Angado

'Stays,' said Lam, then, softening his tone, added with a smile, 'We need her to make up the number and to add a touch of beauty to the company. And I don't think she'll regret it. See?' The cards riffled in his hands, falling to lie face upward. 'Four Lords-could you hope for better? Your luck is about to change, my dear.'

'It had better.' Her eyes met his in mutual understanding. 'But who else will join us?'

'Our friends.' Lam lifted his voice as he made the appeal. 'Please, you two, accommodate us. A small game to while away the time.' Then, as the younger of the pair turned toward him, 'Angado Nossak, isn't it? I think we have met before.'

'On the Provost,' agreed Nossak. 'You taught me a hard lesson. Maybe now's the time to put it to use.'

He took a chair, gesturing for his companion to take another. A hard man, decided the gambler, looking at him. A brief glance but enough to take in the shape and build. Faded garments spoke of hard times and the shiny patches on the fabric showed where straps could have hung or accoutrements rested. A mercenary, he guessed, a professional guard or a hunter-now down on his luck and hoping to improve it.

A forlorn hope, as was Nossak's intention to use what he had learned. Both prime fodder for the gambler's art and he riffled the cards, the rubbed-down skin of index fingers and thumbs reading the tiny marks a nail had impressed into the edges.

'Well, my lords and lady-' he inclined his head toward Varinia-'let us begin.'

The game was starburn; a variation of poker with a seven-card deal and a double discard dropping the hand to the normal five cards. Lissek sucked in his breath as he scooped up his hand, a thin stream of purple running from the corner of his mouth. Saliva stained by the weed he chewed to ease his cough and steady his nerves.

'Give me three.' He dropped five cards on the table. 'Make them friendly.'

So he had a pair. Lam glanced at Cranmer. Dealt him two cards, moved to where Nossak studied his hand.

'Three-no! Make it two.' He watched Lam deal. 'Earl?'

'I'll take one.'

Dumarest watched as the deal moved on to the woman, his eyes on the gambler's hands. Smooth, ringless, the skin soft and supple. The result of applied salves, he guessed. He was certain as to why the index fingers and thumbs lacked any trace of the normal whorls and patterns.

A cheat and a desperate one; the risks he took were obvious. Chances he compounded as he returned to Lissek who threw down two cards for another pair. His original hand had been improved to one containing three of a kind, now, with luck, he could have built it into a full house or gained a healthy four. Cranmer shook his head after the final deal and dropped out. Angado pursed his lips and changed a single card. Dumarest shook his head and threw in his hand. The woman stayed. The gambler. Three rounds of betting and the game was over.

Varinia chuckled as she scooped in the pot.

'You know, Lam, I think I'm going to like this game.'

One designed to build the pot and to ruthlessly squeeze the players. The extra cards and double discarding enabled good hands to be won and encouraged pressure-betting. If the dealer could manipulate the cards he would find it simple to clean up.

Lam could manipulate them and was clever despite his desperation. He was using the woman as his shill, letting her win so as to cover his own involvement. Later, when she had grown too confident, he would clean her out.

'Raise ten.' Angado threw coins into the pot. 'This time I win.'

Dumarest doubted it but made no comment. The man was his cabin mate, a temporary association born of chance. He owed the man nothing and his main concern was to remain inconspicuous. He'd left Baatz in a crate supplied by the circus, transported by discreet friends of the owner, shipped by a captain who wasn't too curious.

A journey ending with Dumarest in a warehouse. One he'd broken out of to take passage on a vessel heading toward the Burdinnion. Changing to the Thorn on Tysa. A ship like most in the region, catering to all trades, making short journeys, touching small and almost deserted worlds.

Now he had to make a decision. If Angado continued to play he would lose and could become violent, which would bring attention not only to himself but to the man who shared his cabin. But to beat the gambler at his own game would be to arouse a more direct interest.

And the captain was no fool.

Ships, even battered tubs like the Thorn, were valuable possessions and all took elementary precautions. A man who lied could be harmless but no harmless man had reason to lie. Dumarest had maintained his deception by giving only half his name but a deeper check would reveal things he wanted to keep hidden.

'You in?' Angado Nossak was impatient, sweating, hand tugging at the collar of his blouse. 'God, it's hot in here. Where's the steward? I want some ice.'

'Hot?' The gambler looked puzzled. 'I've noticed no change.' He looked at Dumarest. 'You in or out?'

'In.' Dumarest chipped into the pot. 'No raise.'

Varinia hesitated, glanced at Lam, then doubled Nossak's raise. Pressure which drove out Lissek and Cranmer. Nossak hesitated as he examined his hand, pulling at his collar and finally tearing open his blouse.

'I'm burning. Where's that damned steward?'

'Forget him.' Varinia stared at the man. 'You sick or something?' Her voice rose in sudden fear. 'Hell, man, look at your face!'

It had broken out in lumpy protrusions. An attack shocking in the speed of its progression. The woman jumped up and backed from the table, others following, cards spraying from the gambler's hand as Nossak slumped over the table. Within seconds Dumarest was alone with the sick man in a circle of staring faces.

'Get the steward,' said Lissek. 'He'll know what to do. He's got drugs.'

'Drugs, hell!' Cranmer was harshly aggressive. 'Get the captain. That man's got plague!'

* * *

Captain Krogstad took five paces over the floor of the salon, turned, paced back to where he had started. Aside from himself, Brother Jofre and his first officer, the place was deserted. All the passengers were safely locked in their cabins and he wished Jofre was among them. But he knew better than to be hostile. It didn't pay to ride roughshod over the Universal Church.

He said, 'Brother, you must see the situation from my point of view. As captain I am responsible for the ship and all in it. I cannot permit the possibility of contagion to remain.'

'You are assuming the sick man is a carrier of disease. That need not be the case.'

Krogstad was blunt. 'With respect, Brother, you are not a medical man. I can't afford to take a chance on your diagnosis. If you are wrong-'

'Then the damage has already been done.' The monk met the captain's eyes. 'The ship has become infected and your duty is clear. All must be placed under total quarantine. You must send word to your world of destination for ships to monitor the isolation of the Thorn while in orbit. It will have to remain in that condition until such time as a clearance is granted.'

Which would take its own sweet time, as Krogstad knew. Time during which expenses would mount from feeding the passengers and crew, from medical fees and the charges made by the monitors. Costs which would eat into his reserves and could leave him ruined.

Fedotik, the first officer, cleared his throat.

'There is an alternative,' he suggested. 'The sick man can be kept isolated, evicted if he dies.' Or even if he doesn't-who would be concerned over the fate of a single man? Something which would already have been done if it hadn't been for Jofre's presence. 'I'm thinking of the best for everyone,' he added. 'As you must be. It is our duty to safeguard the welfare of the majority.'

'Not at the expense of the minority.' Jofre was firm. 'I don't think isolation is the answer.'

'What else can we do?' Again Krogstad paced the floor. 'Quarantine would ruin us and once I send the word there can be no retraction. If-' He halted and snapped his fingers. 'I have it. The sick man is not alone. His cabin mate is with him. If Nossak is diseased with a contagious illness then his companion must be affected. As yet he