respected masters of their guild."

  After the meeting, Bart and Josh walked back to town. Amy and Colette walked ten feet in front, occasionally laughing and looking back at them.

  "Thick as thieves those two," Bart said musingly. "Thick as thieves. I think you're in trouble, Josh. They're scheming about something."

  Josh sighed. "I know it. I just don't know how much resistance to put up."

  Bart chuckled. "Knowing my daughter and judging from what I've seen of Colette, I don't think they're going to settle for anything less than unconditional surrender."

  The two women turned to look back at him again.

  Who knows, thought Josh. Unconditional surrender can't be too bad, can it?

  Chapter Two

  Joe Modi lapsed into a coma on August seventh. He died six hours later. The funeral was on August tenth. Josh Modi kept his composure throughout the ceremony, accepting condolences and murmurs of sympathy.

  Men, after all, don't cry.

  "Keep a stiff upper lip."

  "Be a man."

  "Grin and bear it."

  Society frowns on men who cry.

  But men do cry. Often it is late at night or upon awakening from a bad dream. Then the walls come down.

  For Josh Modi the walls came down the first time he slept in his grandfather's bed the night after the funeral. He woke from a sound sleep and found himself staring at the ceiling. He began remembering the simple things he and his grandfather had done. The chess games. The shared meals. The laughter.

  Brick by emotional brick his wall crumbled. Loneliness seized his soul. Ah, Gramps!

  Josh began to cry. Not simple tears, but the wracking sobs of a man who had kept things inside for too long. Josh didn't know how long he cried that night, but he would always remember when he stopped.

  A hand with long supple fingers began stroking his hair. Colette slid into the bed at his back, spooning him.

  "I'm sorry I woke you."

  "Shhh," she said. "Shhh. Sleep now."

  Slowly his body relaxed. Alone no more, he slept.

  * * *

  The next day they began to clean out the basement using the inventory lists that Joe had developed over the previous three months. The first place they went to was the large brown metal container Joe had shown him back in May. When he opened the container for Colette and Colas he was surprised to see the BM-59 still there.

  Colas' eyes were round as Josh took the rifle out of the container. "What is that?"

  Josh laughed. "I had to ask Gramps, myself. This is a BM-59. In the universe we came from there was a war called World War Two. Every army had its own main battle rifle. The American Army's rifle was called the Garand. It was a good rifle, one of the best. But it had limitations. The Italians created a main battle rifle based on the Garand but with twenty round magazines and in a different caliber. That's what this is."

  Josh handed the battle rifle to Colas after checking to see it was empty. "I thought Gramps gave this to the army but apparently he forgot or decided not to."

  After Colas had looked at the BM-59 for a minute Josh took it back and placed it in the container.

  Colas pointed to the comic books on the left side. "What are those?"

  Josh smiled. "Those are called comic books, but these are the rare ones, so we should leave them in the slip covers. Gramps said there were a few plastic containers of less valuable ones. Once we find them you can take a look at them. You'll have to learn to read English, though."

  Might not be a bad way to learn English, now that I think about it Josh thought.

  After relocking the container Colette, Colas and Josh began organizing the basement into three different piles: things to be sold, things to be kept, and other. Throughout the day Colette and Josh would sometimes touch or smile at each other. Occasionally they even embraced, when Colas wasn't looking. When it came time for bed, Colette yawned.

  "Good night, Josh. I'm very tired." She smiled. "I didn't get much sleep last night." Colette came over and gave him a platonic kiss on the cheek, then went to her bedroom and closed the door.

  Josh sighed. Well what did you expect, dummy? An hour later he went to bed.

  * * *

  This time, when he woke up, things were different. First off, he was hard and aching. Second, Colette was naked and her feverish hands were definitely not stroking his hair.

  "It has been a long time," she murmured, swinging her legs over to straddle him. "You will forgive me if I am not very good at first?"

  "Ahhhh, yes!"

  They made love until, finally satiated, they fell asleep in each others' arms.

  * * *

  When Josh woke the next morning, Colette was gone.

  A dream? But it had been no dream. The sheets were rumpled and the bed smelled of sex. Besides, he was still a bit sore. He'd never thought a woman born in the seventeenth century would be so gymnastic in her lovemaking.

  After his shower Josh found Colas in the kitchen eating breakfast. "Seen Colette?"

  Colas nodded. "She went over to Amy's house. Can I borrow your mountain bike again?"

  "Sure." For the past month Colas had been riding Josh's bike nearly every day, exploring the streets, alleys, and paths in and around Grantville with newfound friends.

  "Can you help us after lunch though? We're almost done with the basement."

  "Okay, Josh." Colas looked over his shoulder as he walked out the door. "After lunch."

  So why wasn't Colette here? thought Josh. After last night . . .

  Then he realized what she was doing. Giving him time alone to make a decision. To decide what he was going to do without the pressure her presence would provide.

  So what was he going to do?

  * * *

  Two weeks before, Gramps had brought up the same question. They had been washing dishes and Josh had been the dryer.

  "You really ought to marry the girl, Josh," Joe had said, handing his grandson a dripping plate. "She's smart, she's pretty, and she plays a mean game of chess. Not to mention, she's got a fine business sense. You know what she said I should do with those houses on Clarksburg?"

  Josh shook his head and took another plate from Joe.

  "Since Vince has found places for almost all the relatives and guests from his wedding anniversary party, she thinks it could make a great inn. Grantville is going to grow and Clarksburg Street is centrally located. We could turn the partial basements into rooms and build a large common room in between the two houses."

  "I don't know, Gramps," Josh said. "It feels like it's too soon."

  "I know, Josh, I know." Joe's voice was soft. "But this is a new world we're in and Colette can help you adapt. It's time to move on, boy."

  Josh shrugged. "I'll think about it." He smiled. "She is pretty darn attractive in a lot of ways."

  "Well, if you do marry her . . ." Joe handed him another plate. ." . . just remember Joe's Maxims for a happy marriage."

  Josh laughed. "I have had girlfriends before, Gramps."

  Joe looked at him with a mock scowl. "You're still wet behind the ears as far as women are concerned, so listen up." He handed Josh another dish. "First thing, never discuss previous lovers. Never. No comparisons. She's the best ever, period. Second, if she's the touching type, touch her a lot. She'll appreciate it. Third, respect her privacy. If she doesn't want to talk about something, don't keep pressuring her."

  Josh nodded. He'd learned that one with his last girl friend.

  "And lastly, put a little romance into the relationship. Women love that kind of thing, especially on anniversaries and birthdays. And whatever you do, don't forget those." Joe shuddered. "Fate worse than death, boy, if you forget a birth
day or anniversary."

  Joe became thoughtful. "If you do decide to marry her, you can use grandma's ring. It's in the knick knack box on my dresser."

  It was that last admonition that Josh remembered now. He looked around the living room and smiled. Joe had been right, time to move on. Now let's see, if he put the couch

  there . . .

  * * *

  When Colette walked into Amy's house that morning, Amy knew something was different. "Okay, Colette, fess up. What happened? You're positively glowing. Did Josh give you a present or something?"

  Colette laughed. "I would say it was the 'or something.'" She got a far away look in her eyes. "Oh, yes. Several 'or somethings.'"