Onus Probandi
“And I have done exactly that.”
“You have done nothing of the sort. You delayed reporting an alert on the big board by twenty-eight minutes.”
“I was working an overnight double shift. I fell asleep.”
“So you say.”
“Yes, I do say!” said Valentine 6.
“And furthermore,” said Pilgrim 3, “you reported the alert to someone outside the club.”
“And who am I accused of reporting this alert to?”
“Calvin 4.”
“First of all,” said Valentine 6, “Calvin 4 is our president, so he can hardly be construed to be ‘outside of the club.’ And secondly, can you show me one shred of evidence that I made any such report?”
“You hid in a mop closet,” said Lidenbrock 2, speaking up for the first time.
“I hid in a mop closet because I believed I was in physical danger. I was being followed in a threatening way by Lidenbrock 2.”
“There was nothing threatening about the way I was following you.”
“Oh really? If you weren’t threatening, then why did you chase me into a restaurant, behind the counter, into the mop closet, and tell me you had a gun in your pocket?
That strikes me as the very definition of threatening and a direct violation of rule seventeen, paragraph three: ‘No club member shall commit any act of violence or physical intimidation to any other club member.’”
“Yes, we’re all very impressed that you’ve memorized the rules. You’re a good little initiate,” said Pilgrim 3 with a sneer of condescension. “Now tell me what you told Calvin 4.”
“I told Calvin 4 nothing. You can check my phone. Which you jammed by the way, making it impossible for me to tell anyone anything.”
“That is a very serious accusation,” said Pilgrim 3.
“Do you deny it?”
“Perhaps you haven’t heard of something called onus probandi,” said Pilgrim 3. “It isn’t my responsibility to deny accusations, rather yours to prove them.”
“Exactly,” said Valentine 6, a hint of triumph in her voice. “And you have no proof of the accusations you’re making against me. Now, if that is all, I will be going.” She picked up her bag and turned toward the door. Lidenbrock 2 stepped in front of her.
“That is not all,” said Pilgrim 3.
“It is all,” said Valentine 6 calmly, without turning back.
“And if I were you, I’d consider carefully where I tread right now.
At the moment, you might avoid disciplinary action.
It’s possible that no one saw me in the street being hustled here by your lackey.
But if you keep me in this office against my will or if you harm me in any way, your days at the Paradox Club are ended.
Now, Lidenbrock 2 is going to step aside, I’m going to leave this office, and you’re going to stop harassing me. ”
Pilgrim 3 nodded to Lidenbrock 2, who moved from the door, and Valentine 6 left the room.
She hurried down the steps toward the ground floor.
She had held it together in Pilgrim 3’s office, but now her heart raced, and cold sweat ran down her back.
It had been a bold bluff, and it might work, but Valentine 6 wouldn’t believe it until she was safely out of the city.
Especially considering that this time, she actually had broken club rules.
She stopped at the end of the block to catch her breath.
Looking back down the sidewalk, she saw no one following.
Leaning against a wrought iron railing, she unclasped her hand from around her canvas bag, revealing a book that had been sitting on the vault keeper’s desk and which she had swept up with her bag before leaving the office.
Valentine 6 smiled. She felt rather pleased with herself that she had been able to purloin this volume even while under duress.
President Calvin 4 would be delighted. That first night, when Calvin 4 had recruited her, he had mentioned this volume.
“If you ever have to flee the club—”
“Why would I have to flee the club?” Valentine 6 asked.
“It might become necessary,” the president said, “especially if Pilgrim 3 discovers you’re communicating with me.”
“Isn’t it perfectly reasonable for a member to communicate with the club president?”
“Nothing is perfectly reasonable when it comes to Pilgrim 3,” the president said. “So, if you do ever have to flee the club, it might be extremely helpful if you could bring me something.”
“What?”
“It’s a book in Pilgrim 3’s office. We sometimes use it to screen new members. It really ought to be in the club library or in the vault, but Pilgrim 3 enjoys reading it and showing it to members so any time the club isn’t using it she keeps it in her office.”
“What is this book?”
“It’s called Gatsby the Great.”
“You mean The Great Gatsby.”
“I mean precisely what I say.”
“Gatsby the Great?”
“That’s correct. It may not be possible, but if you leave under, shall we say, dangerous circumstances, the book could prove useful to me.”
“Why don’t I just steal it now?”
“There is no need to alarm Pilgrim 3. I won’t need it except in case of emergency.”
“How will I know it’s an emergency?”
“You’ll know,” said the president.
And she did know. Now Valentine 6 shoved Gatsby the Great into her bag, turned the corner, and headed home. She decided to walk, taking the long way around, paranoid that the park wouldn’t be safe. It would give her time to think and possibly to spot anyone following her this time.
“Are you tracking her?” said Pilgrim 3.
“Put a GPS device in her bag,” said Lidenbrock 2.
“Excellent. Let me know if that little bitch steps five feet out of her neighborhood.”