The Viennese Waltz(139)

Sarah had left the negotiations to Karl, Judy, and Susan while she tried to figure out how much money to introduce to the Austro-Hungarian empire and how to do so. Karl thought she ought to use the money to buy back the patents that the empire had been selling since a few months after the Ring of Fire, but Sarah was thinking more in terms of low-interest loans to new businesses.

Karl said goodbye to his uncles and headed back to the palace.

* * *

“It does make sense,” Maximilian von Liechtenstein told his younger brother.

“No doubt it does,” Gundaker said. “Just one more perfectly logical betrayal of our family by the crown. We will be good little courtiers and kowtow to the daughter of a mechanic. I need some air. If you will excuse me, Maximilian.” Gundaker rose and bowed stiffly to his brother and left.

Maximilian watched his brother go with the same itch of suspicion that, had he known it, his nephew had had. But his reasons for not paying attention to that itch were different. It wasn’t that he didn’t have time. No. Maximilian simply didn’t want to know. Truth be told, he wasn’t a lot happier about the situation than Gundaker was.





CHAPTER 34

Silver and Paper, Honor and Stone

November 1635

Silver Depository, Vienna

Gundaker sat in the small office, going over the books. The sun had set and he was working by one of the up-time-designed down-time-made Coleman lamps. This one was made right here in Vienna by a burgher who had bought the patent. The factory that made them had been redesigned by Peter Barclay, who had wisely accepted payment of an interest in the shop. None of which mattered to Gundaker at all. What mattered to him was that he had excellent light to cook the books, and make it look like Lang had stolen quite a bit more than he had. It wasn’t all that hard. Change a couple of threes to eights, that sort of thing. Then the silver could wait in the vault till he needed it. There would be an audit after the new year, but by then he would have moved the money. Gundaker shivered from the cold and set back to work.

Streets of Vienna

The wagon made its way down the cobbled street, carrying a ton or so of gravel. It was before dawn and aside from supply wagons like this one, the streets were empty. But they were well lit. There was a Coleman lamp on each street corner, with enough fuel that each would last most of the night. Besides, the wagon had one too, with a curved mirror behind to send the light out ahead. The wagoner shivered in the cold, and flicked the reins to encourage the horse to pull a little harder. He wanted to get back to the docks so he could get inside. He turned a corner and headed for the work site for Liechtenstein Tower.

Reaching the tower, he pulled up behind another wagon, which carried a load of sand. He couldn’t see the work under the tent, but he knew that the basement had been finished. They were now working on the ground floor, which was supported by a set of interconnecting arches that were based on the work of some up-timer who used chains to design buildings. It was funny looking but at the same time it had a sort of grace that was almost like a church.

The sand cart moved out and he flicked the reins again to move into its place. The crane, a set of pulleys and a framework, was shifted by a team of workers. The wagoner climbed back into the bed of the wagon and helped. He wanted to get back to the docks and in out of the cold. It took almost an hour to get the wagon unloaded, but the work kept him warm except for his hands and he had good canvas gloves. He would rather have been sleeping, but it was a good job . . . and even bad jobs were hard to come by.

Race Track City

Gayleen Sanderlin held Ron the Latest on her lap while the nanny, Lisa, kept a wary eye on three-and-a-half-year-old Carri. They were all in the imperial box, but it was still a cold snowy day. The crowds scared Ronny, but Carri was excited, all bundled up in her little fur coat and constantly trying to get a look at the two-year-old heir to the throne. Not because he was heir to the throne, but because he was a potential playmate.

Meanwhile, the sound system was playing records from the Magdeburg Opera House. The emperor was crazy for music. The stands were packed, even on a cold and blustery day like today, because once the music was over Ferdinand III would read out the agreement that the Austro-Hungarian crown had worked out with the Barbies over the course of the past several weeks. Her Serene Highness Sarah Wendell von Up-time was made the chair of the Imperial Bank and the right to issue money was moved to her and her heirs or appointees. The emperor had insisted on the heirs and Sarah had insisted on adding appointees. At the moment, Moses Abrabanel was the appointed heir to the chair of the imperial bank, which took Karl Eusebius off the hook.

The song ended. Sarah and the emperor went out onto a raised platform at one end of the race track, where Sarah knelt and received her tiara and bank book.