difficulties?”
“I have no idea what you mean,” I replied. “I’m merely a courier. Now I must be on my way. Have a good day, sir.” He stepped out of the way and opened the door. It closed so quickly behind me after my exit that it nearly caught the tail of my skirt.
The ribbon shop was several blocks farther downtown. The front door was locked there, as well, and after I tapped on the glass, the curtains were pulled aside ever so slightly so that the proprietor could peer out at me. Then the door opened a crack. “What do you want?” a voice quavering with age asked.
“I’m on an errand for Lady Flora Lyndon. She needs some ribbon for a ballgown.”
The door opened wider, and the voice said. “Please come in.” A tiny, white-haired man in a green apron then stood before me. “My apologies. One can’t be too careful these days. I’m not sure which is worse, the British or the rebels.”
I couldn’t imagine why either group would have any interest in ribbons, but I gave him a sympathetic smile as I handed him Flora’s note. “Here is Lady Flora’s order.”
“Right away, miss.”
The shop was small and old, with a narrow wooden counter, behind which were towering shelves full of ribbons of all colors, fabrics, and sizes. The shopkeeper climbed a library ladder and reached for a spool of pale blue ribbon, which he brought down, measured against a yardstick nailed to the counter, and cut. He rolled the cut ribbon into a loop, wrapped it in white paper, tied that off with string, then wrapped that parcel in brown paper and tied it off with twine, leaving a loop like a carrying handle. All of this took only seconds. “Will there be anything else, miss?”
“Not if that is all Lady Flora requested.”
“Very good, then.” He handed me the parcel. “Thank Lady Flora for her custom,” he said, darting around me and opening the door just enough for me to slip through. I’d barely made it to the sidewalk before the door slammed shut and I heard the click of a lock. If the shopkeepers were this nervous, I wondered how safe I was walking these streets. Conditions didn’t seem all that bad. There were neither roving bands of rebels nor military patrols. But the streets being so empty made me feel exposed and vulnerable.
I checked my watch. I’d made quick work of my errands, so I thought I might add one more without being suspiciously late to return home. I hurried toward the Mechanics’ headquarters and knocked on the door.
I had my insignia ready to show, but when the door opened, Nat greeted me. “Verity!”
“Hello, Nat,” I said. “I’ve been wondering about you, since I haven’t seen you selling newspapers this week. I suppose this has been a difficult time for newspaper sales.”
“Are you kidding? It’s been the best ever. I can’t go up into magpie land, but I sell out first thing in the morning. If this keeps up, I’ll be rich soon.”
“That’s good to hear. I was worried about you.”
“You really are a nice girl, Verity. What brings you down here?”
“I’ve got some important information I need to pass on, if Alec, Colin, or Lizzie is around.”
“I don’t know about Lizzie, but Colin and Alec are in there.” He stepped back from the door. “Go on through, you’ll find them up in the balcony.”
I found the stairs at the rear of the auditorium and made my way up. A large table at the end of the balcony held piles of documents, including maps of the city and diagrams of machines. Alec and Colin stood at the table, bent over a city map. Mick stood at Alec’s elbow, leaning over the map like he was part of the planning.
“Alec!” I called out, my pulse quickening at the sight of him. He wore no coat and his shirtsleeves were rolled up to his elbows, which made him look like a man of action.
He straightened, turned, and moved toward me, saying, “Verity? What are you doing here?” Before I could answer, he’d caught me in an embrace and kissed me as though he’d been wanting to do so for days.
I was equally pleased to see him, so much so that I almost forgot my errand. My senses finally returned, and I pulled away enough to say, “I have information I thought was important enough to bring in person.”
He slid his hands from my back down to my waist