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No sooner had Alice finished reading the letter than she was already at the train station, ready to depart to Pekin.

"An urgent meeting to reconsider my association with the Kingsleigh & Kingsleigh company..."

Alice's objectives for the day were clear: to meet with the Ambassador again, and to sell her family's grandfather clock at a good price while she was in Pekin. There she could find a better price than in any shop at the port.

That had been her mother's idea.

As co-owner of the company, Helen was the first choice to go together with Alice, but she had given her place to James, as a chance for the young first mate to gain more experience and confidence. She also didn't dare to leave Margaret's side just yet.

Alice agreed, and sent word to James to get dressed formally, pack a change of clothes and get ready for his first travel to Pekin.

She also called for Tom and a few others of the crew to her lodging, so they could carry the clock to the station.

Margaret had volunteered to sign any new letters that arrived in Alice's absence, with the permission and guidance of her mother. It would keep her mind off of things, and the help was welcome for Alice.

She, along with Helen, was there to see Alice and James off.

Tom, Harper and some other members of the crew were done making sure the grandfather clock was safely loaded into the cargo wagon, and were now laughing along with James. His uniform was better than new, his hair neatly combed, his boots reflected the sunlight, but also attracted all kinds of teasing remarks from his fellow sailors.

Alice saw them laughing and pushing each other in a friendly manner, with Tom trying to dirty James' boots with his muddy shoes.

She was not of free of tormentors either, though hers were far more caring but no less overbearing.

"Remember Alice, if the Ambassador makes you feel uncomfortable again, there's no shame in telling him you're most honest opinion of him and slamming the door in his pretentious face. " Helen fixed her daughter's shirt and rubbed her left cheek with her handkerchief.

Alice's outfit was similar in style to the one she had worn in the Ascot's reunion long ago, but this was made of red, green and white silks.

Though it wouldn't have been her first choice if she had been the wearer, Helen had come to appreciate Alice's style.

She knew Charles would have loved it too.

"That's not some very sensible business advice, mother." Alice said, moving her face away from Helen's motherly cares. "Next thing I know, you will advice James to hold the Ambassador while I punch him."

"Did you eavesdrop on our conversation?" asked Helen, pretending to be surprised. "That, of course, should be your last resource. Firstly, you should try reaching an agreement; it won't be too pleasant, but sometimes we must endure before we can advance."

Helen put Alice's hair behind her ears and looked at her the same way she did when Alice was just a child.

But her daughter was far from being one anymore.

The sole thought brought Helen happiness and nostalgia alike.

"Look at me, giving you cheeky pieces of advice you don't need." She rested one hand on Alice's head. "You'll know how to proceed, I'm sure of that."

"Oh, that she will. In a quite unorthodox manner as always, I'm sure." Margaret stood next to her mother. She still had much of her strength to regain, but she had enough energy to mock her sister. For Alice, that was a clear sign she was recovering. "Yet, it has worked well for her for many years, so why stop now?"

"Margaret… approving of my methods?" asked Alice, looking at her sister as if she had a bug on her face. "Mother, I believe she is raving because of the fever."

"If I got paid every time I've said the same about you, dear sister..." Replied Margaret.

"Behave, you two." Scolded Helen without meaning it.

The train whistle went off, announcing its departing.

Patiently waiting while forming a line, people began to board it.

It was time for Alice to say goodbye. She hugged her mother and sister and picked up the small suitcase where she had stuffed her change of clothes and some personal items.

James, with a satchel hanging from his shoulder, approached them along with the crew. He bowed his head to Helen and Margaret, and asked them to take care in their absence. When he looked up, he accidentally made eye contact with Margaret, and his ears became red as cherries.

He looked away and stood besides Alice.

His captain's sister muttered something to her mother, making her giggle.

Meanwhile, the crew saluted Alice with the same respect they showed her every time she went ashore.

"Travel well, Captain!" they exclaimed in unison.

"At ease, we'll be back by tomorrow's morning." Said Alice, marching in front of them from one side to the other. "So try not to get too drunk tonight and throw yourselves into the sea to swim after imaginary mermaids. Yes, I'm talking to you, Tom."

The sailors laughed while Tom explained that, real or imagined, his mermaids had been worth the cold he got after.

The line to get on board grew smaller. James and Alice got their tickets ready.

"Take care of each other." Remarked Helen in the last second.

Margaret waved them goodbye.

"We will." Reassured Alice before the wagon's door closed behind her. The last thing she saw was her mother's face.

It didn't matter how many expeditions Alice made, she knew that to her mother, every departure felt the same as the first.

"My lady, is that a tear in your eye?" Asked James, taking something out of his pocket "May I offer you my handkerchief to wipe it off? Seriously though, you can use it if you are really crying…"

Smiling, Alice gave him a light punch in the shoulder. Before she could stop him, James took her suitcase from her hand and helped her carry it. Not seeing the point in arguing about it, she decided to grant him his courtesy just on that occasion.

"It's only two hours of travel, right?" Said James as they searched for their seats in an overcrowded wagon filled with the stench of smoke and the tingling of porcelain cups.

"Why? Are you not fond of train travels, Harcourt?" Asked Alice, finding their seats between a fat man snoring loudly with a newspaper in his hand, and a woman cooling her head with a golden fan.

James accommodated the suitcase and his satchel under the seats before answering. His forehead was beaded with sweat.

"Not really. Back in London, I preferred to travel by carriage; I sometimes walked too, if the time and the distance allowed it. The rail tracks tend to make me a little sick, you see."

"You get sick on trains but not while on the ship?" Asked Alice, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes." Admitted James, shrugging his arms. "What can I say? My stomach works in mysterious ways."

"Considering your work , it's pretty convenient. Imagine if you were an engine driver."

"I try not to."

The train started moving. The sleeping man behind them grunted and almost woke up, but he instead rambled something in his sleep and remained lost in his dreams.

His snoring was almost louder than the train's engine. The rest of the passengers were no less noisy. It didn't take long before babies began to cry.

Alice looked at James with the corner of her eye. He was sitting stiffly, pale as wax.

"Are you alright?"

James swallowed and nodded with a smile.

Back in London, Alice knew all of his travels on train must have been in first class, free of the uproar of the multitude and with a cup of tea served to him every hour.

Sick as they had made him feel, those travels were true luxuries compared to his current situation.

All of his old life was.

James's stomach grumbled.

"But… I didn't have breakfast." Stuttered James.

"Thank goodness you are sitting next to the window." Said Alice, patting him gently in the back. "But we better not let it come to that. Is there something that can make you feel better?"

"Reading."

"Reading makes you feel better when you are dizzy?"

"Yes."

"Your metabolism is topsy-turvy indeed."

Alice had brought no books to distract herself during the travel. The Ambassador's sudden invitation had left little time to worry about matters of the sort.

An idea came to Alice's mind. She turned around on her seat and, after making sure the man was still deeply asleep, she took the newspaper from his hands.

"That wasn't very moral." Said James, accepting the newspaper and unfolding it. "But morality will not put my stomach to rest, so thank you kindly."

"You are welcome. And we'll give it back, don't worry." Assured Alice.

"Hey, there's no need to act all holier than me."

James' face regained color as he skimmed through the pages. Alice knew the news didn't make much sense to him in chinese, but it was a good practice to hone his reading skill.

She was about to suggest him to read it out loud so he could practice his speaking too, but James hold her by the arm and stared blankly at the newspaper.

"Alice…" he said with a faint thread of voice.

"Oh no." she muttered. "To the window, James! Aim to the window!"

"It's not about that!" Exclaimed James, a little embarrassed by the attention Alice had drawn upon him. He handed the newspaper to Alice and pointed at the image of a well dressed man standing in front of a manor.

Alice knew him.

She had visited that manor ever since childhood.

She read the headline out loud in Chinese. James understood a part of it, but he had to ask for a translation.

"Ascot Company out of business: Hamish Ascot suspected of illegal trading."

It felt strange, pronouncing those words. She felt no interest in reading the rest of the article.

"It's over." Alice said with her mouth dry. "Hamish's company…"

From then on, Lord Ascot's company would be nothing more than a thing of the past, a subject of trivial conversation for future generations of merchants.

"It was inevitable in retrospect." Stated James coldly, wishing to know the details of the news, but lacking the heart to hurry Alice up. "No matter how prosperous a company is, if it's led by incompetent hands, its days are counted. I saw many lords inheriting their companies to their children, always out of sentiment or tradition rather than good judgment. They all fell in the end."

Alice put the newspaper on the seat and stared out the window.

James didn't pick it up, and wondered if he had spoken too much like the lawyer he had once been.

The news stung Alice no less than they should, but a lot more than she would have expected.

Her new company and the Kingsleigh & Kingsleigh carried on her father's true spirit, but a part of his essence, of the man he had been, would always be linked with the Ascots and their company.

To see the work of Lord Ascot's lifetime come to such an end felt almost unnatural to Alice, and it was mostly undeserved. He had always been nice to her. She would never resent the father for the actions of his son.

"It's strange." Finally said Alice after a long pause. "Ever since my mother and I started our company, I thought that seeing Hamish out business would feel like a victory. I thought it would be the ultimate payback for all the pain he put us through. But now, I feel nothing of the sort, and what I do feel doesn't make me happy at all."

"Alice, you don't have to feel bad for Hamish. He brought it upon himself."

"But his father deserved better."

James' sympathy bloomed at the mention of his former boss, his true boss. Not for Hamish, but for the legacy he had destroyed.

Alice was right: the Ascot's fall brought no comfort at all.

"There's nothing we can do for the company now, but we can remember Lord Ascot with the respect he deserves." James stated.

"He gave me my first chance to set sail. He thought I was as crazy as my father, but he never doubted me." Alice smiled and scratched her eye, hoping James wouldn't see the tear and offer her his handkerchief.

James didn't notice. He was too distracted in his own memories.

"The time I worked for him was short, but it was also one the best parts of my life in London. I mourned him, but I never talked with anyone about his death until now."

"Why not?" asked Alice.

"I didn't have anyone to talk to." Said James, looking down.

"I was the same."

James said nothing and kept looking at his boots. Alice wondered if the wound was still too fresh for him to speak freely about it.

"James, do you miss your life in London?"

It wasn't the most trivial subject to cheer up the mood, but the question had lingered too long on Alice's mind to keep quiet about it anymore.

James' eyes slowly met with Alice's. Alice knew by his expression that he hadn't given much thought to the matter at all, so she gave him more time think by elaborating her question a bit more.

"You left it all behind and entered very different life. It's almost as if…"

"As if I was running away?" Inquired James neutrally.

"I didn't mean …" Alice bit her tongue, regretting her poor choice of words.

James spoke with his usual friendliness.

"Let's see, I had a decent apartment, three warm meals every day, a stable routine, and my pay was nothing to be ashamed of. I dare to say most lawyers my age don't see that kind of payment until they enter their forties."

James used his fingers to count the things that were once his life. "And don't forget the comfortable train travels. I always had my own cabinet and a bucket for my sickness. I would be lying if I said I don't miss those things every once in a while."

If he was trying to make it all sound like a joke, then he was failing miserably. Alice thought of telling him that if he missed it that much, he could go back to it whenever he felt like it.

"But there's one thing I don't miss at all. It's one of the two things that keep me from ever going back."

"What is it?" Asked Alice, not sure if to feel offended or interested.

"The man that I was." James' shame made it impossible for him to continue looking at Alice. "The man I had become even before I started working with Lord Ascot. Maybe I'm running away from him."

Alice couldn't believe in what James was saying at first. How bad of a man could someone like him ever have been? That was if he had ever been bad at all. James had a tendency to exaggerate his mistakes and faults, after all.

"You are being too hard on yourself, as usual."

"No, I'm not." Reassured James firmly. "The things I did, always objecting it was in the name of my profession, always seeing people as nothing more than names and signatures in a contract. Always ready to obey and counsel corrupt lords, always ignoring the unfairness of a deal as long as I got my pay at the end of the day."

"James."

"You saw it yourself, when you went to the Ascot Manor after your return from China." Alice couldn't see it, but his eyes were shinning. "He humiliated you and threatened to take the Wonder away. I could have intervened; I could have pointed out a flaw on his procedure, an error on his logic. I could have at least spoken against his childish idiocy. But what did I do? Nothing, I just watched."

Alice wavered. She remembered James standing behind her. At that time, she had never expected him to speak in her favor, but now that she knew he'd had the intention but had lacked the courage, Alice understood the source of his guilt a lot better.

Gently, she put a hand on his shoulder.

"That's in the past. You are a different person now."

"Am I?"

"You wouldn't be here with me otherwise."

"Alice." He thought of holding her hand, but he held back. There was something he had to do first. "I need to tell you- "

His stomach grumbled. Thankfully for both of them and the rest of the passengers nearby, it was out of hunger.

"You're stomach is more eloquent than you, James." Joked Alice as she took her suitcase from under the seats and opened it. "Let's see, I think I packed a box with biscuits somewhere."

But what Alice found instead was more bound to make James sneeze rather than killing his hunger.

Peacefully asleep on top her change of clothes, which were already covered with shedding, was her nameless kitten.

Only that she was no longer so nameless anymore.

"Dinah!" Exclaimed Alice, holding the cat in her hands.

"Who?"

"The kitten."

"You brought it?" James asked, a little puzzled and keeping his face a far as he could from the animal.

"Yes, you never know when a cat may come in handy."

"I can think of a couple of scenarios where a cat doesn't fit at all, Alice."

"It was a joke, James."

"All right, but I still don't understand how you pack a cat without noticing it."

"I was really stressed out. She must have sneaked in when I wasn't looking. You can blame this on the Ambassador and his urgent message."

Dinah moved her paw towards Alice and gnawed at her finger with her tiny fangs. Her playfulness didn't allow James or Alice to be angry at her for much time, and soon she was sleeping again on Alice's lap.

"So... Dinah?" Asked James after blowing his nose.

"I used to have a cat with the same name when I was a child. She was a great pet, and my best friend." Alice explained.

"It's a good name, much better than Mao." Agreed James, petting the kitten quickly with only one finger. "Since you have told me her name, I guess this means it's time for me to fulfill to my part of the deal."

"What are you saying, Harcourt?"

"Why is a raven like a writing desk?" Said James, closing his eyes and concentrating.

Alice, with all the chaos that had happened in the morning, had put the whole matter about the riddle deep below her list of priorities. It surprised her that James remembered it at all. Most people she had told the riddle to found the whole thing so nonsensical that they saw no point in musing about it for more than a minute.

"It took me most of the night, but I think I figured it out." James talked with the impetus of a child. "My first conclusion was that Poe had written on both of them. What's more, the poem and the riddle have something in common: they both keep me up at night."

Alice listened with attention. James became a bit intimidated, so he continued before he lost his courage.

"But then I thought of a simpler answer, that both have inky quills."

Alice giggled. She seemed amused

James become inspired and carried on.

"I was happy with it, but then I thought: am I being too simple? So there you have me, with my head on the pillow, trying to find a more detailed answer, and I got to this : Because it can produce a few notes, though they are very flat; and it is never put with the wrong end in front. So very refined of me, but then it hit me immediately after: Now I was being too elaborated."

"So you rejected both?" Asked Alice.

"Indeed. But in doing so, I figured out the answer." Explained James with solemnity. "By then, I had spent hours trying to find an answer, pouring the same amount of thought on it as if it was a scientific matter, and that precisely had been my mistake."

"What do you mean?"

"I was searching too seriously for something that maybe required not much logic at all." James explained. "The riddle makes no sense, so I can't find a correct answer for it, or a wrong one. And by having no possible answer, then that was the answer all along! So here's my answer: there's no answer!"

James raised his arms to add impact to his not-answer.

He was breathless and filled with pride about his conclusion, though he had to admit it sounded much better in his imagination than in his mouth. That's what happened when there was too much repetition in a sentence, but he hoped the cacophony hadn't killed his answer.

Alice stared at him, and James couldn't tell if she was surprised or if she was mocking him.

"Or maybe I don't have enough wit to figure it out and I'm just trying to defend my argument at all costs, which wouldn't be surprising at all… Curse these lawyer habits of mine."

Alice laughed, making Dinah's ears twitch. The man sleeping behind them giggled quickly in his sleep, while the woman with the fan looked over her shoulder to see what was so funny.

"You actually thought about it!" Alice barely had any air left to speak.

"That…that was the point, wasn't it?" James scratched the back of his head. "Did I do it wrong… that isn't what I was supposed to do? I missed the point of it all, didn't I?"

"No, James." Alice put a hand on his arm. "You did it right! I'm not laughing at you, it's just that you are the second person who tried to find an answer without thinking it was a waste of time, and… that makes me happy. Thank you."

"I should thank you too." Said James.

"What for?"

"For sharing it with me. The riddle took hours away of my night, but it was time well spent."

"Smooth talker."

"That's the other reason I don't want to go back to London." James continued, without minding Alice's teasing. "Even when we are on the ship just charting constellations, or walking around the market without any money to buy anything, or here on the train solving senseless riddles… We could be doing anything, but I never feel like I'm wasting my time when I'm with you. I hope you feel the same."

James' heart was beating so hard he feared Alice could hear it. He played with his thumbs with desperation, digging his nail so hard on a knuckle it started to bleed.

Maybe he had spoken too much.

If he transformed that whole moment into awkwardness, he wouldn't forgive himself.

Alice held his injured hand and caressed away a drop of blood.

"James." She whispered, with her eyes fixed on the wound. Her sad tone took him by surprise. "Tarrant."

The train's breaks shrieked and penetrated deep into their ears. The sudden stop caused most of the passengers to hit their heads against the window and fall to the floor. Suitcases and purses gathered in front of the wagon and crashed against the wall like cannonballs.

The few passengers that managed to stay on their seats, like Alice and James, were too shocked to think clearly for a few seconds.

The only ones who couldn't care less about the chaos were Dinah and the Sleeping man, both lost in their sleep like drunkards after a celebration.

"Are you all right?" James asked Alice.

"If I survived dozens of pirate attacks, I think I'll get out of this one just fine." Said Alice, closing her eyes and rubbing the back of her neck.

"True enough." Said James, knowing the hit on his forehead would hurt a lot more in the morning.

One of the train's workers entered the wagon and informed them that, due to mechanical inconveniences, the train wouldn't move for an hour or more. The passengers hissed at him, throwing insults and questions at him without mercy.

The worker asked them to be patient, and insisted that the engine driver was already trying to fix the malfunctions. He then ran away, before the passengers desired to lynch him.

Alice kept her composure, but she found it hard not to share the same annoyance than the rest of the passengers.

Everything was going well, and now that had to happen.

"Great, just what I needed." She grunted, stomping her feet on the ground. "Remind me to buy myself a good luck charm once we get to Pekin, I could certainly use one right now."

" Don't worry, I'm sure the Ambassador will understand if we are late." Said James .

"You sweet, innocent child."

"So much for my optimism, then."

"You'll understand once you met him. Business matters transforms the nicest of people into hungry sharks. "

"Hey, you are talking to an ex-lawyer, remember?"

"I can't argue with that."

They waited ten minutes, but the train didn't move.

Then an hour passed, but nothing changed.

"This is going to take a while. A lot more than the engine driver may wish to admit." Alice said, with her back against the seat.

James was blowing air to his head with the newspaper, and had at one moment joked with Alice about borrowing the fan from the lady in front of them, who had fallen asleep due to the strong heat.

"As long as it doesn't take until midnight." Complained James.

"Well, if it does come to that, maybe we should find a way to pass the time." Suggested Alice.

"You are right. Did you bring a pack of cards? I could use some practice. Tom and Harper keep winning my money every time we play."

"Do you want to hear my story?" Alice asked.

The newspaper slipped from James' hand. He thought he had misheard.

Alice asked again, and knew he hadn't. Being stuck in a hot train together with angry strangers wasn't the situation he would have preferred for that moment, but…

"Are you sure?"

"I think I am." Said Alice, feeling some doubt within, but still willing to give it a chance.

"This story is very special to you, isn't it?" Said James, trying to find the words. "Are you sure you want to entrust it to me?"

"Of course, James." Alice grabbed his hand. "We are friends, right?"

James nodded, but didn't answer.

"Alice, I will gladly listen to your story." James' tone became serious, almost repentant. He squeezed her hand a bit. "But I need you to tell you mine first. Only then you will decide what happens next, or if you ever want to talk to me ever again."

Alice couldn't understand what James was saying, but she comprehended it caused him much pain. It also made her uneasy.

James implied that what he was about to tell her could create a rift between them, one too big to ever cross.

She didn't want that. Not at all.

With an anxious heart, she took the risk and let James tell her what he had kept silent for so long.

"It's a story…" Started James, struggling to find the courage to pronounce every word. "…about a man, a lawyer. But above all, it's about a man who saw much , talked much, but always did nothing. And people paid the price of his indifference, and the price was steep."