Hugh felt sweat breaking out in his armpits and flinched. But Ponse said evenly, “Very well, we excuse you. You may leave.”
“That suits me!” The ‘Chosen stood up. “Just one thing before I do- If you don’t quit staffing, Their Mercy will let the North Star Protectorate-”
“Are you planning to put up the money?” Their Charity said sharply.
“Me? It’s a Family matter. Not but what I wouldn’t jump at the chance! Forty million hectares and most of it in prime timber? Of course I would! But I hardly have one bullock to jingle against another-and you know why.”
“Certainly we know. You gamble.”
“Oh, come now! A businessman has to take chances. You can’t call it gambling when-”
“We do call it gambling. We do not object to gambling but we have a vast distaste for losing. If you must lose, you will do it with your own bullocks.”
“But this isn’t gambling, it’s a sure thing-as well as getting us in solid with Their Mercy. The Family-”
“We decide what is good for the Family. Your turn will come soon enough. In the meantime we are as anxious to please the Lord Proprietor as you are. But not with bullocks the Family doesn’t have in the treasury.”
“You could borrow it. The interest would only come to-.-”
“You wanted to leave, Mrika. We note that you have left.” Ponse picked up cards and began to shuffle.
The younger Chosen snorted and left.
Ponse laid out a solitaire game, started to play. Presently he said to Joe, “Sometimes that young man gets me so annoyed that I would happily change my will.”
Joe looked puzzled. “I thought you could not disinherit him?”
“Oh, no!” Their Charity looked shocked. “Not even a peasant can do that. Where would we be if there were no stability here on Earth? I wouldn’t dream of it, even if the law permitted it; he’s my heir. I was just thinking of the servants.”
Joe said, “I don’t follow you.”
“Why, you know- No, perhaps you don’t. I keep forgetting that you didn’t grow up among us. My will disposes of things personally mine. Not much-jewelry, scrolls, such. Value probably less than a million. Trivia. Except household servants. Just the household, I’m not talking about servants in mines or on ranches, or in our shipping lines. It’s customary to list all household servants in a will-otherwise they escort their uncle.” He grinned. “It would be a good joke on Mrika if he found that he was going to have to raise the money to adopt fifteen hundred, two thousand servants-or shut the house and live in a tent. I can just see that. Why, the lad can’t take a pee without four servants to shake it. I doubt if he knows how to put on his boots. Hugh, if you tell me to put the black lady on the red lord, I’ll tingle you. I’m not in a good mood.”
Hugh said hastily, “Did you miss a play? I hadn’t noticed.”
“Then why were you staring at the cards?” Hugh had indeed been staring at the game, trying to be invisibie. He had been made very nervous by witnessing a quarrel between Ponse and his nephew. But he had missed not a word, he found it extremely interesting.
Ponse went on, “Which would you prefer, Hugh? To escort me to Heaven? Or stay here and serve Mrika? Don’t answer too quickly. If you stay here, I venture you may be eating your own toes to stay your hunger before I’m gone a year. . whereas Heaven is a nice place, so the Good Scroll tells.”
“It’s a hard choice.”
“Well, you don’t have to make it, nor will you know. A servant should never know, it keeps him on his toes. That scoundrel Memtok keeps praying me for the honor of being in my escort. If I thought he was sincere, I would dismiss him for incompetence.” Ponse swept the cards together. “Damn that lad! He’s poor company but I had my liver set on a few good, hard rubbers. Joe, we’ve got to teach more people to play. Being left without a fourth is annoying.”