The Time Travel Directorate (12 page)

Director Hay
looked at Vin intensely.

“
And here I was, ready to sell my daughter up the river. You’ve offered a perfectly reasonable explanation, so I want you to do something for me.”

“
Anything, sir,” Vin said, pleased someone had finally listened to him.

“Say no more of this. Work on
your next case.”

“But
. . . ” Vin began, confused.

“
If what you say is true, my mind is at ease. It’s about time I trusted my daughter as implicitly as she trusts me. But I need you to find her, and when you do, lay low until this budget crisis is over.”

“I can do that
,” Vin said, still feeling unsettled.

“Don’t fuck up,” Director Hay snapped, pointing
a thick finger at him.

“
No, sir,” Vin said, rising at the dismissal.

There was more to say about Julius
, but he wasn’t sure how to get it across. Julius was queuing himself as the leader of the free world. A person like Director Hay couldn’t understand the motivations of such a man. Vin only hoped that Kanon would.

Please
d with his successful coup, Vin’s mood fell when he exited the office in front of a stunned Chief Smiley.

“
What are you doing in there?” he asked.

“
Um, he wanted coffee,” Vin responded, walking down the hallway in the direction of the break room.

His ruse
worked—Chief Smiley followed him, talking animatedly.

“I
briefed him on the situation this morning, he agreed, albeit reluctantly, to put you on the case. I’d like you to deploy immediately,” Chief Smiley said.

“What are my orders again?”
Vin asked hollowly, going through the motions as he fiddled with the coffee machine.

“I sent it to your reading pane
,” Chief Smiley said. “You have orders to find Kanon Hay—take lethal force if necessary. She is now an enemy of the state.

“
If necessary,” Vin responded, feeling blood drain from his face.

“That’s right, the penalty for
aiding and abetting a time travel criminal is death, remember your legal
training?”

Why did it work for me and not Vin?

Kanon
had been mulling this question over for days. After arriving back at the training camp, she found the monk gone for his daily walk. Undeterred, she completed her chores, trying to distract herself as she waited for Vin to arrive. After a few hours, she realized he was not coming.

When the monk returned, he didn’t look particularly surprised to see her.
Kanon assumed she had arrived not long after she departed.

Kanon
completed her chores with a sense of finality, feeling her time at training camp coming to a close. After dinner, she sat silently with the monk, sipping her tea.

“I just don’t understand why
Vin didn’t follow me,” Kanon said.

The monk shocked her by responding.

“He was a good student, but not my best,” he said.

Kanon
smiled at him, declining to ask who his best was. As changed as she had become, seeing Vin again pulled all her anxieties back to the surface.

“I need to see him again,”
she said succinctly.

The monk nodded
and Kanon felt strongly that this was their goodbye.

“You will help him finish,” he said, coming as close to a smile as he possibly could.

“Finish what?” Kanon asked, breathless.

“His training
,” the monk said, rising to stoke the fire.

At night
, they resumed their usual positions, the monk in his meditative state near the fire, Kanon on her cot. After watching him for a few moments, Kanon retrieved her web from under her cot. Feeling the cool, gelatinous material wrap around her, she hit the red button.

The Duchess was happy to see her, though a bit surprised by the fierceness of
Kanon’s hug.

“Cécile! But you are in a good mood this morning. Here, take a puppy,” the Duchess said, smiling at Kanon and wrestling a dog from her skirts.

Kanon
had timed her excursion just before their return to Paris—landing in her boudoir before breakfast. As long as she arrived before the deadly masquerade ball, she would find the Duchess blessedly alive.

After dressing hastily, she had gone
directly to her room—barely waiting to be ushered in as she pounced on her friend.

Kanon
took the proffered dog gratefully and placed it in her lap, focusing on taking deep breaths. It had been awhile since she wore the ornate dresses of court attire. Shifting slightly, she decided not to waste a moment. She wasn’t sure where Julius Arnold was, but he would surely be looking for her.

“Duchess,
have you heard any good gossip lately? Maybe some exotic visitors to court I might have missed.”

“It is
far too early to talk of such things,” the Duchess admonished, playing with the puppy that had leapt off Kanon’s lap.

“I have just
felt so out of touch lately,” Kanon said, realizing that although she could drop in and out of the past as she wished, she could not control the Duchess.

She
put on an impassive expression as she tried to coax the puppy towards her.

“Come here
, my darling, come see Auntie Cécile.”

This made the Duchess smile, and she began to cooperate.

“Perhaps I should ask around, if only to quell your insatiable curiosity!”

“
Very well,” Kanon said, rubbing the puppy’s chin.

It must have felt
good, the dog gave a little snort. This elicited a laugh from the Duchess.

“I shall make inquiries today. Do not worry
, Cécile. I shall find out the latest for you.”

“I never worry,”
Kanon said with a practiced air of indifference.

Her
air of apathy must have intrigued the Duchess, who leaned back in her chair, scrunching her eyebrows together.

“I did see someone yesterday who was unknown to me. Short and thin—feminine features, almost
like a cat! He wore a wig in the old style, powdered,” the Duchess finished, luring the puppy to her and wrapping her skirts around its wriggling form.

“
Sounds like . . . ” Kanon began, focusing on the fleeting description.

As quickly as the tho
ught occurred to her it vanished, and Kanon focused instead on identifying a plan of action. She had to determine who was helping Julius Arnold. If it were someone within the Directorate, the list of suspects was dizzying. She must make some headway before returning to headquarters.

Throwing
her energy into their daily routine, Kanon and the Duchess made their usual rounds at court, stopping to talk to friends and acquaintances in their usual way. After a tedious conversation about sleeve lengths, the Duchess pulled Kanon away from their cluster of friends and whispered mischievously into her ear.

“
You had asked me about gossip, Cécile, and you know I don’t like to disappoint you. I’ve heard that a handsome man just came from Paris. And he is particularly interested in meeting you.”

Kanon
looked over to the man she was referencing, hoping to God it wasn’t Julius Arnold.

His back facing her,
Kanon felt her pulse quicken as she recognized the erect form and full head of glossy brown hair. When he turned, he smiled at her confidently. Kanon assumed he had been watching her taking her turn around the room. The Duchess pulled her to him, giggling as he bowed in greeting.

“We met in Paris, last summer
, I believe?” the Duchess asked, batting her lashes at Vin.

Kanon
raised an eyebrow at this.

“Yes, Duchess, it is lovely to see you, and
who might this be?”

Vin
looked at Kanon with a smile.

“Oh
, this is Countess de la Motte, my dearest friend. You must be best friends with us, we do everything together.”

Kanon
smiled at the eagerness of the Duchess, always doing her part to secure an attachment.

“
I am organizing a ride into the countryside this afternoon, perhaps we can extend our acquaintance then?” Vin asked, glancing from Kanon back to the Duchess.

He looked
debonair in his jacket, tailored with exquisite taste. Kanon felt paralyzed by seeing him, not sure what to say or do. Luckily, the Duchess was not as shy.

“Oh!
I have an appointment with the Dauphine, and you know I do not wish to keep her waiting. But Countess de la Motte can go with you?”

T
he Duchess nudged her friend, giving her a reminder to loosen up. Kanon gave herself a little shake. The unexpected appearance of Vin seemed to have a transformative impact on her.

“Yes, that is agreeable to me, where shall we meet?”
Kanon asked with a coy smile.

She
expected a carriage, but when Kanon arrived at the appointed location she happened upon two stately white horses. Vin appeared next to them.

“Here let me help you
,” he said, gesturing to her mount.

“
Thank you, I’ll admit it’s been awhile,” Kanon replied, erecting herself on the horse and taking the reins with a smile.

“Different than
jumping over water jugs,” Vin responded, speaking freely as he mounted his horse, leading them down a path that snaked through the countryside. “My servant packed us a few things, how long do you have?” he said, his voice shifting into a business-like tone.

E
xcited to be with Vin and terrified the moment wouldn’t last for much longer, Kanon nudged her horse to match his pace.

“We shouldn’t risk more than a few hours, I want to be there w
hen the Duchess returns from her audience with the Queen.”

“
Alright then, let’s go,” he said.

They rode on until they were a mile or so away from Versailles.
It was Kanon who broke the silence.

“
One would think the monk would teach us something useful, like horseback riding. Instead of bending over incense sticks.”

Vin
laughed heartily.

“
It all seems very odd, when one is doing it,” he said.

“But then you have to leap from a castle wall to save your friend
, and you realize why you can do it,” Kanon replied, unable to stop herself from smiling.

“
Yes,” Vin responded as they fell into pace together. “I don’t think I thanked you for saving my life—so thank you.”

“
Consider it a debt repaid,” Kanon remarked.

“
It was impressive, no one was expecting you,” Vin said.

“A
nd someone was expecting you when you leapt onto the guillotine?” Kanon asked.

Vin
looked around, making sure they were alone.

Kanon
would have enjoyed the endless banter, but she knew they had to discuss why he came to France. But nothing could have prepared her for what he said next.

“
Headquarters believes you are in league with Julius Arnold,” he said. Kanon drew a sharp intake of breath. Watching her closely, Vin continued, “Chief Smiley believes you are working with him to lure inspectors to their death—selling their stolen webs on the black market.”

Kanon
felt her face flush. A moment before she had been happy enough to relax in Vin’s company. This latest pronouncement made her blood boil.

“Does
. . . ” Kanon stopped herself, not wanting to finish the question forming in her mind.

“
Your father believes in you, so do I,” Vin responded in a low voice. “I get the strong sense that you are being set up,” he finished.

Their horses had
stopped, perhaps sensing the shift in tone.

Vin
dismounted, and Kanon quickly followed suit. She led her horse over to a tall tree—tying the reins to one of the branches. Vin took his time arranging their impromptu picnic, laying out a blanket and the various items he had brought for their journey.

After
settling herself down, Kanon smoothed her skirts, her hands shaking in anger. Vin didn’t seem anxious to continue the conversation. He tore off a piece of grass and spun it between his hands, staring off into the green countryside surrounding them. The heat of the summer had broken, allowing a delicate breeze to flow through the air. The sun had begun its descent, casting ominous shadows around them.

“Tell me
,” Kanon finally said, looking at Vin meaningfully.

He raised his eyes t
o hers, throwing the blade of grass aside.

“
Chief Smiley has deployed me on a new mission.”

“To
find Julius?” Kanon asked hopefully.

“To
find you,” Vin said.

“ME?”
Kanon cried, incredulous.

“Think it through, Kanon,” Vin said, looking at her intently. “The Directorate needs someone to take the fall. Once this budget nonsense is over, there will a congressional inquiry. Your dramatic rescue made front line news. Not a day goes by that there isn’t some lurid tale of Julius Arnold—speculation on how he travels undetected is sure to come.”

“I agree that someone in the Directorate is helping him,” Kanon replied, nodding affirmatively. “We need to find out who it is, before they have a chance to tar and feather me,” she snapped.

Kanon
felt devoted to the Directorate by blood. To be offered up as a scapegoat so callously hurt her deeply.

“What about Chief Smiley?” she asked, as Vin began laughing.

“
That guy would sooner sell out the Directorate than Mark Antony would hand over Cleopatra.”

Kanon
smiled.

“
Who would think someone as boring as Chief Smiley has something in common with Mark Antony. He lives with his mother you know, in the same house he grew up in. The man has no life outside of the Directorate—a perfect example of someone who has turned into the job.”