impossible to nail him.»
Luke gritted his teeth.
«Sorry,» I said. «But that's where I heard about it. So that was the secret of Brand's power…»
Luke nodded.
«I get the impression this Mask thinks he knows how it was done and is getting ready to try it on your brother.»
«Shit!» I observed. «That's all I need. Jurt as a magical being or a natural force - or whatever the hell. This is serious. How much do you know about the process?»
«Oh, I know most of it, in theory. I wouldn't mess with it, though. I think it takes away something of your humanity. You don't much give a shit about other people or human values afterward. I think that's part of what happened to my father.»
What could I say? Maybe that part was true and maybe it wasn't. I was sure Luke wanted to believe in some external cause for his father's treachery. I knew I'd never contradict him on it, even if I learned differently. And so I laughed.
«With Jurt,» I said, «there'd be no way of telling the difference.»
Luke smiled. Then, «You could get dead going up against a guy like that, along with a sorcerer, on their own turf.»
«What choice have I got?» I asked. «They're after me. Better to move now. Jurt hasn't had the treatment yet. Does it take long?»
«Well, there are fairly elaborate preliminaries, but the subject doesn't have to be present for some of them. It all depends on how far along Mask is with the work.»
«I'd better move pretty fast then.»
«I won't have you going in there alone,» he said. «It could be suicide. I know the place. I also have a small force of mercs bivouacked in Shadow and ready for action on short notice. If we can get them in, they can hold off the guards, maybe even take them out.»
«Will that fancy ammo work there?»
«No. We tried it when I pulled the glider attack. It'll have to be hand to hand. Body armor and machetes, maybe. I'll have to work it out.»
«We could use the Pattern to get in, but the troop can't… and Trumps aren't reliable for that place.»
«I know. I'll have to work on that, too.»
«Then it would be you and me against Jurt and Mask. If I tell any of the others here, they'll try to stop me till Random gets back, and that may be too late».
He smiled. «You know, my mother would really be useful in there,» he said. «She knows more about the Fount than I do.»
«No!» I said. «She tried, to kill me.»
«Easy, man. Easy,» he said. «Hear me out.»
«Besides, she lost to Mask last time they met. That's why she's a coatrack.»
«All the more reason for her to be wary now. Anyway, it had to be trickery, not skill. She's good. Mask must have surprised her. She'd be a real asset, Merle.»
«No! She wants all of us dead!»
«Details,» he explained. «After Caine, the rest of you are just symbolic enemies. Mask is a real one, who took something away from her and still has it. Given the choice, she'll go after Mask.»
«And if we're successful, she'll turn on Amber afterward.»
«Not at all,» he said. «That's the beauty of my plan.»
«I don't want to hear about it.»
«Because you already know you'll agree, right? I just figured a way to solve all your problems. Give her the Keep after it's liberated, as a kind of peace offering, to forget her differences with you guys.»
«Just hand her this terrible power?»
«If she were going to use it against you, she'd have done it a long time ago. She's afraid to employ it in the extreme. With Kashfa down the tubes, she'll grab at the chance to salvage something. That's where the value lies.»
«You really think so?»
«Better Queen of the Keep than a coatrack in Amber.»
«Damn you, Luke. You always make the stupidest things sound sort of attractive.»
«It's an art,» he replied. «What do you say?»
«I've got to think about it,» I said.
«Better think fast, then. Jurt may be bathing in that glow right now.»
«Don't pressure me, man. I said I'll think about it. This is only one of my problems. I'm going to eat dinner now and mull things over.»
«Want to tell me about your other problems, too? Maybe I can work them into the package some way.»
«No, damn it! I'll call you back… soon. Okay?»
«Okay. But I'd better be around when you snap Mom out of it, to kind of smooth things over. You have figured out how to break the spell, haven't you?»
«Yes.»
«Glad to know that. I wasn't sure how to do it, and I can stop working on it now. I'm going to finish here and go shape up the troops,» he said, eyeing the lady in the bikini who had just emerged from the pool. «Call me.»
«Okay,» I said, and he was gone.
Damn. Amazing. No wonder Luke kept winning those sales awards. I had to admit it was a good pitch, despite my feelings about Jasra. And Random had not ordered me to keep her a prisoner. Of course, he had not had much opportunity to tell me anything the last time we had been together. Would she really behave as Luke said, though? It made a sort of sense, but then people seldom keep company with rationality at times when they should.
I passed along the hallway and decided to use the back stair. As I made the turn, I saw that there was a figure standing near the top. It was a woman, and she was looking the other way. She had on a full-length red and yellow gown. Her hair was very dark and she had lovely shoulders…
She turned when she heard my tread, and I saw that it was Nayda. She studied my face.
«Lord Merlin,» she said, «can you tell me where my sister is? I understand she went off with you earlier.»
«She was admiring some art, and then she had a little errand she wanted to run afterward,» I replied. «I'm not sure exactly where she was going, but she gave the impression she'd be back pretty soon.»
«All right,» she said. «It's just that it's getting near to dinnertime, and we'd expected her to be joining us. Did she enjoy her afternoon?»
«I believe she did,» I said.
«She's been a bit moody recently. We were hoping this trip would cheer her up. She was looking forward to it quite a bit.»
«She seemed pretty cheerfulll when I left her,» I admitted.
«Oh, where was that?»
«Near here,» I said.
«Where all did you go?»
«We had a long walk in and about town,» I explained. «I showed her a bit of the palace, also.»
«Then she's in the palace right now?»
«She was the last time I saw her. But she might have stepped out.»
«I see,» she said. «I'm sorry I didn't really get to talk to you at any length earlier. I feel as if I've known you for a long while.»
«Oh?» I said. «Why is that?»
«I read through your file several times. It's kind of fascinating.»
«File?»
