he was doing to her?
She probably wasn’t going to survive it at all.
13
R oseleen held her breath when they reached the top of the slope and Thorn got his first look at her car, or rather, David’s car. It was a brand-new sedate, shiny black Ford, custom made for an American driving in England so that the driver’s seat was on the left. But there was nothing pretentious about it. Lydia might ride around in her Bentleys and limousines, but David preferred not to announce the size of his wallet by the make of his car.
And Thorn Blooddrinker didn’t look amazed or dumbfounded by it.
He had stopped to stare at it, but only for a moment. Actually, it was the utility poles that had caught his interest. He was staring at them with a good deal of curiosity.
Roseleen couldn’t help it, she was quite disappointed by his reaction, or lack of reaction. Of course, he didn’t know yet what a car could do.
She perked up with that thought, and evenvolunteered before he asked, “Do you remember the light you stared at on the ceiling in my classroom, Thorn? It was powered by electricity, and those lines you’re looking at now are what transport the electricity to wherever it’s needed. No more smelly oil lamps and candles—except for when there is a power outage.”
His gaze came to her, so full of questions that she sighed. “Don’t ask me to explain electri—”
He cut in to ask, “This power outage, would it work on my sword?”
That’s all that caught his interest? She shook her head. She was being more surprised than he was.
“No,” she said, “whatever power the sword has is of a supernatural nature. The power I was referring to comes from electricity and makes things of a mechanical nature work. You’ll see a lot of those things when we get back to the cottage. But there are other sources of power too, batteries, gasoline—and you’re about to discover one of the things that gasoline gives power to.”
She continued on to the car, put the sword in the backseat, then opened the trunk for him to set the basket in. She was still waiting for his reaction, and when it came, it sounded merely exasperated.
“What is this thing?”
“You’ve been in the seventeen hundreds. You’ve seen the exquisite paintings from that period, so you must have seen a few carriageswhile you were there. The eighteenth century was known for some of the fanciest—”
His impatience interrupted her, “What has that to do with this thing?”
“This is an automobile, or in more modern terms, a car. When it was first invented, though, it was known as a horseless carriage. That’s why I mentioned carriages, for you to understand the transition.”
“Horseless carriage? It does not move then?”
“It moves.” She grinned. “Feed it gasoline, and it will take you just about anywhere.”
“’Tis alive? ”
She winced mentally. She was going to have to do better on her explanations. Cute remarks like “feed it” could only confuse him more.
“No, it’s not alive. It’s one of those unusual things that metal can be shaped into these days. It’s a modern carriage, Thorn. Come, I’ll show you what has taken the place of horses, and makes it possible for this thing to move.”
In a few moments, she had the hood open and kept the rest of her explanation brief, “This is an engine. The gasoline I mentioned is what makes it work, giving it ‘horsepower.’ That power turns its wheels so that it will move. Are you ready for a demonstration?”
“I wouldst prefer a horse, lady.”
That he was calling her lady again showed his confusion, doubt, and very likely unease. Had she really been looking forward to putting him through this? But she wasn’t goingto walk the three miles back to the cottage just to keep him comfortable with what was familiar to him.
“Horses are used today only for pleasure, not for transportation,” she told him. “When people want to go somewhere, they go in cars or—well, let’s stick
She probably wasn’t going to survive it at all.
13
R oseleen held her breath when they reached the top of the slope and Thorn got his first look at her car, or rather, David’s car. It was a brand-new sedate, shiny black Ford, custom made for an American driving in England so that the driver’s seat was on the left. But there was nothing pretentious about it. Lydia might ride around in her Bentleys and limousines, but David preferred not to announce the size of his wallet by the make of his car.
And Thorn Blooddrinker didn’t look amazed or dumbfounded by it.
He had stopped to stare at it, but only for a moment. Actually, it was the utility poles that had caught his interest. He was staring at them with a good deal of curiosity.
Roseleen couldn’t help it, she was quite disappointed by his reaction, or lack of reaction. Of course, he didn’t know yet what a car could do.
She perked up with that thought, and evenvolunteered before he asked, “Do you remember the light you stared at on the ceiling in my classroom, Thorn? It was powered by electricity, and those lines you’re looking at now are what transport the electricity to wherever it’s needed. No more smelly oil lamps and candles—except for when there is a power outage.”
His gaze came to her, so full of questions that she sighed. “Don’t ask me to explain electri—”
He cut in to ask, “This power outage, would it work on my sword?”
That’s all that caught his interest? She shook her head. She was being more surprised than he was.
“No,” she said, “whatever power the sword has is of a supernatural nature. The power I was referring to comes from electricity and makes things of a mechanical nature work. You’ll see a lot of those things when we get back to the cottage. But there are other sources of power too, batteries, gasoline—and you’re about to discover one of the things that gasoline gives power to.”
She continued on to the car, put the sword in the backseat, then opened the trunk for him to set the basket in. She was still waiting for his reaction, and when it came, it sounded merely exasperated.
“What is this thing?”
“You’ve been in the seventeen hundreds. You’ve seen the exquisite paintings from that period, so you must have seen a few carriageswhile you were there. The eighteenth century was known for some of the fanciest—”
His impatience interrupted her, “What has that to do with this thing?”
“This is an automobile, or in more modern terms, a car. When it was first invented, though, it was known as a horseless carriage. That’s why I mentioned carriages, for you to understand the transition.”
“Horseless carriage? It does not move then?”
“It moves.” She grinned. “Feed it gasoline, and it will take you just about anywhere.”
“’Tis alive? ”
She winced mentally. She was going to have to do better on her explanations. Cute remarks like “feed it” could only confuse him more.
“No, it’s not alive. It’s one of those unusual things that metal can be shaped into these days. It’s a modern carriage, Thorn. Come, I’ll show you what has taken the place of horses, and makes it possible for this thing to move.”
In a few moments, she had the hood open and kept the rest of her explanation brief, “This is an engine. The gasoline I mentioned is what makes it work, giving it ‘horsepower.’ That power turns its wheels so that it will move. Are you ready for a demonstration?”
“I wouldst prefer a horse, lady.”
That he was calling her lady again showed his confusion, doubt, and very likely unease. Had she really been looking forward to putting him through this? But she wasn’t goingto walk the three miles back to the cottage just to keep him comfortable with what was familiar to him.
“Horses are used today only for pleasure, not for transportation,” she told him. “When people want to go somewhere, they go in cars or—well, let’s stick
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