To Dream Again Read Online Free PDF

head in an almost embarrassed acknowledgment of the praise. "Thank ye, guv'nor."
    Nathaniel pushed aside a tinplate carousel and a wind-up toy dog and continued to delve through the pile on his desk. "Now where did I put it?"
    Two books slid off the edge and hit the floor, but Nathaniel paid no heed. He opened drawers one by one, pulling out items as he searched. He knew he'd taken his wallet out of his jacket the day before and put it somewhere near his desk, but he couldn't remember quite where. A white silk cravat, a toy steam engine, and his favorite shaving brush were all tossed aside before he gave an exclamation of triumph.
    "There it is!" He pulled out his wallet and began to count out money for Boggs. "I believe two pounds and ten was the fee we agreed on?"
    "Yes, sir."
    Nathaniel placed the money in the workman's hand. He then tossed the wallet onto a nearby shelf where it landed between the music box with the dancing clowns on top and his beloved Stradivarius violin.
    Boggs and his son departed. Nathaniel pulled two bottles of beer and a tin of sweet biscuits from the crate of supplies Mrs. O'Brien had purchased for him. He walked back over to the table with the refreshments and placed a beer on the table beside Michael, who held the toy out to him. "It is the motor. Drive belt slipped off, and I can't quite reach it."
    Nathaniel set down his beer and the tin of biscuits and took the locomotive from Michael. Holding it beneath the light of the lamp on the table, he peered at the electric motor inside. He tried to slip the belt back into place, but he couldn't reach it either. "I hate to disassemble it for such a minor problem."
    Michael shrugged and took a swallow of beer. "Forget it. Show it to me some other day." He went across the room to the sofa and chairs by the fireplace, pushed a rumpled newspaper off one of the chairs, and sat down. "You haven't changed much, although you've lost your stutter, I noticed."
    "Ten years of practice. Without Adrian around, it was easier to conquer it." Nathaniel smiled slightly. "But it still plagues me from time to time."
    "What brings you back to England?"
    "I intend to make toys again," he said, following Michael across the room and taking a seat on the sofa.
    "What?"
    Nathaniel nodded. He set down his beer, grabbed a handful of biscuits, and leaned back. "The train is too good an idea to sell to somebody else. I want to manufacture it myself."
    Michael pulled a biscuit from the tin. "In your last letter to me you said your toy company in St. Louis failed," he reminded gently. "Are you sure you want to try again?"
    "Yes," Nathaniel answered without hesitation. "I'm buying into the electrical equipment factory right next door. I'm making the train."
    "Is your brother putting up the money? I can't believe he would agree to back you!"
    Nathaniel grinned. "I haven't asked him."
    Michael stared at him. "Then where shall you find the money? I thought you'd lost everything."
    "I sold the patents on about half my inventions to raise capital. I'm forming a partnership with the owner of the factory next door. Man named James Elliot. I met him in San Francisco a few months ago. He'd heard about me, and he came to see me. He told me he was interested in making some of my inventions, and he proposed a partnership. That's why I came back to England."
    "Your brother isn't involved in this?"
    "God, no! Why would I want to be partners with Adrian again? With the hell I went through after Father died, you think I'd ask Adrian for help?"
    "Wait!" Michael held up one hand. "Do you mean to tell me you intend to compete directly against your brother?"
    Nathaniel laughed. "I'm afraid so."
    "He'll be furious when he finds out what you're up to."
    "Yes, I know." Nathaniel leaned back in his seat and clasped his hands behind his head, giving Michael a wicked grin. "It'll be good for him."
    "I always knew you were crazy."
    "Not that crazy. I want you to come and work for me."
    "What?" Michael's smile