Blood of Amber

«Where'd you learn?»

«My dad. He was real good at it.»

«If you can do them, you must have walked the Pattern.»

He nodded.

«Where?»

He studied me a moment, then performed a weak shrug and winced. «Tir-na Nog'th.»

«Your father took you, saw you through it?» Again, a nod.

Why not push it, since I seemed to be on a roll? I picked up a card.

«And here's Dalt,» I said. «You used to be Cub Scouts together, didn't you?»

He did not reply. When I looked up I saw narrowed eyes and a furrowed brow.

«I've never met him» I added. «But I recognize the colors, and I know he's from out your way-around Kashfa.»

Luke smiled. «You always did your homework back in school, too,» he said.

«And usually on time» I agreed. «But with you I've been running late. Luke, I can't find a Trump for the Keep of the Four Worlds. And here's someone I don't know.»

I picked up the slim lady's card and waved it at him.

He smiled. «Gettin' weak and losin' my breath again,» he said. «You been to the Keep?»

«Yep.»

«Recently?»

I nodded.

«Tell you what,» he said at last. «Tell me what you saw at the Keep and how you learned some of that stuff about me and I'll tell you who she is.»

I thought quickly. I could say things so that I probably wouldn't be telling him anything he didn't already know.

So, «The other way around,» I said.

«Okay. The lady,» he stated, «is Sand.»

I stared so hard that I felt the beginnings of a contact. I smothered it.

«The long-lost,» he added.

I raised the card depicting the man who resembled her. «Then this must be Delwin,» I said.

«Right.»

«You didn't do these two cards. They're not your style, and you probably wouldn't have known what they looked like to begin with.»

«Perceptive. My father drew them, back in the time of the troubles for all the good it did him. They wouldn't help him either.»

«Either?»

«They weren't interested in helping me, despite their disaffection with this place. Count them as out of the game.»

«This place?» I said. «Where do you think you are, Luke?»

His eyes widened. He cast his gaze about the room. «The camp of the enemy,» he answered. «I had no choice. These are your quarters in Amber, right?»

«Wrong,» I replied.

«Don't bait me, Merle. You've got me. I'm your prisoner. Where am I?»

«Do you know who Vinta Bayle is?»

«No.»

«She was Caine's mistress. This is her family's place, way out in the country. She's just up the hall somewhere. Might even stop by. I think she's got a crush on me.»

«Uh-oh. She a tough lady?»

«Very.»

«What you doing making out with her this soon after the funeral? That's hardly decent.»

«Huh! If it weren't for you there wouldn't have been any funeral.» «

«Don't give me that indignation crap, Merle. If it had been your dad, Corwin, he'd killed, wouldn't you have gone after him?»

«That's not fair. My father wouldn't have done all those things Brand did.»

«Maybe, maybe not. But supposing he had? Even then. Wouldn't you have gone after Caine?»

I turned away. «I don't know,» I said finally. «It's too damned hypothetical.»

«You'd have done it. I know you, Merle. I'm sure you would have.»

I sighed. «Maybe,» I said. «Well, okay. Maybe I might have. But I would have stopped there. I wouldn't have gone after the others too. I don't want to make you feel any worse than you do about it, but your old man was psycho; you must know that. And you're not. I know you as well as you know me. I've been thinking about this for some time. You know, Amber recognizes the personal vendetta. You've got an arguable case there for one. And the death didn't even occur within Amber, if Random were really looking for an out for you.»

«Why should he be?»

«Because I'd be vouching for your integrity in other matters.»

«Come on, Merle -»

«You've got a classic vendetta defense - a son avenging his father's death.»

«I don't know… Hey, you trying to get out of telling me the stuff you promised to?»

«No, but»

«So you made it to the Keep of the Four Worlds. What did you learn there and how did you learn it?»

«Okay. You think about what I said, though,» I replied.

His expression remained unchanged.

Then, «There was an old hermit named Dave,» I began.