“And what is it?”
I shrugged.
“You will know if he mentions it. If he does not, forget it.”
“Dara, you say?”
“Yes.”
“Very well, I shall do as you have asked. . . . Now, will you tell me how you managed your escape from Amber?”
I smiled.
“Academic interest? Or do you feel you might have need of the route yourself one day?”
He chuckled.
“It strikes me as a handy piece of information to have.”
“I regret, dear brother, that the world is not yet ready for this knowledge. If I had to tell anyone, I would tell you-but there is no way it could benefit you, whereas its secrecy may serve me in the future.”
“In other words, you have a private way into and out of Amber. What are you planning, Corwin?”
“What do you think?”
“The answer is obvious. But my feelings on the matter are mixed.”
“Care to tell me about them?”
He gestured toward a section of the black road that was visible from where we stood.
“That thing,” he said. “It runs to the foot of Kolvir now. A variety of menaces travel it to attack Amber. We defend, we are always victorious. But the attacks grow stronger and they come more frequently. Now would not be a good time for you to move, Corwin.”
“Or it might be the perfect time,” I said.
“For you then, but not necessarily for Amber.”
“How has Eric been handling the situation?”
“Adequately. As I said, we are always victorious.”
“I do not mean the attacks. I mean the entire problem—its cause.”
“I have traveled the black road myself, going a great distance along it.”
“And?”
“I was unable to go the entire distance. You know how the shadows grow wilder and stranger the farther you get from Amber?”
“Yes.”
“. . . Until the mind itself is twisted and turned toward madness?”
“Yes.”
“. . . And somewhere beyond this lie the Courts of Chaos. The road goes on, Corwin. I am convinced that it runs the entire distance.”
“Then it is as I feared,” I said.
“That is why, whether I sympathize with you or not, I do not recommend the present time for your efforts. The security of Amber must come before all else.”
“I see. Then there is nothing more to be said just now.”
“And your plans?”
“Since you do not know what they are, it is meaningless to tell you that they are unchanged. But they are unchanged.”
“I do not know whether to wish you luck, but I wish you well. I am glad that you have your sight back.” He clasped my hand. “I had best get on to Benedict now. I take it he is not badly hurt?”
“Not by me. I only hit him a few times. Do not forget to give him my message.”
“I won‘t.”
“And take him back to Avalon.”
“I will try.”
“Then good-by for now, Gerard.”
“Good-by, Corwin.”
He turned then and walked on down the road. I watched until he was out of sight before I returned to the wagon. Then I replaced his Trump in the deck and continued on my way to Antwerp.
8
I stood on the hilltop and looked down at the house. There was shrubbery all about me, so I was not especially obtrusive.
I do not really know what I expected to see. A burned-out shell? A car in the driveway? A family scattered about the redwood patio furniture? Armed guards?
I saw that the roof could use some new slate, that the lawn had long ago returned to a natural condition. I was surprised that I could see only one broken window there in the rear.
So the place was supposed to look deserted. I wondered.
I spread my jacket on the ground and seated myself on it. I lit a cigarette. There were no other houses for quite a distance.
I had gotten close to seven hundred thousand dollars for the diamonds. It had taken me a week and a half to make the deal. From Antwerp we had traveled to Brussels, spending several evenings at a club on the Rue de Char et Pain before the man I wanted found me.