'Now let me see if I've got this right,' my bodyguard said. 'You don't want me and my cousin Nunzio around so that the Boss here can handle all the trouble himself? That's crazy talk, know what I mean? Now listen to me, 'cause this time I know what I'm sayin'. The higher someone gets on the ladder, the more folks come huntin' for his head. even if they don't do nothin' they got people gunning for them, 'cause they got power and respect and there's always somebody who thinks they can steal it. Now I've seen some of the Big Guys who try to act just like you're sayin'… they're so scared all the time they don't trust nothin' or nobody. The only one they can count on is themselves, and everybody else is suspect. That includes total strangers, their own bodyguards, their friends, and their partners. Think about that for a minute.'
He leaned back and surveyed the room, addressing his next comments to everyone.
'People like that don't last long. They don't trust nobody, so they got nobody. Ya can't do everything alone and sooner or later they're lookin' the wrong way or asleep when they should be watchin' and it's all over. Now I've done a lot of jobs as a bodyguard, and they were just jobs, know what I mean? The Boss here is different, and I'm not just sayin' that. He's the best man I've met in my whole life because he likes people and ain't afraid to show it. More important, he ain't afraid to risk his neck to help somebody even if it isn't in his best interest. I work double hard for him because I don't want to see anything happen to him… and if that means comin' along on weird trips like this, then that's the way it is. Anybody that wants to hurt him is gonna have to come through me… and that includes fightin' any of you if you want to try to turn him into somethin' he isn't and doesn't want to be.' Massha broke in with a loud clapping of her hands.
'Bravo, Guido,' she said. 'I think your problem, Green and Scaly, is that your idea of success is out of step with everyone else's. We all want to see good things happen for Skeeve, here, but we also like him just the way he is. We've got enough faith in his good sense to back him in whatever move he makes in his development… without trying to frog-march or trick him up a specific path.'
Aahz not only gave ground before this onslaught of protest, he seemed to shrink in a little on himself.
'I like him too,' he mumbled. 'I've known him longer than any of you, remember? He's doing fine, but he could be so much more. How can he choose a path if he can't see it? All I'm trying to do is set him up to be bigger than I… than we could ever think of being ourselves. What's wrong with that?'
Despite my irritation at having my life discussed as if I weren't in the room, I was quite touched, by my friends' loyal defense of me, and most of all by Aahz.
'You know, partner,' I said softly, 'for a minute there, you sounded just like my father. He wanted me to be the best… or more specifically, to be better than he was. My mom always tried to tell me that it was because he loved me, but at that time it just sounded like he was always being critical. Maybe she was right… I'm more inclined to believe it today than I was then, but then again, I'm older now. If nothing else, I've had to try to tell people I love them when the words just won't come… and gotten upset with myself when they couldn't see it when I tried to show them.
'Aahz, I appreciate your concern and I want your guidance. You're right, there are paths and options I can't even comprehend yet. But I also have to choose my own way. I want to be better eventually than I am today, but not necessarily the best. I think Guide's right, there's a big price tag attached to being at the top, and I'd want to think long and hard if I wanted to pay it… even if I was convinced I could, which I'm not. I do know that if it means giving up the trust I have in you and everybody else in this room, I'll settle for being a nickel-and-dime operator. That price I'll never pay willingly.'
Silence started to descend again as each of us retreated into his or her own thoughts, then the werewolf bounded into the middle of the assemblage.
'But what is this, eh?' he demanded. 'Surely this cannot be ze great team of Aahz and Skeeve, ze ones who can laugh at any dan-gair? '
'You know, Pepe,' Aahz said warningly, 'you've got a great future as a stuffed head.'
'My head?' The werewolf blinked. 'But she is not… oohh. I see now. You make ze joke, eh? Good. Zat is more like it.'
'… and as far as laughing at danger goes,' I joined in, determined to hold up my end of the legend, 'the only danger I see here is dying of boredom. Where is Vilhelm anyway?'
'I know you and Aahz are fond of each other, Skeeve,' Chumley yawned, 'but you've got to spend more time with other people. You're starting to sound like him. Maybe you can tag along the next time I have an assignment.'
'Over my dead body,' my partner said. 'Besides, what could he learn from a troll that I couldn't teach him myself?'
'I could teach him not to catch birds for Deveels for ten gold pieces,' the troll grinned, winking at his sister. 'That seems to be a part of his education you've neglected.'
'Izzat so!' my partner bristled. 'You're going to teach him about price setting? How about the time you set your own sister up to steal an elephant without bothering to check…'
. And they were off again. As I listened, I found myself reflecting on the fact that while it was nice to know the depths of my friends' feelings about me, it was far more comfortable when they managed to conceal it under a cloak of banter. For the most part, open sincerity is harder to take than friendly laughter.
Chapter Sixteen
'Don't be fooled by appearances.'
THINGS were pretty much back to normal by the time Vilhelm returned with our disguises… which was a good thing as the process of masking-up proved to be a test of everybody's sense of humor.
Until I had hooked up with Aahz, I had never had occasion to pretend I was anyone but myself. As such, I had no way of knowing how long it took to don a physical disguise without resorting to magic. By the time we were done, I had a new respect for the skills I had learned, not to mention a real longing for a dimension… any dimension with a strong force line to work with.
Tananda was a major help, her experiences with the assassin's guild came into play and she took the lead in trying to coach us into our new roles.
'Guido, straighten up!' she commanded, exasperation creeping into her voice. 'You walk like a gangster.'
'I am a gangster!' my bodyguard snarled back.
'Besides, what's wrong with the way I walk? It got us to the jail, didn't it?'
'Half the town wasn't looking for you then,' Tananda argued. 'Besides, then you could pick your own route. We don't know where the opposition's holed up. We're going to have to walk through crowds on this hunt, and that walk just doesn't make it. Ninety percent of costuming is learning to move like the character you're trying to portray. Right now you move like you're looking for a fight.'
'Try walking like Don Bruce,' I suggested. 'He's a gangster, too.'
That earned me a black look, but my bodyguard tried to follow my instructions, rising up on the balls of his feet and mincing along.
'Better,' Tananda said, leaving Guido prancing up and down the room with a scowl on his face.
'How are we doing?'
'Lousy,' she confided in me. 'This is taking a lot longer, than it should. I wish there were more mirrors in this place… heck, any mirrors would be nice.'
It hadn't been until we started gearing up that we realized the Dispatcher had no mirrors at all. He claimed they weren't popular or necessary among vampires. This left us with the unenviable job of checking each others' make-up and costumes, a chore which would have been Homeric even if less sensitive egos were involved.
'How're my teeth?' Massha demanded, sticking her head in front of me and opening her mouth.
It was like staring into the depths of an underground cave.
'Umm… the left side is okay, but you're still missing a few on the right. Hang on a second and I'll give you a
