From a Drood to a Kill - Simon R. Green Page 0,141

were someone else.”

“Patrick and Diana,” I said.

“Exactly,” said Charles.

“So we entered into Agreements,” said Emily. “To make sure you could never be put in danger.”

“Who did you make these Agreements with?” I said.

Charles and Emily looked at each other and didn’t say anything.

“We were so mad at you,” said Molly. “Or I was, anyway, thinking you’d just run away from Casino Infernale . . .”

“We were abducted!” said Charles. “Right in the middle of our mission!”

“Right in the middle of our game plan,” said Emily.

“You do know,” Charles said to me apologetically, “that we lost your soul, as well as our own, gambling at the Casino?”

“I did find that out, yes,” I said. “Don’t worry; I won them all back again and broke the bank.”

“Of course you did,” said Emily. “You’re our son.”

“We were a little concerned,” said Charles. “About being trapped here, and leaving you in the lurch.”

“Our game plan would have worked,” said Emily, glaring at Walker, “if we hadn’t been interrupted!”

I gave him one of my best glares too. “What is to stop any or all of us from working together to win the Game?”

“Nothing,” said Walker. “But in the end, the Door will still only open once, for one person.”

“Hah!” Molly said loudly. “I never met a Door I couldn’t unlock.”

“I never met a Door I couldn’t force open,” I said. Which wasn’t strictly true, but Walker didn’t need to know that.

He just smiled easily, apparently entirely unmoved. “The rules are different here. Because the Powers That Be decide what the rules are.”

Chandarru suddenly stepped forward and thrust out a hand at me. Savage green lightnings sprang from his extended fingertips, but I already had my armour in place, reacting instinctively to his movement. Magical lightnings crawled all over my armour, trying to force their way in, only to fall away defeated. Chandarru immediately turned his lightnings on everyone else, and the rest of the group scattered to avoid them. Somehow, Tarot Jones was never where the lightnings struck. The Sin Eater stood firm, protected by a magical circle. Emily grabbed Charles’ arm and stepped back into a concealing shadow, reappearing only after the lightnings had passed. She grinned, delighted.

“My abilities are back! I’m a shadow dancer again!”

“Somebody must want you to have them, for the Game,” said Charles.

“More fool them,” said Emily.

And of course, none of the lightnings got anywhere near Molly. She just stood her ground and faced them down, until Chandarru lowered his hand and the lightnings stopped. He bowed briefly to Molly and to me, and smiled inscrutably, apparently completely unembarrassed by his sneak attack. I armoured down.

Tarot Jones turned angrily to Walker, who had quietly stepped behind the Somnambulist until the attack was over.

“Is that allowed? Can he just get away with that? Attacking us without warning, before the Game has even started?”

“The Game started the moment you all arrived,” said Walker.

“We should kill the conjurer now,” said the Sin Eater. “All of us, together; while we have the chance. We can’t concentrate on winning the Game if we have to worry about being stabbed in the back all the time.”

“That’s part of the Game,” said Walker.

Chandarru just smiled around at us. “You are, of course, welcome to try . . .”

“But some or all of you might find you have need of his particular talents, at some point in the Game,” said Walker. “Shifting allegiances is a standard tactic amongst the most powerful players.”

“Whose side are you on?” I said.

“Nobody’s,” said Walker. “That’s the point.”

“Why is the Somnambulist here, really?” I said. “To enforce fair play among the participants?”

“Hardly,” said Walker. “She’s here to enforce the rules. You must play the Game, all of you. No complaints, and no way out. Fight and win, or die. The Powers That Be must have their amusement. And their pound of flesh. If anyone refuses to participate in the Game, the Somnambulist will kill them.”

“No!” said Molly. “Carrys wouldn’t do that!”

“Possibly not, but Carrys isn’t here right now,” said Walker. “She won’t know anything about it until she wakes up. She might be very upset at that point, but it will be far too late to do any of you any good.”

“Who are you really?” I said.

“Who do you want me to be?” said Walker.

And I have to say, that did sound a hell of a lot like the real Walker.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

That’s Not Playing the Game

Everything disappeared. As though the whole world had been taken away. I couldn’t see or hear anything, couldn’t