“Ugh!”
The white knight dove off a storage rack and tackled him. Out came another grenade and—foosh!—the Lord of Diamonds was encaged in a porta-prison. The pawns and card soldiers gathered round, congratulating one another on a mission accomplished. Or mostly accomplished. For in all the rumpus, he of the oversized rump, Jack of Diamonds, had quietly slipped away.
CHAPTER 27
H ATTER FOLLOWED Arch’s bodyguards out of the Sin Bin Gaming Club and across a dusty street to a tent repair shop that was itself in need of repair. Blister took up position on one side of the entrance, Ripkins on the other, and the Milliner pushed aside the tent flap and stepped inside. “Hatter Madigan,” King Arch said.
He instinctively calculated his odds: Arch; the nervous proprietor hunched over a patching machine; the two assassins out front; probably reinforcements nearby. Not the greatest situation, but Hatter had faced worse.
“Where are the Ganmedes I’m to negotiate with?” “They couldn’t make it. But I have the power to deal on their behalf. I assume you have the power to negotiate for your queen?”
Hatter gave no indication either way.
“Ripkins!” Arch shouted, and when the called-for guard entered the tent: “Escort our host across the street for a drink.”
“N-no, that’s all right,” said the proprietor, “I’m not thirsty.” But Ripkins had already stepped up to him and taken hold of his elbow. “I mean, I’m not not thirsty. Sometimes I don’t realize how thirsty I am until I have a drink, and then it’s as if I could drink an entire…” The proprietor’s words were lost to the world outside. Hatter and Arch were alone. Reinforcements would never make it in time. All Hatter had to do was flick his wrist and the king would be dead. “I wonder how Alyss and the others reacted to hearing that the great Millinery man had secretly fathered a child,” Arch mused.
“And I wonder how the great King Arch knew about it.” Arch laughed. “That is a question that will soon be answered, my Millinery friend. I prefer questions that have definite answers, don’t you? As opposed to abstract ones concerning the meaning and purpose of life, blah blah blah. You’d probably like to know that your daughter is being adequately taken care of.” “I want to see her.”
“As would I, were our places reversed. Unfortunately, I’m unable to accommodate your request. The Ganmedes are clever. They’ve asked me to negotiate for them, but they haven’t told me where they’re keeping her.”
“There are no Ganmede kidnappers,” Hatter said through tightened jaw. “Not unless they’re working for
The white knight dove off a storage rack and tackled him. Out came another grenade and—foosh!—the Lord of Diamonds was encaged in a porta-prison. The pawns and card soldiers gathered round, congratulating one another on a mission accomplished. Or mostly accomplished. For in all the rumpus, he of the oversized rump, Jack of Diamonds, had quietly slipped away.
CHAPTER 27
H ATTER FOLLOWED Arch’s bodyguards out of the Sin Bin Gaming Club and across a dusty street to a tent repair shop that was itself in need of repair. Blister took up position on one side of the entrance, Ripkins on the other, and the Milliner pushed aside the tent flap and stepped inside. “Hatter Madigan,” King Arch said.
He instinctively calculated his odds: Arch; the nervous proprietor hunched over a patching machine; the two assassins out front; probably reinforcements nearby. Not the greatest situation, but Hatter had faced worse.
“Where are the Ganmedes I’m to negotiate with?” “They couldn’t make it. But I have the power to deal on their behalf. I assume you have the power to negotiate for your queen?”
Hatter gave no indication either way.
“Ripkins!” Arch shouted, and when the called-for guard entered the tent: “Escort our host across the street for a drink.”
“N-no, that’s all right,” said the proprietor, “I’m not thirsty.” But Ripkins had already stepped up to him and taken hold of his elbow. “I mean, I’m not not thirsty. Sometimes I don’t realize how thirsty I am until I have a drink, and then it’s as if I could drink an entire…” The proprietor’s words were lost to the world outside. Hatter and Arch were alone. Reinforcements would never make it in time. All Hatter had to do was flick his wrist and the king would be dead. “I wonder how Alyss and the others reacted to hearing that the great Millinery man had secretly fathered a child,” Arch mused.
“And I wonder how the great King Arch knew about it.” Arch laughed. “That is a question that will soon be answered, my Millinery friend. I prefer questions that have definite answers, don’t you? As opposed to abstract ones concerning the meaning and purpose of life, blah blah blah. You’d probably like to know that your daughter is being adequately taken care of.” “I want to see her.”
“As would I, were our places reversed. Unfortunately, I’m unable to accommodate your request. The Ganmedes are clever. They’ve asked me to negotiate for them, but they haven’t told me where they’re keeping her.”
“There are no Ganmede kidnappers,” Hatter said through tightened jaw. “Not unless they’re working for