The Getaway God (Sandman Slim 6)

“You don’t need to know anything about her. Or anyone else here. I’m the only one you need to worry about.”

“How is it?”

“How’s what?”

He opens his hands, rattling the shackles.

“The Qomrama. Having fun with it? Teaching it to do tricks. Fetch? Roll over.”

“We’re doing great with it. The Shonin practically has it sussed.”

“The Shonin. I’ve heard about him.”

“From who?”

“A little demon told me.”

“Where’s Candy?”

Mason looks down at the table. Purses his lips.

“Every time you say something stupid or break a rule you lose a turn.”

“We aren’t playing yet.”

“Yes we are.”

The door opens and Julie comes back into the room. She sets a deck of cards on the table between us.

“What happens now?”

“Shuffle them,” Says Mason.

I shuffle them a ­couple of times. Set them back down b

etween us.

Mason turns to Julie.

“Would you cut the cards for me, dear? I’m a bit encumbered.”

Julie glances at me. She comes over and cuts the cards. I look at Mason.

“What are we playing?”

“In my time in the dark I learned that there’s only one game worth playing and it takes many forms. One form is cards.”

“What’s the game?”

“Chaos. Entropy. Catastrophe. Infinity.”

“I don’t know how to play that.”

He sits up straight, his eyes on the cards.

“It’s your whole life, Jimmy. You’re an expert. You just don’t know it.”

I look at the time on my phone and then at Julie.