1632 Snippets
1636 The Atlantic Encounter – Snippet 35
1636 The Atlantic Encounter - Snippet 35 Chapter 23 Despite limited Dutch, the brothers got on all right with the locals. New Amsterdam was a Babel -- even more so, given the events in Europe: Danes and Englishmen and Swedes and even a few Poles had made their way to the New World, settling in the relatively open Dutch colony. New England was, by and large, closed to 'outsiders'; Virginia was no place to be poor, and Maryland was far too small for most of these speculators looking to get ahead and to get away from the restrictive society and...
The Newton Cipher – Snippet 13
The Newton Cipher - Snippet 13 Coffee Island London Monday Morning A knock on the door woke Trina. Faint light through the curtains told her it was morning. Alice entered, carrying a tray, which she set down beside Trina on the bed. Tea, toast, and eggs over easy, with brown sauce on the side. And two aspirin, in a little dish. "Wow," Trina said, her voice croaky with sleep. "I didn't know bed and breakfast meant breakfast in bed. Wait … how …" "Someone had a rough night," Alice said. "How are you feeling?" The pain at her temple was a dull...
1637 No Peace Beyond The Line – Snippet 03
1637 No Peace Beyond The Line - Snippet 03 Chapter 2 East of Dominica "Mr. Svantner," Eddie cried, stepping forward on his ergonomically-designed prosthesis. "Sir!" the Swede shouted in the reply, approaching at the double-quick. "Are all sections in readiness for next evolution?" "They are, sir!" "Very good. Pilot?" "Sir!" came the response from the opened steel shutters of the flying bridge. "We will be proceeding under sail only." "Aye, sir!" "Flight Master?" "Here, sir!" "Reel platform down to five hundred feet." Eddie leaned toward the...
1636 The Atlantic Encounter – Snippet 34
1636 The Atlantic Encounter - Snippet 34 "'Comforter of the sick'? Not a minister or a priest or some such?" "God forbid a priest," James answered. "But no; a minister was too costly for the Negentien Heeren. They sent over a layman, a man named Michaëlius -- but he was a devil when in his cups, so he was sent home. I hear that the new man is more sedate." "You're pretty well informed about affairs here in New Amsterdam, Captain," Pete said. "While I was left to cool my heels in Thomasville, I gathered as much information as I could. The...
The Newton Cipher – Snippet 12
The Newton Cipher - Snippet 12 Newton's Tomb Westminster, London After lunch, the Tube's Jubilee line deposited her at the Westminster stop, right in the heart of London's tourist district. If she needed proof she was in London, this was it. The buildings of Parliament were there, with the massive gothic clock tower that tourists called Big Ben -- although, as Trina read in a guidebook she downloaded to her phone, Big Ben wasn't the name of the tower itself, but rather the nickname of large bell inside the tower. The tower everyone called Big...
1637 No Peace Beyond The Line – Snippet 02
1637 No Peace Beyond The Line - Snippet 02 Eddie met Svantner's frank, dutiful eyes for a moment before smiling and shaking his head. "No, XO. If the wind holds, we can save the fuel and move to Objective Bravo by canvas alone. Send the word." A crisp "Aye, sir!" accompanied Arne's equally crisp salute, which was followed by a sharp step toward the speaking tube down to the intraship comms cubby, just beneath Intrepid's flying bridge. Eddie watched and listened to Svantner pass the orders smoothly, efficiently, smartly down to the...
1636 The Atlantic Encounter – Snippet 33
1636 The Atlantic Encounter - Snippet 33 Chapter 22 New Amsterdam New Netherlands Pete seemed more surprised by the first view of New Amsterdam than Gordon, and expressed it as they approached from Long Island Sound. "That's it?" he said. "This is what's going to become New York?" "It's never going to be New York, little bro," Gordon said, as the morning fog began to clear and the docks on what the modern times would have called the East River became more visible. "That only would happen if the English had decided to keep their claims in the...
The Newton Cipher – Snippet 11
The Newton Cipher - Snippet 11 Replaced British Library London Sunday Morning Trina was at the entrance of the British Library promptly at nine the next morning. The doors were locked, but through the glass she saw the guard who had checked her in the day before. He looked half asleep. She rapped the glass with her knuckles. At first, he ignored her, and then, when she was persistent, he held his two forefingers up next to each other and mouthed "open at eleven." "Alfie Gill!" she shouted. Then, with exaggerated lip movements, mouthed "ALFIE...