Book X Page 5

  “Do you think that the mission is undoable?” Bill asked.

  “No, not at all! If a person went back to before World War One, I would believe there’s a chance to find it. The Count’s great-great-great-grandson, Count Seleb Sergi Custance Vastener, lived in the castle. Now I would bet anything that the location of the treasure was passed down the line.”

  “Are there any of them still around?” asked Bill as he made a tuna fish on rye sandwich.

  Digging into the egg salad Kal said as he spread it onto a slice of white bread, “”Nope. The last of the line was Seleb and it seems he just disappeared during the First World War.”

  “Well,” said Bill, “if you go back, why do you think you can locate the site?”

  “Just a hunch. As I said I’m familiar with the area and as I speak the language I will be accepted as someone from the area who has returned home from abroad. He went on, “Although I could go there earlier, I believe the chances of finding it are closer to zero as there are more of the family living in the castle and anyone trying to enter would be suspicious.”

  “What would be the reason for you to return to the area? Won’t they be suspicious?”

  “My grandfather Gustov Kurop grew up in the mountains of Bavaria. He was a gamekeeper and as every principality had one they all knew each other. He left for America in 1862 and I’ll go back in 1892 as his son hoping to find work as a gamekeeper and see if I can find out where the treasure is.”

  “Remember, Kal,” said Bill, “you don’t have to dig it up or anything, we leave that part to the people of the future. And it’s not like we’re robbing them because Joseph Sergi, whom you saw in the hologram, is a direct descendant of theirs. He will have it dug up and used to help various causes in his time.”

  Kal shrugged his wide shoulders, “Then it’s settled. What’s next?”

  “We fit you out with clothes of the period that you choose, and we set up your transportation. Let me call Matt.” He pressed a button on the wall of the alcove and Matt’s voice sounded.

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Matt, Kal will be going out on a mission. Will you fit him out?”

  “I’ll be right there, sir.”

  After a tap on the door of his apartment, Matt entered. In his hand, he carried a tailor’s measuring tape.

  “If you would be so kind, sir, stand here for me.”

  Kal stood and after taking the measurements, Matt asked, “And what year is it that you are going to, sir, and the season and location?”

  “The summer of 1892 in the Carpathian Mountains.”

  “Fine. All you will need to bring is your toiletries. I’ll be back in thirty minutes, but first allow me to take your photo for a passport.” He took out a cell phone and took Kal’s picture before leaving.

  “You know, Bill, I have a passport.”

  “Dated 1892?”

  Kal grinned, “No.”

  “More coffee, Kal?” asked Bill as Matt left the room.

  Bill showed the newest time traveler the hairbrush/communicator and said, “The last thing I must say is that no matter what, you cannot take someone’s life. Anyone you may encounter has to be allowed to live out their life as they did in the history books.”

  “Got it,” quipped Kal as he closed the communicator.

  Following a tap on the door, Matt entered carrying a suitcase. He placed it on a hassock. “If I may, sir, I would like to show you the clothing for your trip. Please feel free to eliminate any you think to be unnecessary.”

  At Kal’s nod, Matt went through the items.

  “Three lightweight suits: one black, one gray with pinstripes and one dark brown and the black and brown are interchangeable with each other. Six-pairs of socks and six pairs of underwear along with a belt that contains a secret compartment. There are two pairs of shoes and one pair of canvas deck shoes. Is there anything else you would like?”

  “Actually, Matt, I have a special suit that could be used in any year that I’d like to bring along, plus special hiking boots and gym wear.”

  “Very well, sir. There is room enough for them. Now as for traveling I suggest The White Star ship, Teutonic. She’s brand new and the cabins are outstanding. She leaves the New York Pier, 32, at Thirty-Second Street on June 4, 1892 and arrives in Split, Yugoslavia on June 19, 1892. From there, you take the Al cali ferate Transcontinentale, which is their transcontinental railway, from Split to the small village of Cluj-Napoca, which is located five miles from Castle Sergi Custance. From there I imagine you could rent a carriage to take you to the castle.” Here are round-trip tickets for the ship and train.”

  “But,” said Kal with a raised eyebrow, “why the ocean liner and train? I thought that you just sent me right to the castle?”

  “No,” Bill said with a grin, “that’s only in a science fiction movie or book. Here, if we want to get to England we have to take a ship just like anyone else.”

  Kal shrugged his shoulders, “Hey, anyway I can go back in time is fine with me.”

  And,” added Bill; “here is a passport and a billfold with two thousand dollars from that time period. I suggest that you place one thousand in your belt compartment. All we need now are the clothes you want to bring along”

  “Good,” said Kal with a smile, “When can I go?”

  “As soon as you bring back your clothes.”

  “I’ll be back in thirty minutes. Okay?”

  “That’s fine.”

  Thirty minutes later he showed Bill and Matt the items he brought from his apartment. It was the same type of clothing that he wore in the club but had scuff marks on the leather elbow patches and slight wear on the pants and high boots and a floppy hat with a feather in the hatband.

  “I don’t want to look like a brand new gamekeeper in new clothes. But for the ocean crossing I’ll wear the clothes that Matt provided.”

  “That makes sense,” said Bill.

  “And last but not least,” he said as he untied the leather strips on a leather carrying case that could only be for a rifle. Kal gently removed a long, dull looking rifle from the leather case and opened and closed the chamber as a safety measure to make sure there was no bullet in the chamber.

  “This is ‘Whale,’ my Rossi 1892 Trapper Carbine.” He passed it to Bill.

  “She’s a beauty, Kal. But why ‘Whale?’”

  “Because,” he answered with a grin, “I think she’d stop a whale with one shot and in case you think she’s dull and nicked in places, that’s because I never wax her. I don’t want any light reflecting off her to give away my hide.”

  “That makes sense,” Bill said as he handed him his rifle.

  Kal slipped the rifle into its case and as he tied it closed, said, “Guess I’ll get dressed for the trip.”

  “Sure. Follow me,” Bill said as he led Kal to a changing room.

  Twenty minutes later Kal emerged as a well-dressed gentleman of 1892. He wore the close-fitting, gray three-piece suit with darker gray pinstripes and a white shirt with the usual starched collar with a black thin tie that matched his high-cut string-tie shoes. He held a black bowler hat, but the style of the times made him button the top button of his jacket creating an open look that showed off his buttoned vest.

  Bill smiled approvingly, “You look like a gentleman that just stepped out of the 1892 issue of GQ.”

  “Thanks, Bill, and you seem to have stepped out of the same issue. Are you stepping out with me?”

  Kal’s remark was because Bill wore a three-piece tan suit, a white shirt with the same style collar but with a brown tie and shoes and he carried a black bowler hat.

  “Yep! I thought I’d buy you lunch before you board the ship.”

  “You’re on!”

  “Great! Have you ever been in Paddy Diamond’s Bar and Grill on East Eleventh Street?”

  “Actually, yes! Many times, after the club meeting, I stop in and have a nightcap. Is that where we are going to have lunch?”

  “Yes. But not t
he same Paddy Diamonds that you are used to going to, rather, Paddy Diamonds of 1892.”

  Kal nodded, “Were they open that long?”

  “Yes, they opened in 1860 and when you see Paddy you will think it was the same owner from our times. All of the Paddy Diamonds looked alike.”

  Kal stopped and placed his hand on Bill’s shoulder, “Bill, I want to take a moment to say thanks. I thought being a member of the 1800 Club was as close as I’d ever get to being back in the 1800s and then this happens.” He looked into Bill’s eyes and continued, “I won’t let you down.”

  “I know you won’t. But at the same time I want you to enjoy your time back there.”

  Kal nodded and with a smile said, “I’m ready! Let’s go.”

  Bill opened the door after setting the TFM and put it back in his pocket. He stepped onto the landing and Kal followed him down the stairs. He then opened the door to 1892.

  DATELINE: JUNE 4, 1892, PLACE: THE 1800 CLUB’S GARDEN, NEW YORK CITY

  Kal had, understandably, walked right through the club’s garden the last time he had been in it. But this time he saw what an award winner it was. The many flowers and shrubs gave off a pleasant aroma as the tinkling of the waterfalls and chirping of many birds added an almost musical background to the scene. He turned to Bill and said, “Bill, I’ll bet anything that this is one of your favorite places to visit.”

  “You would be correct. However, my favorite time to visit this spot is around 1840 because the entire area is so much quieter. Less traffic and people. I sort of have a private picnic with Samson running around as I read the newspaper of the time and sip wine.”

  “Man, I do envy you.”

  Bill shrugged his shoulders, “Well now you’ll be able to go back on a mission every now and then.”

  Bill opened the garden gate and after they stepped out onto the large gray slabs of slate that made up the sidewalk, Bill locked it behind them. He walked slower than he usually did as Kal did what all of the time travelers did: walk slow as they looked in awe at everything around them.

  “Boy,” said Kal as he covered his nose for a second, “does it always smell this bad?”

  “Pretty much, unless it just rained or snowed. You’ll get used to it, but you better watch where you step. The Sanitation Department of New York City is great, but they have a never-ending job of cleaning up after the horses.” He pointed to a typical Sanitation man. He was dressed in an all white jacket and pants uniform and wore a flat-topped cap with a black bill. He was pushing an iron trashcan that sat in a steel carrier, which rolled along on two 36-inch steel wheels. In an iron band around the carrier were two different size push brooms and a scoop. As they passed him he was just emptying a scoop full of horse waste into the trashcan while waving away the flies.

  “Boy,” said Kal, “The pungent odor of the 1800s is something that is never spoken of in the club.”

  Bill agreed. “We usually dwell on the good things,”

  After a few blocks, they approached Bill’s favorite drinking establishment: Paddy Diamond’s Bar & Grill. As the weather was nice, both the front and rear doors were opened which created a slight breeze through the bar. Kal nodded to Bill as he lovingly ran his hand on the beautiful wood bar that was close to forty feet long. There was only one bend in the bar and that was where Bill usually sat. It put his back to the window but from this vantage point he could look down the long bar and see all who were there.

  He nudged Kal and said as he pointed at the large, stuffed moose head above the opening to the men’s and lady’s rooms at the end of the bar, “Ever notice that the moose head always seems to have long whiskers that swing in the breeze?”

  Squinting, Kal said with a grin, “Oh, yes! Now I see them. They’re long cob webs, right?”

  “Right you are,” he said with a laugh, “And when you visit the place back in our time, you’ll see them still dancing in the breeze.”

  Paddy Diamond was at the end of the bar shaking hands with two men dressed in blue and sporting huge handlebar mustaches. They got off of the high stools they sat on and walked past the two time travelers. Both nodded at them as the walked towards the door putting their tall hats on. They were policemen and Kal watched as one placed a sandwich in his hat before putting it on.

  “Funny,” Bill said to Kal, “whenever a policeman wants to just blend into the crowd all he has to do is take his hat off and he is just another guy in a blue suit.”

  “But,” asked Kal, “what’s with the sandwich in the hat thing?”

  “A little known fact is that, at one time, New York policemen didn’t get a lunch break and their sergeants told them to place a snack in their hats and I guess they still do.”

  Paddy had spotted the time travelers when they entered and now strode down the long bar towards them with a big Irish smile on his handsome face. The big man was six foot plus and weighed 260 pounds with a thick head of pure white hair that made his ruddy complexion seem to glow. He wore his apron slightly above his wide expanse of a waist and was wiping his hands on it. He stuck out a huge paw of a hand and Bill shook it as the barman said, “Saints alive if it isn’t Bill Scott himself. How’ve ya been, Billy?”

  “Fine, Paddy. Just fine. And you?”

  “Same.” He turned his attention to Kal and offered a hand as he said, “Paddy Diamond, sir.”

  “Kal Kurop, Paddy. Nice to meet you.”

  “And tell me, gents, what can I get ya?” he asked as he wiped the bar top.

  “Ballantine for me, Paddy,” Bill said.

  “I’ll have a Schaefer,” quipped Kal.

  Paddy came back with two tall glasses of beer flowing slightly over the lip of the mugs. “Anything for lunch?” he asked as he placed the drinks in front of the two men.

  “Who’s cooking today?” asked Bill.

  “Davey Cullin’s doing the cooking today and he cooks up a fine steak.”

  “Then steak it is,” said Bill rubbing his stomach. “Medium with small potatoes and gravy.”

  “Got it,” the barman said and faced Kal, “Kal?”

  “I’ll have the same, but well done.”

  “Back in a bit,” he said as he walked down the bar to put their orders in.

  Bill turned to Kal and with a smile asked, “So, tell me, Kal, do you believe in vampires?”

  Kal grinned back, “Bill, you would not believe how many people in the Transylvania area of today believe in them.” He shrugged his shoulders and answered, “Do I believe in them? Not really but I do carry a small amount of garlic in my backpack when I’m in that area. It doesn’t hurt to be too cautious, does it?” I mean a pilot doesn’t think his aircraft is going to crash, but he still wears a parachute.”

  “You’ve got a point there. All I know is that whenever I hear the word Transylvania, I automatically think ‘vampires’.”

  They finished their beers and Paddy came back with two more and followed them with two plates of sizzling steaks.

  It was 2:10 p.m. when both men left Paddy Diamonds.

  “What time does the ship leave?” asked Bill as he looked around for a cab.

  “3:30 this afternoon and I’m really looking forward to this trip. Every time I went to Europe I flew and now not only am I taking a cruise, but it’s in 1892. Fantastic!”

  “Just stay in club time and you’ll be fine,” suggested Bill.

  A cab turned the corner and Bill got the driver’s attention. The driver pulled the two-seat, two-wheeled carriage to the curb and touched the tip of his high black hat as he reached down and opened the door. “Afternoon, gents. Where to?”

  Kal answered, “Just a short ride over to the pier on 32nd Street.” He then turned and put out his hand and said as the two men shook hands, “Bill, once again, thanks. This is going to be the most fantastic trip back to the old country.”

  “As I said,” Bill added, “have fun with it. It’s not as though you have to save someone or anything, so enjoy the trip.”

  Kal stepped in
to the cab and waved as the cab took off.

  The cab did its usual bump and slide as it’s steel-rimmed wheels met the slick cobblestone of the streets. Kal held onto the leather strap trying to anticipate the next bounce of the cab and guessing wrong most of the time. So what if this cab is acting like a blender, he thought, I’m back in the 1800s! The time traveler lowered the window, which was scratched and gritty, as he tried to look at everything at the same time.

  Nurses and nannies strolled along the sidewalks pushing baby carriages as children walked alongside. Other children played at various games that had disappeared in Kal’s time: Ring-a-liveo, a game in which players on one team are given time to hide and are then sought out by members of the other team who try to capture them, keep them in a place of confinement, and keep them from being released by their teammates who just had to step in the confinement area and run away. Box Ball: The ball is slapped back and forth between boxes with an open palm. Slap the ball into your opponent's box; he or she returns it back to your box after one bounce or on the fly. If you step into the playing court, fail to return a shot, or if your return shot's first bounce lands out of your opponent’s box, you lose the volley. Finally, a group of girls were playing, Hit The Stick, where the players stand at either end of two concrete squares of the sidewalk with a coin or stick placed directly in the center seam. The object is to hit the coin or stick with the ball and, even better, attempt to flip it over. Each hit brings one point; each flip is worth two with play ending once a player reaches 11 or 21.

  Kal smiled as he watched kids being kids, No matter what time period it is, he thought, kids, will find a game to play. His cab stopped to let a line of wagons carrying barrels of beer go by when he spotted a group of kids, not playing, but standing to one side just watching the other kids at play. The eight boys were dressed in miss-matched shorts and shirts that had a flap at the rear of the neck. On the flap were two tattered stars in the style of being in the navy. The four girls wore tattered dresses and shoes that looked too large for them. Something is wrong here, thought Kal as he watched them. Just then a window opened in the building they were standing in front of and a thin woman called down to them to come in and clean up. The looks on the faces of the children as they went back up the stone steps were draining to Kal. It was then that he saw the painted sign above the doorway: Broadway Orphanage.