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“Has he always worked for Blink?”
“No…” Reginald shook his head slowly and he receded into his memories, following those connections. “He worked for Mickey Winterstone. Speed and Frank Leary. They’re like brothers.”
“Sir Francis? He doesn’t have a brother as far as I know. Lady Coonan said Sir Francis has been with Lord Winterstone for as long as she’s known of him, since Sir Francis was a boy.”
“I know all of that,” Reginald complained. “Speed was best man and Winterstone was at the wedding.”
“That seems significant.”
“It does,” Reginald agreed and mentally stuck a pin in it. “Weddings are always significant.”
“Was ours?” Paul asked quietly but they both knew the answer.
“You are why I refuse to accept that I could have a wife or a mistress. You—us—we’re too important and too much was sacrificed so that we could have a perfect life together. I won’t sully that by settling for a wife. Not when I have the kind of life men like you (this you) could only dream of.”
It took a moment for Paul to reply and all that came out was a ragged “Very well.” He stared out the window at the end of the hall for several long moments. Reginald was happy to let Paul dissect and examine all the pieces and make what he could of them. “The other things you mentioned… I scarcely know them about myself,” Paul whispered. “I’ve…known a few men but I’ve never been able to try most of those things.”
“Any time you’re ready.”
Paul laughed softly. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready for some of those things. I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready for you,” he added with a wry grin.
“That’s ok. I had to convince you then and I can convince you now.” Reginald hooked his foot around the ankle of Paul’s boot. He allowed it so Reginald sighed and wiggled until he found a position he thought he might be able to nod off in.
“Do you have a Gates wherever you’re from?”
“No.” Reginald smiled at the simplicity. “Who does almost every hacker turn to when they need help and who’s given us all a home?”
“I have no idea.”
“Bill Gates, of course.”
“Of course?”
“One of the founding fathers of the internet,” Reginald explained. “So far, none of the others have turned up and I’d never admit it out loud, but I miss Aiden and Toly. Rather dreadfully.”
“Why are we here? Lavender and I?”
“Because you’re my family. And Sage, I suppose. But the two of you are my life and no one else in the whole world comes close. Except maybe Robin, Lavender’s son.”
“That…man has a son?” Paul whispered in horror and Reginald hummed fondly.
“He’s the sort of father most of us wish we had and Robin is a brilliant child.” A frown furrowed his brow as he recalled how Robin had stealthily added items to larger weapons and equipment orders rightafter Reginald had placed them. Robin had discovered that they’d ship separately and would be delivered when he could intercept them. Robin paid the difference immediately—so Reginald was never billed—out of a shell account he’d created that was only one digit off from Lavender’s primary spending account. The vendors never noticed and Reginald wouldn’t have either if a refund for one of Robin’s toys hadn’t been sent to Lavender’s real account.
“What’s wrong?”
“We all love Robin but we’re too afraid to put our heads on the block and ask Lavender if he’s watching him closely enough.”
“This is a child?” Paul asked skeptically and Reginald flashed him a grin.
“A child who can competently converse in six languages, understands advanced mathematics and physics, and is learning how to fire handheld cannons with startling accuracy. He’ll be outmaneuvering me on the internet in no time,” Reginald predicted with equal doses of pride and concern.
“I can see why you’re all afraid to confront Lavender,” Paul murmured, then shuddered. “Why would anyone think it was a good idea to let that man have a child?”
“Let? Who would stop him? But even Lavender thought it was a terrible idea until he met Robin. I wasn’t there but we all felt the change in him. It was immediate. We all changed.”
“For the better?” Paul asked gently. Reginald nodded quickly, then paused.
“I think so… I do sense that we’ve all made a pact, in a way, and accepted responsibility for something terrible, though.”
