LTSV - Lost & Found 15 (Patreon)

Mira woke the next morning to a preview of what the rest of this life might be like until she moved on to the next. 

Anna came to help her dress and put up her hair. Then Mira took breakfast with her sisters. Cecily showed up in another long sleeved autumn-weight morning dress with a tall collar, so she was still taking her time to make up her mind about the bruises. At this rate, they’d heal on their own before she ever came to a decision.

After breakfast, Mira was herded into the sitting room where Colvin presented a report on the current state of her personal properties. All told, her affairs were in order. Nanny hadn’t had the sole physical care of Violet in ages, since she’d been in school, so she’d had more time to focus on her charge’s financial affairs and not much escaped her notice. The millinery’s roof would need replacement in the next year or so and one of her tenants was getting old enough that they’d likely move out soon to be with their children. None of those were immediate problems, but they were things that Mira couldn’t have learned from her box of deeds or bank deposits. 

It hadn’t occurred to Mira that, even if she was in good health, she might never be at liberty to handle these sorts of things on her own. She was too notorious now.

‘Isn’t it good, then, that I have a trustworthy agent?’ she thought to herself and smiled at Colvin. Yesterday, he’d been dressed down in a severe black suit that at least had the virtue of being well cut. Today he was dressed a little better in a sage green summer suit with the jacket off and a cream colored vest on instead over his light white shirt. Mira had noticed yesterday that Reginald Duvall wore no tie. Colvin had left his tie off today as well, although he’d been wearing one when they first met. Instead of a tie, his collar was fixed in place with a long and narrow gold bar with a chain on one side that connected into a little square cut walking crystal that he kept in his vest’s right breast pocket.

Men’s fashion here still ran to suits, but slim fitting ones and Colvin’s attire showed her they had options when it came to dressing down.  

“Thank you for surveying my properties, Colvin,” Mira said and meant it. “It’s reassuring to know the exact state of my affairs and Nanny has been busy arranging the townhouse.”

“Matron Byrde told me that one of your first questions was if you’d be able to support yourself,” Colvin explained. He organized his papers back into his slick black portfolio as he spoke and Mira noticed that he was wearing a set of thin ivory colored half-palm gloves. The material looked very light, but still—he was wearing gloves in high summer.

There had to be a reason for it, but given the reasons why Mira had to wear her hair the way she did, she didn’t quite feel ready to ask. 

“I understand that your independence is important to you, but you aren’t at liberty to move around as you like,” he continued with a gentle half-smile. “A brief audit seemed like the logical place to start my duties, since you were occupied with Miss Cecily yesterday. I thought that we might review your expectations and needs further today.”

“Did Vesper tell you about my seizure?” Mira asked.

Colvin nodded. “She said it was an unanticipated complication of an old head injury.”

“I was thrown from a pony when I was a child,” she explained. “I had similar seizures for a while afterwards, but they stopped. I suffered a bad shock a few days ago and relapsed. My doctor has an aggressive treatment plan for me, but it’s likely that I will always need to be accompanied by someone. My little sister is a Negentropy mage and will stay close to me during the summer until I can undergo treatment, after that you’ll be splitting that duty with Anna.”

“Understood, miss.” Colvin took a small memo book out of his vest pocket and began jotting down short notes. “May I consult with Miss Cecily regarding the matter? Matron Byrde told me she has a medical certification that is relevant.”

“Yes, I think she’ll be happy to talk with you about it,” Mira said. Just that, though. Cecily didn’t seem comfortable with him otherwise and Mira wasn’t sure of the degree to which Colvin would go out of his way to set her at ease. She’d need to observe them for a bit longer. “She’s very knowledgeable.” She took a moment to think about how to phrase her next request. “Has Vesper told you about the request she had for me?”

“I’m aware that you’ve agreed to refrain from any discussion of marriage for the foreseeable future. She made it clear to me that part of my responsibilities will be running off any future Reginald Duvalls by whatever means necessary,” Colvin replied. 

Thank heaven. Mira didn’t have to explain that he needed to pretend to be her boy toy in public.

“Then I must apologize in advance,” Mira sighed with relief. “This post will disrupt your personal life.”

“I don’t have one to disrupt, miss,” Colvin assured her. There was a look in his heavy-lidded eyes that Mira found difficult to interpret. “Please do not be concerned on my behalf. I accepted this role in full awareness of the demands that will be placed on my time and attention.”

“If that changes, please let me know,” Mira insisted. “I can make accommodations.”

“You’re very solicitous of your employees, miss,” Colvin observed, rather than agreeing with her. “It’s admirable.”

Was he trying to deflect her question? Mira crinkled her nose in confusion. Why?

She’d never gotten the impression, during gameplay, that Colvin had romantic feelings for Violet. He was professional and protective, but not possessive of her. Even if his game counterpart did have feelings for Violet, he and Mira hadn’t known each other long enough yet for him to develop any.

Well, some people did make their jobs their entire life. Maybe Colvin was that type.

“Thank you for saying so,” she said. “I will rely on you and Anna heavily in the future. Know that I am aware of the value of your service.”

“Thank you, miss.” Colvin lowered his gaze as he flipped to a different page in his memo book and a lock of fine white blonde hair slipped out from where he’d tucked it behind his ear and fell against his cheek. 

He really was nice to look at. His light-colored outfit made his eyes shine like rubies today.

She was saved from getting caught staring when Colvin’s breast pocket started to glow and emit a musical note. Mira blinked as he drew the quizzing glass out and glanced at it. There was a moving image projected onto the bezel cut glass and Mira realized abruptly that it wasn’t glass. Nor was it a quizzing glass. That was a smaller version of her wall crystal.

‘Oh, fuck me, they have cell phones here,’ Mira thought to herself. ‘Do I have one of those? If not, why?’

She didn’t remember seeing one in the game. Were they rare? Or just expensive? It didn’t matter, she needed one.

Mobile phones were one of the best things about living in a high tech society. Nearly every tech world that Mira lived in had them to one degree or another, but magical societies hardly ever put much effort into mass wireless communication. 

“Please excuse me, miss, while I take this,” Colvin said and excused himself when Mira nodded.

She immediately got up and went looking for Vesper.

Mira found her older sister in the study. Miss Park had returned the night before with a mountain of luggage and two more employees. Between the three of them, they had Vesper’s temporary office set up within twenty minutes.

Vesper glanced up as Mira let herself in. “Did you need something, dear?”

Mira went over to her and quietly said, “I found a blank spot.”

Her older sister nodded and dismissed her assistants. Then she leaned back in her seat and rubbed the back of her neck. “You have good timing. I think I needed to take a break. What’s the matter?”

She and Vesper had agreed earlier that, while people like Nanny and the doctors should know about Mira’s memory loss, nobody else did. They were even keeping it from Colvin for now, until Mira had had time to work with him.

Unsurprisingly, Mira noticed that Vesper had a similar chain on her blouse although hers was connected to an elegant brooch pinned to the frothy lace of her collar. She pointed at it. “What is that?”

“This?” Vesper pulled out her own little quizzing glass. It was a bit larger than Colvin’s and round where his was square. Her crystal also had a much clearer viewing surface. “It’s my walking crystal. Do you not recognize it?”

Mira shook her head. “Nanny and Anna have been handling the one on the wall, so I figured that out. I didn’t realize there were ones you could carry around on your person.”

“They are a new product,” Vesper admitted as she tucked the crystal away. “Mr Adelram inherited a box of the prototypes from the Artificer’s Guild last year after he did their guildmaster a favor and distributed them to some of his contacts. Her majesty ordered a set for her inner cabinet when she saw how useful it was. They’re catching on now. Would you like one?”

“Oh good, I didn’t know about them before,” Mira sighed and patted her chest in relief.

“I’m glad you came to me in that case,” Vesper said. She didn’t quite smile, but Mira found she could see the sense of one in the faint crinkles around her sister’s eyes. She was getting better at reading Vesper. “I’ll order one for both of you girls. They won’t work outside of the city, but am I correct that you plan on staying here permanently?”

“It’s where my house is,” Mira replied. “Also, I don’t remember much about Papa’s house, but I don’t think I’d be comfortable there. I have university to think of too, soon.”

“You were accepted into the Royal Academy of Sorcery,” Vesper told her, which Mira knew from the game. “The family will still be paying your tuition. It was arranged as part of your marriage, but I see no reason to change that plan—except, dear, do you think you’ll be able to manage? You have an apprenticeship with Archmage Solvere. It’s very prestigious, but she also has very high standards. I think I can persuade her to let you take a year off in order to recover, if you like.”

Mira didn’t know Archmage Solvere, but Violet had and those memories surged up to slap her right in the face. It was the biggest revelation she’d experienced since laying eyes on Nanny for the first time, perhaps larger because it came with all of Violet’s magical education and the answer to a question Mira hadn’t even thought to ask.

She came to a few minutes later, seated on the floor with Vesper propping her up.

“Mira? Mira, can you hear me?” she asked, patting Mira’s cheek. “Can you speak?”

“Mm?” Mira scrubbed her face with both hands. “I’m alright. I just got some memories back.”

“I’m going to take you to a chair now,” Vesper told her. “Tell me if you feel any weakness.”