Droppa had a rough time at first. He began by juggling some food, eating it as it moved by until it was gone, wiped his mouth on a borrowed napkin, then insulted each of us in turn. After that, he commenced a stand-up routine I found very funny.
Bill, who was at my left, commented softly, “I know enough Thari to catch most of it, and that’s a George Carlin shtick! How-“
“Oh, whenever Droppa’s stuff starts sounding stale, Random sends him off to various clubs in Shadow,” I explained, “to pick up new material. I understand he’s a regular at Vegas. Random even accompanies him sometimes, to play cards.”
He did start getting laughs after a while which loosened things up a bit. When he knocked off for a drink it became possible to talk without being the center of attention, as separate conversations had sprung up. As soon as this happened, a massive arm passed behind Bill and fell upon my shoulder. Gerard was leaning back in his chair and sideward toward me.
“Merlin,” he said, “good to see you again. Listen, when you get a chance I’d like to have a little talk with you in private.”
“Sure,” I said, “but Random and I have to take care of something after dinner. “
“When you get a chance,” he repeated. I nodded.
A few moments later I had the feeling that someone was trying to reach me via my Trump.
“Merlin!”
It was Fiona. But she was just sitting at the other end of the table . . .
Her image came clear, however, and I answered her, “Yes?” and then I glanced down the table and saw that she was staring into her handkerchief. She looked up at me then, smiled, and nodded.
I still retained the mental image of her, simultaneously, and I heard it say, “I dislike raising my voice, for a number of reasons. I’ m certain that you will be rushed off after dinner, and I just wanted to let you know that we ought to take a walk, or row out on one of the ponds, or Trump out to Cabra or go look at the Pattern together sometime soon. You understand?”
“I understand,” I said. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Excellent. “
The contact was broken then, and when I glanced her way she was folding her handkerchief and studying her plate.
Random did not linger, but rose quickly after he had finished his dessert, bidding the others a good night and gesturing for Martin and me to accompany him as he departed.
Julian brushed by me on the way out, trying to look somewhat less than sinister and almost succeeding.
“We must go riding together in Arden,” he said, “soon.”
“Good idea,” I told him. “I’ll be in touch.”
We departed the dining room. Flora caught me in the hall. She still had Bill in tow.
“Stop by my room for a nightcap,” she said, “before you turn in. Or come by for tea tomorrow.”
“Thank you,” I said. “We’ll get together. It all depends on how things run, as to just when.”
She nodded and hit me with the smile that had caused numerous duels and Balkan crises in the past. Then she moved on and we did too.
As we mounted the stair on the way to the library, Random asked, “Is that everyone?”
“What do you mean?” I said.
“Have they all set up assignations with you by now?”
“Well, they’re all tentative things, but yes.”
“He laughed. “Didn’t think they’d waste any time. You’ll get everybody’s pet suspicions that way. Might as well collect them. Some might come in handy later. They’re probably all looking for allies, too-and you should seem a pretty safe choice.”
“I do want to visit with all of them. It’s just a shame it has to be this way.”
He gestured as we came to the top of the stairs. We turned up the hallway and headed toward the library.
“Where are we going?” Martin asked.
Although he resembled Random, Martin looked a little less sneaky, and he was taller. Still, he was not a really big “To pick up a rifle,” Random said.