S Stirling - The Council of Shadows

"What's the joke, Harvey?"

"I was just thinking that things were going too smoothly," he said. "And then I backed off a bit and looked at that statement, plus the way we all give a pretty good impression of having been through the cat once, and it struck me as funny."

Adrian laughed himself. Peter Boase started to sputter, then looked around at all of them and chuckled a little himself, wincing when it made a scab on his lip crack. Harvey found himself thinking better of the man for it.

"All right, Dr. Boase," he said. "You're going to Sweden for your new job. Consider yourself a lucky man."

The blond physicist did think about it for a moment. Then he joined in, for the same reason, and they all chuckled; even Guha smiled weakly.

"I am," Boase said. "It's…I hate to say it, but from what little I remember it was even worse at Rancho Sangre after Adrienne died…"

"After I killed her," Ellen said with satisfaction.

Quite a girl, Harvey thought admiringly.

Then she went on: "Farmer here will take you to the next stage, Peter."

They hugged, and Ellen kissed him gently on the brow. "You get to work, you hear me?"

"I will. Professor Duquesne is a first-class mind. Though I'll need some test subjects…and there will be a lot of equipment…"

"We will see that you have all you need," Adrian said. "And you have plenty of motivation, no?"

" Fuck, yes," Boase said, his face grim for a moment. Then, a little shyly, he extended a hand. "And thank you too."

"You are welcome, for what it's worth."

"But shouldn't Duquesne have a spunky young daughter, o square-jawed scientist?" Ellen teased. "A redheaded tomboy who can hand you a soldering iron while you cook up the world saver in the hidden underground lab?"

Everyone laughed, except Farmer, who jerked his head brusquely at the vehicle. When the van pulled away, Harvey looked inquiringly at the pair.

"So, you needed to talk to me?"

Adrian nodded. "It was Ellen's idea."

And for a masochist bottom, she surely does rule that boy with a rod of iron, Harvey thought.

"You noticed how disorganized that attack was?" Adrian said.

Harvey nodded. "Shadowspawn usually are. They don't need to be better. Probably just came here on impulse?"

"Or they could have detected Peter's e-mail. He was using one of the pseudonyms he operated under while he was at Rancho Sangre and doing work for Adrienne."

Harvey snorted. "You see either of those two as hackers? Exceptin' in the literal sense of the word."

Adrian shrugged. "Not directly, no…"

Ellen cut in: "Theresa, Adrienne's household manager, was very good with systems. She could be working for Adrienne's parents now? She was born a renfield there before Jules was, ah…killed. Before his body was killed, that is."

"That is possible," Adrian said. "They would be unlikely to kill her, then. She might have given them a heads-up. They would have been better organized, if my sister were still running that little faction of theirs. Dmitri and Dale Shadowsblade were both here. I bested Dmitri in the contest of Power, but if they had attacked together…"

"We'd be toast," Harvey acknowledged. "Without you, we'd have been toast anyway-or gorilla fodder."

"So Rancho Sangre must be disorganized too," Ellen said firmly. She crossed her arms, took a deep breath, and went on: "And Adrian's children are there."

Harvey grunted and leaned back against the Humvee. "So, you know?"

She shot a glance at Adrian. "He-"

"My darling, I wasn't sure. I was Adrienne's…captive for a while in Calcutta. Seven years ago. My mind was not my own for much of that time. And-" He sighed. "I feared you were right. Perhaps I did not inquire more because I did not want to know."

"They're not in any danger," Harvey pointed out, feeling a trickle of alarm. "Adrian's parents will take care of them."

"Adrian's parents will turn them into killers," Ellen said.

"Well, Adrian…"

"…was rescued, Mr. Ledbetter. By force. Usually I'm not one for removing children by force, but in this case…their mother is dead, Adrian is their father, and leaving them there is the equivalent of having them raised by Nazis. Not just the risk to them, but the people they'll hurt."

She called me by my last name. Uh-oh.

"And so will Leon and Leila be rescued. Think of what an asset they could be to our side, too."

Ellen's face was beautiful, but right now you could see the bone structure under it, and that was beyond all prettiness. Her blue eyes glinted.

"Look-" he began.

Behind her, Adrian smiled. It was almost a smirk, and he mouthed silently: Good luck.

"Ol' buddy, this is crazy."

Ellen crossed her arms and glared at Harvey. "No, it isn't," she snapped.

"Harvey-" Adrian began.

All three of them fell silent as the waitress brought their food. Harvey beamed at her.

"Now that's a taco," he said, taking a happy bite. "My compliments to the chef, darlin'."

Unexpectedly, the heavyset woman smiled at him as she plopped down a basket of sopapillas and covered it with a cloth to keep them warm.

"We don't have no chef," she said. "All we got here at Teresa's is a cook."

Ellen's nose twitched, and saliva spurted into her mouth; her stomach twisted with a need so intense it was almost nausea. She'd been too keyed up to realize just how hungry she was. Still was, despite the energy drinks and nut bars she'd devoured as they drove into town.

What with waiting to be attacked by monsters, shooting monsters…well, shooting at monsters…donating blood and coupling like mad stoats, she thought. God, what a movie this would make! Rated R, of course.

With an effort, she restrained herself from gobbling, the spiced barbacoa beef and onions tingling on her tongue. The puffed bread with honey tasted even better.

"Mighty strange how sometimes the best tacos are in these little places you'd swear probably cooked up roof rabbit. I recall this time near Abilene-" Harvey began reminiscently.

"Shut up with the funny, rustic good-ol'-boy thing, Harvey," she said. "I'm a small-town girl myself and it doesn't fool me. And I'm not going to forget those kids because I'm stuffing my face."

She took a bite of her taco and glared. Harvey shrugged; he was about the most imperturbable man she'd ever met. At least he couldn't sense her emotions anymore, not with his limited talent and the protections Adrian had installed.

At last she pushed the plate away and drank the last of her Diet Coke. Adrian looked at it and raised a brow, chuckling.

"What?"

"It just seems a little…"

He indicated the plates, now mostly clear of their tacos, burritos, refried beans and much else.

"I just prefer the taste of aspartame. And you're not going to distract me either, Adrian. Tell me honestly-will there ever be a better time?"

He sighed and rested his face in his hands for a moment, elbows on the table.

"I am so tired," he said softly. "No. There will not. But answer me honestly, cherie. Why do you care? Why are you ready to take risks for children who are not yours? Did you fall in love with them on brief acquaintance?"

"No. I only saw them a couple of times, and…" She hesitated. "Frankly, I thought they were…"

"Creepy, you said. Then why?"

"Because they're yours, and I love you. Tell me you haven't been thinking about this since I first told you about them. You froze then and it's been eating at you ever since. So I think this is something you need to do."

"Yes, I have been thinking about them." Adrian sighed. "It…has been obsessing me. I thought I hid it better."

"Honey, we're sorta linked. It isn't all one-way, you know."

Softly he went on: "I try to suppress it because it isn't really concern for them in any immediate sense. I think of them, but what the, the eye of my mind sees is myself, as a little boy. Myself and Adrienne, when we were like kittens playing together in the sun. Before we ate of the tree of knowledge and had to choose between good and evil."