Read Online Jani and the Greater Game (The Multiplicity Series Book 1) by Eric Brown - Free Book Online

blisteringly hot summer’s day in early July 1925, had passed without mishap, though the crack platoon of Gloucestershire Rifles was ever vigilant.
    Pausing only for an hour to deposit and collect passengers at Karachi, the Mail began the central leg of its journey across the parched wastes of the Gujarati desert to the capital city of Delhi. The fourth carriage along from the hulking engine, bracketed by the buffet car and a first class compartment, was the hospital carriage, its cambered roof marked with a red cross.
    Jani felt the comforting thrum of the engine and the cooling waft of the overhead fan as she lay in bed. Through the window she had a magnificent view of the rolling desert; to her right was a sliding door which gave onto a passage along which nurses in bright white uniforms bustled back and forth.
    She recalled the crash of the airship and the chaotic aftermath, her meeting with the creature called Jelch and how it had saved her life.
    She sat up. A passing nurse saw her and entered the room, smiling. The nurse wore a starched white pinafore dress marked with a red cross and a strange paper hat like an elaborate example of origami.
    “So you’re awake at last, my dear. And you surviving that terrible bump, a little dot like you. Those Russians have a lot to answer for, and no mistake.”
    “They have indeed.”
    The nurse took her temperature and pronounced herself satisfied. “And how are you feeling? You have a bruised back and a swollen ankle.”
    “My back is fine, thank you,” Jani answered. “My ankle...” She turned her foot under the sheets. “Only a little sore. Where am I?”
    “You’re aboard the Peshawar-Madras Mail, my dear, and I’d guess we’re just a couple of hours from Delhi.”
    My father, she thought. “What date is it? How long have I been unconscious?”
    “It’s the 5th, my sweet. You were brought aboard just last night. Oh, you were delirious, I can tell you. But you don’t remember?”
    “Not a thing. Delirious?”
    “Raving and ranting about monsters and such, fair set my blood a-curdle. But after what you went through, I wasn’t a bit surprised. I gave you something to put you to sleep for a while. You must be hungry.”
    “Ravenous. What time is it?”
    “Almost twelve. I’ll go and fetch you some soup. Mulligatawny it is today, with freshly baked white bread.”
    The nurse hurried out and Jani gazed through the window at the passing land. The desert was featureless, and the bright blue sky almost so, except for the cigar-shape of a small airship, its envelope marked with a bold union flag.
    The nurse returned bearing a tray, and Jani struggled upright. The soup smelled wonderful. As the nurse was about to leave, she asked, “And my friend, Lady Eddington?”
    The nurse smiled. “Oh, her Ladyship gave me an earful on the way to Karachi. My word! Brave soul, but she put me in my place and no mistake, demanding to see a commanding officer so that she could arrange for her carriage to be taken down to Delhi and repaired.” The nurse laughed. “She was transferred to the hospital at Karachi to have her leg set.”
    Jani smiled. “I’m pleased to hear that.”
    “And she was full of stories about your good self, my sweet. Sang your praises and called you a real heroine! Oh, before I go... I was told to ask if you were up to being interviewed.”
    Jani halted, her spoon part way to her mouth. “Interviewed?”
    “A certain Brigadier Cartwright is boarding at the next station. He wishes to talk to you about your ordeal.” She consulted the watch pinned to her bib. “We’re due into Chandigarh in a little over one hour.”
    “I’d like to get dressed first, if I may?”
    “Of course. We had your clothes washed last night, though your dress is a little the worse for wear.”
    In due course the nurse left. Jani spooned her soup and devoured the crusty roll, and it was the finest meal she’d tasted in a long time.
    She could guess what this Brigadier