Henry Wood: Time and Again: by Brian Meeks Read Free Book Online

minutes later, Henry was reading all about Catherine the Great.
    Catherine took power when her husband, Peter III, was deposed in a conspiracy. This was all very interesting, but didn’t seem relevant. A thought crossed Henry’s mind. He knew so little about the list of names that it was hard to tell if any of the history of her life might be important. Still, there wasn’t much else to do before meeting Katarina for dinner, so he continued for another two hours.
    Henry’s head was swimming with miscellaneous facts and bits of Russian history. His second wind was gone, and he yawned as he closed up the third book. He walked past a couple of NYU students who were more focused on studying one another than their physics. The young man had his hand on her elbow and was whispering something in the blonde’s ear. She was giggling. It was nice.
    The front desk was quiet now. Henry walked up and placed the books on the counter.
    “Hello, Marian, how are you today?”
    “Mr. Wood,” she said in a quiet voice. “It's nice to see you today. Were the books helpful?”
    “I enjoyed them, but I'm not sure if I'm on the right track.”
    There was a glint in her eye. “Are you working on a case?”
    Henry knew she liked to live vicariously through his adventures. He didn’t feel like telling her he was his own client doing a job that felt like an anvil on his chest.
    “Yes, it's a case. A real puzzler.”
    “Oh, how exciting! May I ask how Catherine the Great is mixed up in your case?”
    “I'm not sure she is; it's just a hunch. It was something I read.”
    “A clue?” she said, hopeful, in a voice which was a bit too loud. If she hadn’t been so excited, she might have shushed herself.
    Henry held up one finger to his mouth, with a smile. Marian blushed and looked down at her feet.
    Henry pulled his notebook out and flipped to the passage about Catherine. He slid it across the counter. Marian’s blush faded as she picked it up. She tilted her head to one side and pulled a pencil out from the bun in her hair. She tapped it lightly on the counter, the wood end making a slight rapping noise.
    She asked, “Are you sure it’s spelled correctly?”
    “I got the notes second hand, but Catherine is spelled the same as it was in the books.”
    “That isn’t what I meant. Could it be ‘Antikythera’?”
    Henry wasn’t sure what she had just said, but he didn’t want to let on. So he fixed a pensive look on his face in the hope she might elaborate if he didn’t respond right away.
    “I don’t know what ‘Anti Catherine’ means, but maybe the person didn’t know how to spell ‘Antikythera’?”
    Henry decided to end his own suffering, even if it tarnished his image in Marian’s eyes. “I think that is reasonable, as I don’t know how to spell ‘Anti...’ In fact, I don’t know how to say it, or what you're talking about.”
    Marian gave Henry a pat on the hand, “It’s okay…not many people do. It's a fascinating story...”
    A woman with books on gardening was now standing behind Henry. Marian gave her a smile and said, “I'll be right with you.” She looked back at Henry and continued, “...The story would take a little while to explain. Why don’t I find some information about it for you? It’s starting to get busy. Maybe you could come back tomorrow?”
    Henry turned his head and said, “Sorry Miss,” then smiled at Marian. “I'll see you tomorrow.”
    He tipped his hat and walked towards the door. Heading out of the building, he had a good feeling about this “anti” thingy. He was anxious to learn what she was talking about…then he spied Patience and decided that it was an omen, or, at the very least, some good advice.
    He turned his thoughts to Katarina.
     

 
     
     
    Chapter Twelve
     
    Arthur’s assumption of displeasure at the update had proven to be correct.
    The staff hid while Arthur ate his breakfast, seemingly immune to the screaming from his employer. During the rant, a bone