Blind God's Bluff A Billy Fox Novel - By Richard Lee Byers Page 0,98

the same servant who’d taken the deeds out of the box started putting them back in. But Wotan picked up one of them before he could get to it. “Tampa,” he said.

Timon scowled at him. “Yes. Tampa. One of my dominions.”

“For now, at least,” Wotan said. But he didn’t take the hint and put down the deed. “An interesting place. Now that I’ve seen it, I’d have to say you staked the finest fief of any of us. I hate to think of it passing into the hands of someone undeserving.”

“It’s not ‘passing’ anywhere!” Timon snapped. “The fool hasn’t got a chance!”

“I understand why you feel that way,” Wotan said. “It would be astonishing if a human could beat you, especially in dream. But then again, he beat the rest of us.”

“Look,” I said to Wotan. “Timon and I made a deal, and we’re going through with it no matter what you say. So mind your own damn business.”

“Billy has a point,” said Queen. “He and the dream walker did agree. We all witnessed it.”

Wotan smiled an ugly smile. “True enough. I was just making conversation. Apparently no one else wants to hear it, so let’s drink instead.” He tossed the parchment back into the box.

A’marie brought in a dusty old bottle of champagne. It turned out to be for lords only. Even the stooge who’d actually won the tournament didn’t rate a glass. And they could have given me Queen’s share, because she only took a couple drops, dribbled over the gray sludge in the bottom of her flute.

The other lords toasted Timon, and the rest of us served up a second little round of applause. When it died down, Wotan said, “Now the tournament is really finished. That means the human isn’t Timon’s champion anymore.”

I wasn’t sure why that was important, but I felt a cold little twinge of uneasiness. Trying to hide it, I said, “I thought you were going to lay off.”

“As did I,” the Pharaoh murmured.

“I’m just saying,” Wotan said, “now that the mantle of the champion is gone, it makes sense to take a look at what was underneath. And clearly, it’s human, even if it does have a drop of our blood and some of our power. It certainly didn’t grow up among us. It doesn’t understand our traditions, and it hasn’t really given its fealty to any lord. Otherwise, it would never have showed Timon such disrespect.”

“If he wants to get even,” I said, “he’s going to have his chance.” I turned to Timon. “Right?”

He hesitated. “In point of fact, yes. So I don’t know why we’re talking about it.”

“It’s just that I hate to see this wretch take advantage of one of his betters a second time,” Wotan said. “We all love a good game, but we shouldn’t let it cloud our judgment. Look how one-sided your bet really is. You’re staking a fief. The human’s merely putting up his miserable self, which by rights is already your property anyway.”

“Maybe you think so,” I said, “but he and I still have a deal.”

“Even if you win,” said Wotan, ignoring me, “what have you won? His faithful service, just because he pledged it? You already know how treacherous he is.”

“‘Treacherous,’” I said. “That’s good, coming from you.”

“Or the right to watch him die in agony?” asked Wotan, still fixed on Timon. “You don’t have to win a game for that.”

Timon hesitated again. I really wished he’d stop doing that. “I gave my oath.”

“Yes,” Wotan said. “To play him when your eyes are fully healed. And it would be dishonorable for you to try to hurt him in the meantime. But honor doesn’t require you to protect him. Not after he disobeyed you. Not after he encouraged disloyalty among your servants. Not after he gouged your eyes and laughed.”

“I didn’t laugh,” I said. “And I knew they’d heal.”

Timon kept talking to Wotan. “Tell me what you want.”

“Just tell me Billy is neither your champion, your vassal, nor your thrall. It’s simply the same thing he’s asserted himself, by trying to contend with you as an equal.”

Timon stood and thought about it a few seconds. Then he said, “Billy is neither my champion, my vassal, nor my thrall.”

The ballroom fell silent, as everybody else figured out exactly what that meant a second before I did. In my defense, it had been a long couple days.

Wotan leered at me. “In that case, little man, I have your lord’s permission to hunt you, just like any