"Brrrraaang brrraang. Brrrraaang brrraaaang" Claudia rapped her hand against her thigh impatiently while she waited for the call to go through.
"Hullo?" Came a sleepy query as HG's face emerged on the screen.
"HG! You're gonna have kittens, serial. I've done it, I've modded it up and I just wanted to call you before I test it out!" Claudia gripped her Farnsworth with both hands and squealed into it in her excitement.
"Wait, wait… slow down dear, you said I'm going to have what now? Kittens? That's absurd… I'm afraid some vital lingual aspect… Never mind. What is it that you're so excited about?" HG replied.
Claudia huffed impatiently, "Holmes's magnifying glass! I've built in a concavity adjuster! So that when you look in and see the thing you want to find the most, now you can…"
"…Widen the scope by adjusting the concavity of the lens, allowing you to see a greater amount of the surroundings near the object of your desire! That's brilliant, Claudia!" HG exclaimed.
"Oh you wait, I've got the perfect lab rat to test this baby out on." Claudia swiveled her chair and plonked down on it, turning the computer monitor so that HG could see Pete's bored-looking face on the screen.
"Oh hey Pete, wanna look into my crystal ball and tell me what you see? Claudia simpered.
Pete squinted as the magnifying glass came closer and closer to him through his laptop screen, then something started to flicker into view. "I'm not sure about this Claud.. Wait! Double chocolate chip cookies! Where are they? Pete complained.
"Oh Pete, so predictable." Claudia shook her head. "But tell me, do you see where the cookies are? Or just the cookies themselves?"
"Just a huge big plate of giant cookies with delicious, melty chocolate blobs all through them." Pete replied
"Okay, and how about now?" Claudia asked, slowly adjusting the lever on the brass rim of the magnifying glass.
"Wait, wait, I can see a bench, an oven and sink… tha- wait, that's Myka's coffee mug and Leena's apron draped across the bench! The cookies are on Leena's kitchen bench!" Pete exclaimed gleefully, before narrowing his eyes suspiciously at Claudia.
"You knew I would see cookies, and they're at Leena's and I'm in London and you're going to eat them all while they're still warm and melty and they'll be gone by the time I get there!" Pete glared accusatorily at her, "You used me for my cookie cravings!"
"Pete, when has Leena ever skimped out on cookie time? There'll be more for you when you get back."
"You just don't know what it's like, Claudia," Pete moaned, "English people don't have cookies. They have 'biscuits' and they're tiny little morsels and filled with dainty bits of dried fruit, coconut or jam. I need something with chocolate written on the packet, preferably combined with 'double', 'triple', 'covered' or 'filled'!"
"Yeah, good luck with that Peteyboy. Try not to eat too much sugar before bed; you'll need to be well rested for your adventure in crazy lady land tomorrow." Claudia smiled mischievously and closed the connection to Pete's scowling face.
"So, there you have another brilliant display of Claudia Donovan's endless talents!" Claudia announced to HG, arms spread as she swiveled herself back around.
"Bravo, my dear, bravo indeed. Barely a day and you've done that which has eluded me since I awoke from the bronze." HG applauded Claudia, a greedy look growing in her eye as she admired the newly reworked magnifying glass.
"Wait…do I smell a double-dupe?" Claudia said, her face clouding with suspicion at the look she recognised on HG's face.
"I used Pete for his cookie cravings… you used me for my tech know-how." Claudia frowned into her lap, knowing there was more to it.
"You knew how much I missed Todd. You knew I'd put everything into making this work, because I wanted to find him so badly." Claudia turned away from the screen; mad at herself for trusting so easily, for feeling so close to this fellow inventor, this like-minded friend so quickly. She felt foolish; a friend wouldn't use her like this.
"Claudia my dear, I do indeed value your abilities and talents and I truly hope that one day we'll have more time to simply sit, discuss and work on these kinds of projects together. I have greatly missed the sparks of genius which flare when two inventive minds such as ours combine works and secrets." Claudia looked up at HG with a little hope.
"You simply misunderstood. Given the time and resources I too, could – and would, I assure you – have come up with something to enable the more convenient use of Holmes's artifact." HG smiled wanly.
"You could say it was on my to do list. It was when I heard of your heart-breaking and romantic tale of love found and so quickly lost… well, I knew the magnifying glass must be put to use with your far nobler and more pressing cause." She smiled kindly into the Farnsworth, seeing Claudia's shining eyes.
"Oh HG, I'm sorry. Thank you! Of course that makes sense. Now I just wanna give you a hug." Claudia sobbed and smiled, clutching the magnifying glass.
"Not at all my dear. Now, I think you've been looking forward to discovering where a certain young man might be waiting for you?" HG winked at her co-conspirator and Claudia's eyes brightened with anticipation.
"Yes, Todd. Let's do it now." Claudia held the glass up next to the Farnsworth and peered into it. She saw Todd's face; he was wearing his black plastic-rimmed glasses and a woolen hat.
She pushed the concavity adjuster up with her thumb and watched the background come into view. It was a cold, flat, industrial area, there were broken down trucks and tractors, long wire fences and leafless trees. There was a little snow on the ground and Todd was trunching through it in work boots. He was wearing overalls with a thick plaid shirt collar peeking out from beneath them and a winter coat over the top. Claudia drew the concavity lens back down a little, allowing her to focus on an emblem, which she could see on the tag attached to Todd's overalls.
"Oh Todd, look at what they're making you do. Your beautiful geeky mind put to this. It's such a shameful waste." Claudia shook her head.
"I trust you've found your beloved then?" HG asked.
"Oh yeah," Claudia huffed, turning to the computer and tapping at the keyboard to bring up a phone number and address. "He's in Canada this time. Pumping gas with the polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba."
"Oh, my dear." HG commiserated.
"Whelp, thanks for everything HG, looks like I've got some planning and reconnaissance to do." Claudia slapped her hand on her knee and jumped up.
"Good luck with the case tomorrow hey, and stay in touch." Claudia moved to close the Farnsworth.
"Just a second" HG interrupted her. Claudia glanced up.
"I don't suppose you'd do me the honour of a quick peek, would you?" HG pointed at the magnifying glass.
"Oooo," Claudia smirked.
"I'm feeling a wave of nosiness coming on HG! Go on, quell it will ya? Whatcha looking for?" Claudia asked, holding the magnifying glass close to the Farnsworth for Helena to see, while slowly adjusting the concavity.
"Oh, it's so obvious!" HG exclaimed. "Why, it's been so close all this time!"
"What's obvious? What's been where, HG? You're creating a monster over here!"
HG turned to Claudia distractedly, absorbed by her discovery. "So sorry dear, I need to be off in a hurry. I really do appreciate all this work you've put in and I promise I will tell you what this is all about in time. That time is just not right now, I'm afraid. There are a few things I need to do first."
Claudia did her best impression of a foamy-mouthed, rabid dog while pretending to tear out her hair. Then, giving it up for a lost cause, she said "On with ye, brazen teaserer. Ye'll git yers!" Before flashing HG a wicked grin and closing the Farnsworth.
""""""""""""""
HG stepped out into the warm London night, paid the cabbie, shook out her raven hair and inhaled deeply. It was late, the narrow street was dark and a myriad of familiar, but not altogether pleasant odours welcomed her. She strolled over to the dock, smelling the earthy smell of rot and decomposing plant matter rising with the fog over the river, settling car fumes from the days traffic - somewhat different from the permeating wood and coal chimney smoke she remembered. She was in the Royal Borough of Kingston-Upon-Thames; a quiet and unassuming family suburb in South-Western London. Stretching her arms to the sky, she gazed across the mirror black waters of the Thames, taking in the tree-spotted far bank, which had a wide and welcoming path meandering through it. The warmth and life of late spring had brought families and lovers to wander those sun-dappled paths during the days in her time. She remembered doing so herself, years and lives ago.
HG straightened her back and narrowed her eyes; wistful thoughts such as these could wait for morning. For her, the long dark hours of night were ones best spent in action.
"It's all ready for you now, mum" The man walked over from his garage, wiping his greasy hands on a rag as he approached the dock. HG turned to him as he approached.
"Wonderful, Ted. Thanks ever so, I've been waiting to see her for quite some time, you know." she flashed him a smile and clapped him on the shoulder, striding eagerly over to the garage.
Ted picked up his jaw and stumbled after her. "We've looked after her well all these years mum, just like we's told to; kept her polished and serviced" he assured her, "she's ben 'ere me whole life, she has. Still purrs just the same as she always has, like a kitten." He nudged her with his elbow and conspiratorial tones, "She growls when ya let 'er too." He grinned and pulled a chamois from the pocket of his overalls, gesturing proudly to the gleaming machine before them.
"There she is mum, beautiful innit?" He asked, stepping closer and fondly buffing the brass casing of the headlight.
Helena's mouth curled with a smile of anticipation. "I must say I quite agree with you, dear Teddy. You've done very well." She reached into her pocket, drew out some large bills and pressed them into Ted's hand as she shook it.
"I wonder if dear Hildebrand and Wolfmuller knew what their creation was capable of when they first marketed it in 1894?"
She turned back to the gleaming brass and polished black metal, "I'm certain the Hildebrand brothers wouldn't have minded the tinkering; inventive men that they were!"
HG swung her left leg over the motorbike, tucking her brown leather jacket beneath her as she sunk into the saddle.
"Yes mum, 28mph was quite respectable for the time, but we've given her some modern day improvements. She'll now reach an even sixty and we've made sure the brakes, coolant and whatnot can cope with her larger engine."
He leaned in close to the brass handlebars,"'Ere see, these are new." He said, pointing to two round black buttons as HG leaned forward to see.
"The top one reveals a small storage compartment for any goodies you'd like to keep hidden. The bottom one, here" he pushed the button, and with a click and a whirr, a passport-sized, brass encased satellite navigation system was revealed.
"Nothing too James Bond I'm afraid, mum." He chuckled. "Just thought they might come in useful to ya."
HG laughed, "Indeed, I suspect the roads have changed a bit since I was last home. You have my thanks for your thoughtfulness, Teddy."
Helena grabbed the helmet from the handlebars and buckled it on tightly, then pulled the riding goggles down with a snap. As she turned the key, the engine rumbled to life and she revved the throttle with her leather glove-clad hand. Grinning, she nudged the gear shifter into first with her boot, released the brake gently and rolled down the drive. Touching two fingers to her helmet as she passed the mechanic, she turned the corner and sped into the night.
She had only the one detour to make on her way west to the Cotswalds.
