definitely complicated. Napoleon and I had a complex history, because he had used me for conquest and I had used him for treasure. Circumstance had made us allies one moment and opponents the next. I envied and admired Bonaparte’s success while still believing the story of my enemy Leon Martel, that Napoleon had ruthlessly put my family at risk to manipulate me into hunting for Aztec secrets. The first consul was the architect of a world in which honor was hostage to ambition, and compromise suspended for war. Expediency trumped loyalty, and the kidnapping of my son was a sin too far.
So would I still kill him, if I had him in my sights? The truth is that we were both rascals, and it was suicidal to play assassin. It would risk my wife and son. After reunion with Astiza my new scheme was to redirect Napoleon toward peace or abdication, though just how I didn’t know. Maybe I could even persuade him to compensate us for all our troubles; I did have his pendant and the Aztec toy of a flying machine. Why not get paid by both powers? It’s always encouraging to get a public stipend for vague advice, and people contend I’m an opportunist.
Or maybe I was just a coward, now that I had my family back.
There was a further consideration: Napoleon gave me importance. British officials enlisted me because I’d been close to the first consul, and French farmwives listened to my opinions for the same reason. Proximity to power is heady, and vanity is the chink in my armor, or at least one of them. While I resented Bonaparte’s bidding, I was proud that great men paid me attention.
So I dithered as we rode.
I wanted time alone with my wife, but no opportunity for intimacy presented itself. We kissed without embarrassment, but Astiza was shy about going further where everyone could hear and see. So we were as pent up as if we’d taken holy orders, adding zeal to the goal of reaching Paris.
“We’ll stay anonymous in the capital until we have a better gauge of its politics,” I whispered to Astiza as we lay one evening. “These arrests are catastrophic, and being the famous Ethan Gage carries its own baggage. Once I announce myself, a great deal of explaining becomes necessary. Why did I disappear from the negotiations over Louisiana? Did Martel report my presence in Haiti and Martinique? What am I doing back in Paris? We should skulk around first.”
“Yes, all of France is waiting to hear the latest of Ethan Gage,” my wife said dryly. She keeps me from inflating.
“Just policemen and scoundrels,” I said. “I know I’m not really important, but I am occasionally controversial. Or notorious, to unsavory people.”
“The gods will give us a sign.” Astiza had been raised with Eastern fatalism.
“But the hurricane proved that all wrong. You foresaw doom, and yet thanks to my diving bell here you are, saved from the sea.”
“Don’t you see fortune brought us here for a reason, Ethan? If we hadn’t been separated by the hurricane, we’d have retired in America or England. Instead, we’re carried by history’s current to Paris and the French archives.”
“Yes, your old books. What’s all this about telling the future?”
“Just some references I stumbled across that piqued my curiosity. One spoke of a remarkable medieval machine that could answer questions about things to come. It’s only a legend, but a legend based on what?”
I don’t mind philosophizing when you can cup a breast and wedge against a bottom. “You cite destiny only when it’s convenient. Though I will admit that fatalism takes the pressure off. Yet if we’re just carried along by fate, then our suffering is pointless, don’t you think? I think that if luck put us here, it’s so we can choose, not be directed.”
“Yes, fate and free will are married. So choose how, treasure hunter?”
“I’m thinking that having seen so much violence and heartbreak, perhaps my real mission is to make peace, either by thwarting Napoleon or calming him. Why were we saved, if not to save the world? And, perhaps, get paid for it.”
“You manipulate, and submit an invoice. I’ll research.”
As you can tell, ours was not the usual pillow talk. But we also kissed, my feeling again the fan of her silken hair and curve of hip, which meant I stayed rigid and sleepless for two hours after.
Accordingly, I was groggy when our gang of conspirators departed each dawn, leaving generous payment. We’d