The Firebird Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page B

an octopus and a... Well, never mind. Shall we board?’
    The vessel was as sleek as a fish. It measured some thirty feet and was half as wide. The cigar-shaped balloon was gold with six silver braces running along the length of it. Manoeuvring fins were attached to the upper part of the balloon on both sides of the stern. The lozenge-shaped gondola clung to the underbelly like a limpet to a rock.
    The gondola was brass and timber with large square windows. Underneath it lay twin tubes that shot steam behind the vessel to propel it forward. Beneath these were four horizontal pipes to discharge the smoke from the engine, as well as a pair of landing skids. A stylised profile of a lion decorated the bow with the registration number— 1887 —appearing underneath.
    Mr Doyle led them around to the rear of the airship. He disengaged a handle situated where the gondola connected to the balloon. A puff of steam spat out as the entire end, attached by two straps, dropped down to reveal steps.
    The vessel swayed as they entered the interior. It had two chambers. A glass wall divided the living room from the engine and bridge. This first area had a number of curtains secured against the sides. Jack realised they could be untied to create individual rooms. A small galley lay at the front and a round table in the middle surrounded by revolving armchairs attached to the floor. Foldaway beds lined the sides of the chamber. Handrails were attached to the walls.
    I’m in paradise , Jack thought. Covering his mouth, he hoped Scarlet didn’t notice him grinning like a loon.
    If the other children at the orphanage could see me now!
    Ignatius Doyle led them to the bridge. Here was the heart of the Lion’s Mane : a big barrel-vault steam chamber made from cast iron. The coal for it sat stacked in a box. Before it lay the steering wheel, a brass and timber construction with twelve handles around the outer edge. The device attached to a pedestal that disappeared into the floor.
    The control panel matched the steering wheel. More brass and timber. It was a sleek arc of polished wood with an inlay of dials and navigational aids. Jack had no idea what they did. The only one he recognised was a compass. He pulled out his own and checked it against the Lion’s Mane .
    Right on target , he thought. Not out by a skerrick.
    Mr Doyle pushed a few buttons on the main control panel. ‘I started the boiler earlier, so this shouldn’t take very long.’ The vessel shuddered as steam mushroomed from beneath. The needles on a dozen dials wavered to attention. ‘Now I will release the mooring cables. First the front. Now the rear.’
    Jack looked out the bridge window and saw the cables fall away; they had a claw on their ends that snapped open from the clamps anchored to the roof of the building. The Lion’s Mane started. Within moments it had drifted away from the roof and along Bee Street.
    Jack turned to his mentor. ‘What a time to be alive!’
    â€˜Steam.’ Mr Doyle shot him a smile. ‘Where would we be without it?’

CHAPTER FIVE
    The airship sailed over the city. ‘I had to apply for a passenger pilot’s licence,’ Mr Doyle explained. ‘I’m now qualified to fly an airship containing up to sixteen passengers.’
    â€˜You’re a man of many talents,’ Scarlet said.
    A thought occurred to Jack. ‘Were you in the war, Mr Doyle?’
    â€˜I was.’
    â€˜And what did you do?’
    Mr Doyle did not answer for so long that Jack thought he hadn’t heard. He turned away from the view and looked into the man’s face. He saw a frozen expression, as if the detective were staring into the past.
    â€˜I commanded a regiment in France,’ he finally said. ‘Many men served under me. Young men. Good men.’ He said the words stiffly, struggling to put the sentences together. ‘We fought many battles. Some we won. Others we lost.’ He