Re-Education - 4. Chapter 4

As we were driving around town to time our arrival, I asked Billy and Scott what they knew about The Duquesne Club. I had heard Dad talking about meeting clients here and I knew that, as much as he might have liked it, membership was never in the cards for Charlie Fowler. If you ran in certain circles, you knew of The Duquesne Club, regardless of what part of the world you called home. Even if you didn’t run in those circles, if you lived within a hundred miles of Pittsburg, you knew what membership there meant.

Billy said, “The Duquesne Club is known around the world and was founded in 1873 as a social gathering organization for the growing group of wealthy industrialists in Pittsburgh. Andrew Carnegie, Andrew Mellon, George Westinghouse, Charles Schwab, and Henry Clay Frick are rumored to be a few of the founding members. The founding members met in a home leased for their club at their present location. Construction of the current building started in 1887 and was completed in 1890, and then expanded in 1931.”

Scott then said, “They voted to admit their first female member in 1980, and the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. The Duquesne Club has hosted four deceased US Presidents, three living former US Presidents, a former Secretary of State, and the current Prince of Wales, as well as numerous stars from entertainment and sports.”

“Sad that they kept women out for so many years. It makes you wonder how business might have been affected if earlier generations had been influenced by a woman’s point of view before Pittsburgh declined,” I said.

We stepped from the Denali, and Tommy told Riva to find parking and relax while he waited for our call. As we stepped under the maroon canopy and walked up the marble steps, I felt a chill. Preparing to cross this historic threshold was intimidating, to say the least; it was also thrilling and somewhat humbling. We passed through the brass revolving door that seemed so majestic and ancient and approached the desk. Billy gave our names to the host, and soon, we were led through the elegant dining areas to a private dining room.

Seated at a table set for four was an overweight man who appeared to be in his late fifties with a large nose and a thin combover attempting to hide the bald expanse that was the top of his head. In my opinion, he would have been better served by embracing his baldness and taking after Patrick Stewart. The only others in the room were two men seated at the only other table in the room. As Tommy had said, he obviously was expecting me to bring marshals, as this table was set for five. The Baron stood as we approached and offered his hand, smiling in what I sensed was a genuine smile.

“Baron Fowler, I presume?”

I shook his offered hand and gave a slight bow from the neck. “My Lord, may I present my mate, Baron Consort Scott Warnick.” Scott mirrored my bow; then I turned to Billy, “And my Lord Steward, William White.”

Before we sat, Baron Pittsburgh looked at Tommy and Vega and said, “Unless the baron objects, you marshals can join mine at the other table.”

Tommy glanced at me, and when I gave him a nod, he and Vega moved to sit with the other marshals.

Baron Pittsburgh, or Baron Evans if you prefer, said, “First, I feel I need to apologize to you, Baron Fowler. When Prince George called me about your using my plane, I didn’t realize you were an unseated baron with no plane of your own. Had I known the entire story, I would have been much more understanding. I do hope you’ll forgive my boorish behavior.”

I got a vague sense of shame from him, so I took his words at face value. “Think no more of it, My Lord. I would actually like to thank you. We arrived in time for me to say goodbye to my human father, and for that, I am eternally grateful.”

He turned to Billy and said, “And I owe you an apology as well, Mr. White. My steward all but slapped me for not telling you that this dinner was not an official meeting. He said he would never forgive me if you came dressed in your official garb and were embarrassed by my oversight.”

Billy fought back a smile as he replied, “It was my error, My Lord. I should have asked. Fortunately, Baronet Warnick gave us sound advice.”

“James is a wise man,” Baron Evans said, then turned to me and asked, “Do you mind if we speak informally, Baron Fowler?”

“I welcome it,” I replied.

“I’m very happy to hear that,” he said. “Most nobles understand when to relax, but there are some who insist on formal court manners at all times. It gets so tedious and prevents us from relaxing and getting to know each other.”

“I would agree, Sir. If I may, I’d like to clarify some points of informal etiquette to prevent any unintended slights.” He nodded, so I asked, “How informal shall we be, Sir? How should William address you?”

“When I say informal, I mean that we speak as if among friends. My name is Padrig Gareth Evans, and I prefer Gareth. That applies to all three of you, gentlemen.”

“Thank you, Gareth. My given name is Charles Gregory Fowler, and I prefer Greg.”

“We’ve met, Gareth, but of course, I would have never used your given name. I am David Scott Warnick, and I prefer Scott.”

“And I am William David White, the third, and it would make me very happy if you called me Billy and forget the third, if you please, My Lord.”

Gareth laughed and said, “Only if you can contain the honorifics, Billy. But I will never fault you for showing class while representing your baron.”

“May I ask you a question of propriety, My, er, Gareth,” Billy asked.

The server appeared and Gareth said, “I’ve taken the liberty of ordering prime rib for all of us. I’m assuming none of you are vegan?” he asked with a grin. “I highly recommend the burgundy they suggested, but please, feel free to choose something else to drink and change your main course as you wish. I promise I will not be offended.”

When I saw the bottle, I laughed, which caused Gareth to give me a questioning look. Scott indicated the bottle and explained, “Our family owns the vineyard. And the menu is perfect as it is. Thank you, though, for your consideration.”

Gareth laughed. “I’ll have to order a case for my home then.” The waiter poured the wine and then left. “Now, what did you want to ask, Billy?”

“I know the standard courtesies, but we’re in an unusual situation, with Baron Greg being an unseated baron. I haven’t been able to find any information on a case like this. As I understand it, that places him slightly below a seated baron, and as such, it is proper for him to call you ‘My Lord.’ Am I correct?”

Gareth nodded. “You are quite correct that it is unusual. I can’t recall meeting an unseated baron, though there have been a few in our history. I would assume that your understanding is correct. If it is not, there is no harm in swallowing one’s pride and treating an equal as a superior. It can rarely offend, and flattery usually benefits the flatterer.”

“Wise words, Gareth. Thank you. If I find written evidence that we are wrong, I will pass it on to your Steward, with your permission,” Billy said, showing an amazing level of tact.

“It would be appreciated, I’m sure.” Gareth sipped his wine and said, “I must admit I have an ulterior motive in inviting you to dinner this evening, Greg.”

“I am intrigued, Sir. Please, do tell,” I said with a grin.

“Prince George informed me that you are working on a project for him that is in my barony. Would I be out of line in asking for more information?” he asked in a voice that was dripping with charm.

“Actually, if we didn’t already have dinner plans with you, I would have called you earlier this afternoon to ask for a meeting to do just that,” I replied.

“Really? Then this is not some state secret?”

“Nothing of the sort, Gareth,” I said. “Part of the reason I was going to call is that we are hoping to duplicate the project to serve other baronies, and we might want to locate another one in eastern Pennsylvania or western Connecticut. That will depend on what Baron Manhattan and Baron Queens have to say about it, of course.”

“I get the feeling this is going to take up our entire evening,” Gareth observed.

“Quite possibly, yes. I’ll start with the genesis of the idea, give you an overview of what we hope to achieve, and bring you up to date on our progress, if I may.”

He nodded and sipped his wine.

I took a sip and explained. “First, you have to take into account the fact that, up until five months ago, I was human and educated in human schools.”

“I have heard that, Greg. And I must say, the fact that you are a baron as a newly made changeling is quite remarkable. It begs the question, what amazing things will you accomplish with the long life of a vampire?”

“Only time will tell, Sir,” I said, then sipped my wine to create a break and allow me to smoothly get back on topic. “After James changed me, he and Scott told me about my new reality, and part of that education involved how Scott and Billy were homeschooled and had little to no exposure to other young vampires.”

“Typical for almost all of our children,” Gareth injected with a nod.

“As I was told, yes. I also learned that most common vampire children receive an education that barely equals a human high school education due to several factors that are beyond their families’ control. Some parents can’t spend the time teaching their children, some are uneducated themselves, and others simply don’t care.”

“Sad but true,” he inserted. Then added, “Forgive me, I’ll try to remain quiet.”

“Not a problem, I assure you,” I smiled. “Due to my experience with a centralized school system, I began to wonder why something similar couldn’t be adapted to work with vampire children. Of course, there are issues that our children face that their human counterparts don’t have, but there are also advantages young vampires have that humans lack.

“Another disparity I noted was the lack of higher education among vampires from a common background when compared to noble children, who have greater access to higher education, primarily due to access to the funds required. A vampire from a common background can, of course, ask his baronet to assist, but most are hesitant to ask for what many see as charity. This can be overcome by simply letting the populace know that we, as nobles, are here to serve their needs. Doing that might take a generation or two.”

Gareth nodded but remained silent.

“After some conversations with James, Donna, Scott, Billy, and Prince George, we all agree with the theory that vampire infants get most of their language skills through a mental connection with their parents as they feed. I personally believe they learn much more through that bond, but that is another issue. Regardless, we found proof of this language transfer when we compared the various languages that Scott speaks to those spoken by James and Donna, as well as the ones that Billy speaks when compared to those his parents knew.”

The server brought our salads, and we took a break to eat a bit; then, I continued, taking an occasional bite between words.

“All of this is background information on what led me to my idea. I proposed to Prince George that we build a school to serve vampire children. One issue with doing this is the fact that humans begin school at age 4 or 5, equal to a vampire child of just eighteen months. At that age, a vampire still needs to feed from a parent for a year or more, but if we wait that year, we get a group of three-year-olds that have very disparate skill levels in reading and mathematics. To solve this, I suggested we build townhouses and apartment buildings at our school site to allow entire families to relocate to the school and to allow vampire children to grow up with others without risking humans finding out about our existence.

“When they’re not feeding, the children would attend classes, so they all get the same basic education and are prepared as they progress through a course equal to human high schools. Based on the abilities I’ve observed, we expect our students to ‘graduate high school’ as it were, somewhere between age five and seven, depending on the child. We would also have dorms available for older students who need to catch up to a level that matches their apparent human age. These dorms would also be used to house students whose families originally moved to the school, but the students have now grown enough that their families can return to their jobs, leaving the child to study. We will also have hotel-style facilities for the families of these older children to visit whenever they like.

“I would also like to see the Nation of Dracul provide funds for those students who want to attend college, which we can host via internet classes until the student appears to be of an appropriate age, so they don’t stand out at a college campus. One or two fifteen-year-olds at college won’t cause humans to notice, but three hundred of them certainly would.”

Our prime rib appeared, so I took a break and enjoyed the food. The meat was cooked to perfection and was so tender I could cut it with my fork. Scott commented on this, and Gareth suggested that Billy look into getting me membership at the club. I explained that I would be moving to Boston in August, and after that, I had no idea where I would be seated, if at all. Until I was, there was no point in my putting down roots.

“Well, you don’t need to live in the area to be a member of The Duquesne Club. Membership carries several perks, and an invitation from a founding member carries a lot of weight,” Gareth said with a laugh.

“I will keep your kind offer in mind, Sir,” I said, quite humbled by his offer of sponsoring an invitation.

I was about to start explaining the school again when Gareth asked, “I am hearing two things, and I’m confused as to which one is how things would work. You talk of classrooms, and you talk about what sounds like individual study. Which is it?”

I smiled because, even though I felt like I had rambled, he had followed the main points. I replied, “It’s both.”

He raised an eyebrow, so I explained, “The very young would, most likely, be in classrooms to learn the basics. I don’t know how familiar you are with human schools, so I’ll give you a broad overview of the system. From age five to nine or ten, humans are taught to read and write, beginning with simple letters, progressing to a large vocabulary of words they’re expected to know on sight, and then on to the concept of sounding out a word based on the letters involved. In math, they begin with reading the numbers, then adding them, subtracting them, basic multiplication based on memorizing the simple functions up through twelve, and then calculating larger products and quotients by combining those basics. Somewhere around age nine, they are introduced to general civics lessons, usually involving memorizing state capitals and general US geography.

“I feel that, with what I’ve observed, vampire children should be able to master these basics by age four, which equates to a human age of eleven. At this point, humans are introduced to more complex math and sciences, as well as a more in-depth study of language structure, typically English grammar. Again, vampires may or may not have learned other languages from their parents, so we plan to attempt to expand those studies as well, resulting in a five-year-old vampire who speaks several languages and is proficient in basic mathematics. As I understand it, they will be as well educated as a typical human high school graduate from the turn of the last century.

“A human, at this stage, begins to study literature and the more advanced science and math classes. Algebra, geometry, biology, and chemistry come to mind. We will do the same, teaching our four-year-olds basic biology and algebra, introducing them to several genres of literature, and expanding their knowledge of foreign languages to include reading several. At this point, the student should have an idea of where their interests are and can begin to focus on whatever fields they prefer while still advancing their knowledge base in literature, history, and the sciences. I hope to produce many six-year-olds with an education that exceeds that of a modern high school graduate. Since these vampires appear to be fifteen-year-old humans, we can’t send them to traditional colleges and universities. We will offer independent study through as many universities as possible, and when they finally join their human counterparts on campus, most will have many of their credits completed.”

“And what about those who have neither the desire nor the aptitude for university?” Gareth asked.

“With so many parents on site, we expect to be able to offer training in most, if not all, of the trades. I’m certain that I can find mentors who will be happy to train young vampires in each of the construction trades, and I have no doubt we can find mentors for many others,” I replied.

The table went silent for quite a while as we each ate, and I allowed Gareth time to digest what I had told him. I could sense he was resistant, but I didn’t know why. He wasn’t hostile to the idea, but he wasn’t supportive either.

When the dessert dishes were served, he asked, “And what progress have you made? I have avoided sticking my nose into something that, you’ll forgive me for saying, but something that I was intentionally being kept out of.”

“Now it is I who must beg your forgiveness, Gareth. I never contacted you because I was focused on the project and adjusting to my new life, my new mate, and my new son. Had I known that Prince George wasn’t keeping you, at least informed, I would have contacted you immediately. On my honor, I swear there was no intent to deceive or keep you out of something in your own barony,” I said in my best court tone.

“Now that I see the bigger picture, there is nothing to forgive, Greg, but I hope you can see how it seemed—seeing a new baron working on something in my own backyard, as it were. That is the past. Now, please, tell me of your progress,” he said, seeming interested and not the least bit upset.

“We toured the site shortly after noon today and found the grounds and exteriors of all the buildings essentially complete. According to the architect, we will be ready to start moving families and students in the first week of January, if not before,” I said, trying not to sound proud.

“From purchasing the land in mid-July, you’re complete before the year end? That’s amazing. How did you achieve that?” he asked, genuinely shocked.

“The credit goes to our team,” Billy said, adding to the conversation for the first time. “Our architect, whom your Steward highly recommended, devised a plan where he used two crews, composed completely of vampire tradesmen, on rotating shifts. Work starts on Monday at four in the morning and continues around the clock until Sunday at the same time. By doing this, he effectively cut the overall project time by over sixty percent.”

“They worked six days straight? Twenty-four hours a day?” Gareth asked.

“No, sir. One crew works seventy-two hours, then a second crew does the same while the first takes a four-day weekend,” Scott explained.

“I see,” Gareth said. “And by using only vampires, they can use their true strength to do more work in the same time as compared to a human.”

“Exactly,” I said, realizing what a feat our crews had accomplished.

Again, the table went silent as Gareth considered the school, our construction project, and how it was going to affect his barony in the future. I could sense his internal struggle. Again, he wasn’t supportive, but he wasn’t strongly against it either. The server cleared the dessert dishes and surprised me by serving a bottle of the Elk blood I had tasted in Los Angeles. After taking a sip, Gareth looked me in the eyes and spoke.

“I’m an old man, Greg, and I grew up in a world much different than the one you did. My father is a viscount in Wales, and his father was an Earl in Scotland. I was raised to believe that the fates chose us to lead because we are inherently better than the common vampires. I want to believe that what you imagine to be true is indeed true, but I feel that what you have observed is unique to those of noble blood. I’m afraid that, once your school opens, you will find that most common vampires are destined to toil in the trades, with only a small percentage able to rise above their place.”

I tried to keep my face impassive, but I obviously failed because he said, “Don’t misunderstand me, Greg. I will support your endeavors and direct my baronets to do the same, but between you and me, I think you’re tilting against windmills, as it were. On my honor, I will not speak a word against your efforts to anyone but the four of us, apart from Prince George, but if you were to ask my advice, I would say not to spend money on more of these schools until you see the results from your first.”

I started to speak, but he pushed on. “I realize you already have plans to discuss this with the other barons you mentioned, and as I said, I will not speak ill of your plan. If Prince George wants to expand the experiment, so be it. If nothing else comes of it, your schools can easily be transformed into housing communities for those between jobs, raising small children away from prying human eyes, or those just wanting a short break from human society.”

Like Gareth had done when I finished speaking, I took a few minutes to enjoy the elk and gather my thoughts. He seemed to understand and left me to my thoughts as he made small talk with Scott and Billy, asking about Scott’s brother Matthew, his nephew Jack, and Billy’s grandmother. When my mind cleared, I waited for a break in their conversation.

“I appreciate your honesty, Gareth. Many who disagree with my ideas would openly oppose me; others would claim to support my ideas while surreptitiously working against my efforts. I genuinely respect your right to believe that my theories are wrong, and I appreciate the fact that you are willing to allow me to discover the truth. I would suggest that you do not attend our meetings with the other barons. Not that you are not welcome, but to prevent you from having to either lie to another baron or go back on your word and speak against our ideas. I’m sure that if you’re present, the other barons will ask for your thoughts.”

He nodded and said, “A wise compromise, Greg. I agree. If I were to be in those meetings, they would ask, and I would be faced with a choice I would rather not have to make. I would ask that you do not imply to these other barons that I support your theories. You may, however, say that I intend to tell my baronets to send their young to your schools and allow generous time away from work for the families involved.”

“Would I be lying if I said that you support our school? If I’m understanding you correctly, you are, while not supporting the theory behind them.”

“If I were in the room, I would agree with your statement, Greg, so yes, you may say that. That will let you imply that I fully support this without actually saying that I do.”

I laughed. “If it were permitted, you would do well in human politics, Gareth.

Gareth winked at me and said, “If you only learn one thing from your time with me, Greg, let it be that politics are politics, be they human or vampire. Our feudal system may not depend on the support of the masses, but our interactions with other nobles require us to be well versed in doublespeak.”

“I will take that lesson to heart, Sir. Thank you,” I said with a smile.

“I would offer you another lesson, but I somehow feel you’ve already learned this one.”

“And what is that?” I asked.

“Telling the truth doesn’t always mean telling the whole story. I have no doubt you’ve left parts of your tale unsaid, not in a duplicitous way, mind you, but if I were to spend several hours questioning you, I think I would get a much different picture of who Baron Gregory Fowler is,” he said with a friendly smirk.

“I think that could be said of the both of us, Gareth. We’ve spent almost three hours together, and I’ve learned next to nothing about you other than your noble birth and great taste in wine,” I said, returning his smirk.

He laughed out loud. “Oh, I hope you end up in a neighboring barony, Greg. Dealing with you on a regular basis would be a delight. And I can tell you are a man of honor, a rare thing in this modern age.” Glancing at his watch, he added, “Unfortunately, I have another appointment that I must attend to. You are welcome at my home at any time, Greg. I believe Billy knows where it is. If not, you have my number.”

As we all stood, I said, “I appreciate that, Gareth. I would say the same, but right now, my home is not my house, if you’ll excuse my ruining an old saying,” I said with a grin.

“I’m sure that Dad would welcome his Baron at any time, Greg,” Scott said, nudging me with his shoulder. “Please, Gareth, we would love to host you to dinner. Of course, with our school schedule, a few days advance notice would be nice.”

As we shook hands, Gareth said, “Scott, Billy, I promise, at our next dinner, I will spend more time getting to know the two of you. I hope you forgive me for my self-serving motives this evening.”

“Nothing to forgive,” Scott said. Then he laughed and added, “At our next dinner, we might grill you for more political insights.”

“Or more insight into court protocols,” Billy said with a smirk.

We made more small talk as we walked Baron Pittsburgh to the door. In deference to his position, we waited until his car pulled away to call Riva to the door. While we waited, we wandered across the street to view the two large church buildings that faced The Duquesne Club. There was a small, ancient cemetery in the small lot between them, and we took a walk among the many large, stylish headstones, marking the final resting place of a generation-long gone.

As we delved deeper into the shadows, I noticed a young boy approaching us, seeming to rise up from the darkness. The first thing that got my attention was the fact that he looked to be about twelve years old, and it was eleven PM. The second thing that drew my attention was his clothing, which, aside from being inappropriate for the cold October evening, was slightly too big for him and filthy. And the third and most shocking was his scent. Other than the fact that he was dirty, having possibly seen a bath the previous July, I immediately identified his scent. This boy wasn’t twelve; he was four. He was a vampire.