me, though, I’ll have a book full of questions when he does wake up.”
“If he does?”
“He’s my oldest friend, Sergeant. I’m bound to think positive.”
“Was I you, I’d do my best to be positive. After last night people all the way up to the Crown Prince are going to want to ask him what’s going on.”
I made one of those intuitive leaps for which I’m not well-known. “I’ll bet an angel right now that he won’t have any idea.”
“He’s going to clam and try to handle it himself?”
Morley’s mind would work that way. “Not what I meant. I mean I’m willing to bet he knows less about what’s going on than you or me.”
“But somebody wants to kill him.”
“Maybe. But maybe the somebody who was here wasn’t the same somebody who turned him into a pincushion. Maybe this somebody wants to find out what that somebody was up to.” I was brainstorming. That notion arose from the fact that there had been no sorcery involved in the attack on Morley. “Mistaken identity might be involved. Or somebody thinks Morley knows something that he doesn’t. I could come up with this stuff all day. It’s just speculation.”
“Sicko.”
Probably. Undoubtedly. In the spirit of open cooperation, I began to quiz Berry about crimes that might have been related to what had happened here. Relway had mentioned a deep interest in a pattern of ugliness.
I did not get to run with that.After discovering that she could not open the window to yell at me, Miss Tea began pounding on glass to get my attention. She beckoned vigorously.
“Got to go, Sergeant. Thanks for everything.”
21
Miss Tea did not give me a chance to ask what was happening. “I didn’t tell you to take the rest of the day off, I’d cover for you.”
“The red tops gave me the first-class tour. I’ve never seen them this serious. We may have Prince Rupert himself up here later.”
She wanted to go on being irritated but put that aside. A visit from the Crown Prince had a ton of meaning. “I see.”
“Our own prince say anything while I was out?” Dotes was sound asleep again.
“He proposed. A two-hour common-law marriage. After he gets on his feet again. I’m thinking about it.”
“Another sign that he’s recuperating.”
Miss Tea scowled at me and grumbled something I don’t think Morley would have found endearing. She absented herself in quest of more important duties. She didn’t take the breakfast tray. I poured cold tea, put my cot back down, settled, picked up the Salvation omnibus and tried reading Star-Crossed Love . The title said it all. The theme animated most of the plays put on in TunFaire’s theaters. There were autobiographical elements to this one. The female protagonist, instead of being the usual fainthearted rose, resembled Salvation’s girlfriend, Winger.
After a few pages I glanced over, wondered aloud, “What did you get yourself into this time?”
It looked big. That didn’t fit. Morley would not do anything to invite the attention of Prince Rupert.
That left me thinking about the attack on me and Tinnie.
We weren’t involved by choice, either.
I went back to the play. I needed to clear my head.
I finished the first scene in act three, looked over, found Morley looking back, not brightly. “What the hell did you do?”
He gave me a weak smile, said, “Water!” in a raspy little croak.
I dribbled water. When he had enough he went back to sleep, nothing said and no questions answered.
Crush brought lunch and took breakfast’s remains away. I told her, “I need more water and a chamber pot change.”
“I need a diamond tiara.”
Despite the attitude, all was handled quickly.
Morley woke up, drank water, dispensed no wisdom, and went back to sleep. An hour before supper the healer returned, tricked out in his best mourning outfit. I did not care enough to ask why the Children dressed that way. I was getting jaded. And distracted.
Accompanying the healer was a serious surprise
“If he does?”
“He’s my oldest friend, Sergeant. I’m bound to think positive.”
“Was I you, I’d do my best to be positive. After last night people all the way up to the Crown Prince are going to want to ask him what’s going on.”
I made one of those intuitive leaps for which I’m not well-known. “I’ll bet an angel right now that he won’t have any idea.”
“He’s going to clam and try to handle it himself?”
Morley’s mind would work that way. “Not what I meant. I mean I’m willing to bet he knows less about what’s going on than you or me.”
“But somebody wants to kill him.”
“Maybe. But maybe the somebody who was here wasn’t the same somebody who turned him into a pincushion. Maybe this somebody wants to find out what that somebody was up to.” I was brainstorming. That notion arose from the fact that there had been no sorcery involved in the attack on Morley. “Mistaken identity might be involved. Or somebody thinks Morley knows something that he doesn’t. I could come up with this stuff all day. It’s just speculation.”
“Sicko.”
Probably. Undoubtedly. In the spirit of open cooperation, I began to quiz Berry about crimes that might have been related to what had happened here. Relway had mentioned a deep interest in a pattern of ugliness.
I did not get to run with that.After discovering that she could not open the window to yell at me, Miss Tea began pounding on glass to get my attention. She beckoned vigorously.
“Got to go, Sergeant. Thanks for everything.”
21
Miss Tea did not give me a chance to ask what was happening. “I didn’t tell you to take the rest of the day off, I’d cover for you.”
“The red tops gave me the first-class tour. I’ve never seen them this serious. We may have Prince Rupert himself up here later.”
She wanted to go on being irritated but put that aside. A visit from the Crown Prince had a ton of meaning. “I see.”
“Our own prince say anything while I was out?” Dotes was sound asleep again.
“He proposed. A two-hour common-law marriage. After he gets on his feet again. I’m thinking about it.”
“Another sign that he’s recuperating.”
Miss Tea scowled at me and grumbled something I don’t think Morley would have found endearing. She absented herself in quest of more important duties. She didn’t take the breakfast tray. I poured cold tea, put my cot back down, settled, picked up the Salvation omnibus and tried reading Star-Crossed Love . The title said it all. The theme animated most of the plays put on in TunFaire’s theaters. There were autobiographical elements to this one. The female protagonist, instead of being the usual fainthearted rose, resembled Salvation’s girlfriend, Winger.
After a few pages I glanced over, wondered aloud, “What did you get yourself into this time?”
It looked big. That didn’t fit. Morley would not do anything to invite the attention of Prince Rupert.
That left me thinking about the attack on me and Tinnie.
We weren’t involved by choice, either.
I went back to the play. I needed to clear my head.
I finished the first scene in act three, looked over, found Morley looking back, not brightly. “What the hell did you do?”
He gave me a weak smile, said, “Water!” in a raspy little croak.
I dribbled water. When he had enough he went back to sleep, nothing said and no questions answered.
Crush brought lunch and took breakfast’s remains away. I told her, “I need more water and a chamber pot change.”
“I need a diamond tiara.”
Despite the attitude, all was handled quickly.
Morley woke up, drank water, dispensed no wisdom, and went back to sleep. An hour before supper the healer returned, tricked out in his best mourning outfit. I did not care enough to ask why the Children dressed that way. I was getting jaded. And distracted.
Accompanying the healer was a serious surprise
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