Revolutionary Magic (with Bonus Content) by Thomas K. Carpenter

in tailcoats and wigs sat at tables across from scandalously clad women leaning strategically to showcase their ample flesh as they sipped from porcelain teacups.
    Ben raised an eyebrow in my direction. "Not your first time?"
    "I'm not an innocent flower," I said, giving him the proper amount of scowl. "Though I've never been in this one."
    The silvery-haired madam came sweeping down the wide, carpeted stairs. Her attire contrasted with the clothing of her girls. Buttons climbed up the front of her dress, right to her neck on the stiff fabric. One could almost imagine a well-worn riding crop in her hand. When her gaze fell upon Ben, she flinched, but kept going as if nothing was wrong.
    " Temple ," she said, spearing him with her gaze. This woman knew his real identity, that much was clear. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Her lips twisted the last word into an insult.
    "Madam Maria, the place has changed. Your finances seem to have improved. As has your clientele." Ben nodded towards a man in a top hat who might have been a Senator.
    "The Magdelen House is quite self-sufficient now," said Madam Maria with her chin tilted upward.
    Ben spoke in a low tone. "Be careful, Madam. She brings with her terrible danger."
    Maria's lips soured. "Danger only to fools that try to use her. So your warning is unnecessary. Or did you come to visit to proffer this obvious advice?"
    "I came to see her," said Ben softly.
    A laugh exited Maria's lips that could have split a hunk of wood. It brought glances from the patrons of the establishment, but not her girls.
    "You think she would see you after what you've done?"
    "I saved her," said Ben.
    Madam Maria was about to speak when a young boy, no older than ten, came running up and whispered in her ear. The tendons on the madam's neck tightened as she listened.
    She stood tall and stretched her chin upward, looking down upon Ben. "It seems she was expecting you. The lady will see you now," she said, her voice crystalline with frost.
    The boy ran up the stairs, motioning for us to follow though it appeared Ben knew the way quite well. Ben pulled me along. The madam's gaze flickered across me as if she'd only just noticed I was standing there. Whatever history they shared, it was a contentious one, that much was clear.
    When the boy left us outside the door, Ben turned to me, his face gravely serious. "Remember what I told you and say nothing while we're inside."
    Before he put his hand on the door, he pulled an object from an inside pocket and cradled it in his hand against his side. We stepped through the door.
    The cavernous room extended into the shadows. My surprise at the vast space was only outmatched by the volume of water in the stone lined pool at the center of the room. The warm, wet air reminded me of time spent in verdant jungles, the richness of the foliage overwhelming and clogging my nose until breathing became difficult.
    The water wrinkled with movement. Something moved through the water towards us.
    "Greetings, Chloris," said Ben, staring at the floor near his boots. "It has been far too long, my friend."
    A woman's voice, musical and soft, filled the room. I kept my gaze on my hands clasped at my waist.
    "Benjamin, once again you prove yourself by coming only when you need something. If we'd truly been friends, you would have visited before now," said Chloris.
    I sensed the woman in the water, right at the edge of my vision. It was tempting to look, just a glance, to get an idea of what she looked like.
    "I can only give you my heartfelt apology at my absence. Things have become more dangerous, which has been keeping me busy," said Ben.
    "Busy," she said, laughing, the trill of her voice wrapping vines around my mind, pulling at my neck to lift up so I could see. "Busy swiping at shadows. Busy spinning in circles. The wise Benjamin Franklin is as blind as the stones beneath your feet."
    "Yet a stone path can lead a man to his destination," said Ben. "I won't disagree. I have been