Captain Nemo_ The Fantastic History of a Dark Genius - Kevin J Anderson [133]
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Pierre Verne and his son sat in silence together in the withdrawing room after an exquisite dinner his mother had prepared. They each drank a glass of tawny port, each puffed on a cigar. Nothing would ever change, and the elder Verne seemed to prefer it that way.
Scratching his sideburns, the elder Verne sat shrouded in a contented, peaceful silence of routine as he read the Nantes newspaper. With his son beside him, the gruff older man enjoyed the luxury of making pointed and opinionated comments about the news of the day. He read the headlines aloud -- “Treaty of Paris signed” -- and grumbled his appreciation. “It’s about time this whole Crimean debacle ended.” He jabbed the paper with a fingertip. “I knew that once Tsar Nicholas died, his son Alexander II would prove more reasonable.”
Verne perked up. “Is it true then? The war is at an end?”
“What an awful mess for three years.” The older man shook his head. He continued to read as if he hadn’t even heard his son’s questions. “Ah! Here’s another triumph for France.” While Verne waited, his father took a long puff on his cigar and exhaled a heady-sweet cloud. “Ferdinand de Lesseps, a French diplomat and engineer, has been selected to undertake the largest excavation project in the history of mankind.”
“Greater than the pyramids of Egypt?” Verne asked, as he was expected to. He knew all the rules of conversation with his father.
“Pasha Mohammed Said has granted permission to excavate a channel across the Suez Isthmus. It’ll take years, but someday ships will be able to sail directly from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and down into the Indian Ocean. That cuts six thousand miles off the journey from Europe to China.” He took a drink of the tawny port. “Good thing a French engineer is in charge.”
“A Suez Canal? There’ll be enormous repercussions for world trade,” Verne said, trying to keep up his end of the conversation. “I wonder if Caroline Hatteras has heard the news, since it will have a dramatic effect on her shipping company.” His father muttered an acknowledgment.
Now that the Crimean War was over, Nemo would be returning home. It was entirely possible that his friend’s experience as an accomplished engineer might land him a prestigious assignment on de Lesseps’ crew. It would be wonderful if Nemo could help accomplish such a magnificent undertaking . . . and it would also keep him in Egypt, far from France and Caroline.
Though nine years had passed without word from Captain Hatteras, Caroline still refused to go through the formality of declaring herself a widow -- at least not so long as Nemo remained away. . . .
“Father, we must consider my future,” he said abruptly. The elder Verne looked up at his son, bushy eyebrows knit in puzzlement, though Jules knew he was aware of the situation. He had written home often enough about his dreams for a palatable livelihood. “I have studied all the information, sir, spoken with all the appropriate people. I’m certain that I have discovered a way for us to become rich.” His words came out like pattering hailstones. “A true career that will be engrossing to me, and successful, too.”
“The stock market?” his father said. “Yes, yes, you mentioned something about that in a letter.” His voice was unwelcoming, but the younger Verne did not allow himself to be dismayed. To him, anything -- even working in a stock exchange -- seemed preferable to becoming a country lawyer.
“If you have enough faith in me to put up the money, I can invest in a brokerage house,” Verne continued. “I will handle my own securities, as well as my family’s and friends’.”
“And how can I be sure you know what you’re doing? You have spent years training to be an attorney,” Pierre Verne said, still devoting most of his attention to the newspaper. “What is wrong with being a lawyer? Will you not change your mind again in a month?”
Verne took a sip of the syrupy port. It burned at the back of his throat. “Father,