‘And have you not also noticed how frail and elderly my employer here is? You are keeping him outside in the cold with your bland chit-chat.’
Lucius glanced miserably at Schmidt, wondering whether he should apologise or not.
Taking pity on him, Mr Schmidt said, ‘You have my sympathy. At least I am not related to him.’ And he turned and strode away in the direction of the ship.
‘So you are a thief,’ Lucius said. ‘What they said about you in there was true.’
‘Yes, all true,’ Lex agreed cheerfully, before catching sight of the white binding bracelet on his brother’s wrist. ‘Where’s your companion then?’
‘He’s at the inn. Jezra said he didn’t need to come for this.’
‘Anyone I know?’
‘It’s Zachary.’
‘I told you to fire him!’
‘You have no say over anything that happens on the farm any more!’
‘Nor do I want any. I only said it for your own good, but you never did listen to me. Anyway, I don’t have time to stand here jabbering with you.’
He made to walk away but Lucius grabbed his arm. ‘Aren’t you even going to ask?’ he said, incredulity and disgust battling for first place on his face. ‘Aren’t you even going to ask about him?’
‘Why should I? Nothing you’re possibly going to say will please me,’ Lex replied, shaking off Lucius’s hand.
‘Yes. Well that’s it, isn’t it? You only ever want to hear things that are going to please you. Life’s not like that, Lex.’
‘Mine is. Now that I don’t have any attachments.’
‘He died last summer. You left him to die on his own.’
‘You were there.’
‘I wasn’t the grandson he wanted and you know it. He might have been ill but he could still tell us apart.’
‘Oh, don’t talk rubbish! He didn’t know who he was, let alone who we were.’
‘You’re wrong. I had to have locks put on his bedroom windows because he kept climbing out of them in the middle of the night to go and look for you.’
‘You’re making it up!’ Lex snarled.
‘How could you leave like that, without even saying goodbye to us? We didn’t know where you’d gone or what you were doing and then all these stories started coming in about you being a thief and a criminal-’
‘I’m going to win this Game and I won’t cut you any slack just because you’re my brother, so I’d watch my back if I were you!’
And Lex turned and stalked away, glad to be leaving Lucius behind. What bad luck that he should be involved in the Game, too. It could have been such fun without him. But it would be fun anyway, Lex promised himself. He was not about to let Lucius ruin anything for him. And he was most certainly not going to be made to feel guilty.
CHAPTER NINE
‘Eat your breakfast!’ Schmidt snapped irritably, thrusting a stale end of bread towards Lex.
‘I’m not hungry,’ Lex said, brushing the bread aside. ‘Worry about your own breakfast.’
He had never been able to eat before stealing, either. It wasn’t nerves so much as a heightened sense of anticipated exhilaration.
‘I’m not concerned about your health, you stupid boy, I simply don’t want to experience another hideously distasteful body swap.’
‘Oh.’ Lex was annoyed with himself for forgetting.
‘Eat your bread,’ the lawyer repeated, throwing over the pathetic crust.
Lex caught it and sat down on the white furs, feeling disgruntled. It was not even light outside yet. They had to be prepared for the dawn when the first round of this gloriously divine Game would begin.
‘So how does this work, anyway?’ Schmidt asked from where he was sat across the bridge, picking at his own slice of bread.
‘What?’
‘This Goddess thing. The Goddess of Luck clearly favours you. That’s how you’re able to behave so disgrace- fully and get away with it.’
‘Spare me,’ Lex sneered.
‘So how far does it go?’ Schmidt continued. ‘I would have thought that even the most gutless, useless person could win a Game if they were lucky enough.’
‘Well, yes, but you must remember that her Ladyship’s brain is so much smaller than the other deities we are playing against.’
Jezra and the Judge, probably two of the most dangerous opponents possible. Dangerous… Lex’s pulse quickened with pleasure just at the thought of it.
‘Luck will take us so far,’ he went on, ‘but a chopped-off head is still a chopped-off head however lucky you might be, and her Ladyship is not always the most reliable-’
He broke off as the ship suddenly began to rise, leaving the now unfrozen sea behind as it shot up into the sky.
‘What are you doing?’ Schmidt demanded.
‘I’m not doing it!’ Lex replied.
In a matter of moments they had burst through the clouds into the streaming sunlight above. Lex jumped to his feet and strode to the window. There was a huge castle looming before them, anchored to a cloud and made — entirely — out of sand.
‘It’s a sandcastle!’ Lex exclaimed.
He turned from the window, ignoring whatever questions Schmidt was firing at him, and ran out onto the deck to get a better view. As soon as he opened the mirrored door, the heat hit him with all the force of a decidedly physical thing.
‘Heetha’s sun,’ he croaked.
‘I’m afraid so, dear,’ Lady Luck said from where she was standing at the railings. ‘It’s the most devilish bad luck. The sun is bad enough on the ground but at this height it could be quite dangerous. You are going to have to be careful.’
‘Well, all the players will be affected just the same by it,’ Lex said, joining her at the rails.
He had never experienced this kind of heat before. It felt like he was inside an oven and it was quickly becoming unbearable.
‘Yes, dear, but I’m afraid that horrible little lawyer is rather going to disadvantage you.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Your brother has Zachary, who is merely middle aged and healthier than Lucius is himself. The Judge’s player has Theba, who I understand is a gangster of some kind but you have an old man. Old men struggle more with the heat, you know. I do hope he is going to be able to keep up. I do not intend to lose this Game, Lex.’
It was the first time that Lex had ever heard anything of menace in her Ladyship’s voice. ‘He’ll keep up,’ he said. ‘Don’t worry about that. So what is this, anyway?’ Lex asked, motioning at the huge sky castle looming before them.
‘Wait for the others,’ the Goddess said. ‘Jezra and the Judge are coming here. We’re the first to arrive. There’s your brother now.’
Lex looked to where the Goddess was pointing and didn’t bother to stifle the sneer.
‘What is he doing?’
