“Ah, I see,” said Scales. “You were hol
ding it shut.” And he added, most unwillingly, “Thank you.”
Mr. Chesney shot Scales an irritated glance for speaking out of turn. He did not notice the demon towering nebulously behind him. His eyes traveled stonily from Querida on her wall, with Elda now crouching at her feet and Reville leaning beside her, on to Mara, Lydda, Callette, Don, across forty dwarfs or so, to Blade and Kit, and stopped at Derk.
“Wizard Derk,” he said in his flat voice, “you are facing a great deal more than bankruptcy for this.”
Derk could only manage a shrug. Mr. Chesney was having the same effect on him as he had had before. Derk so hated the man that all he seemed to be able to think of was ideas for new and fantastic animals. They came pouring through his mind: the carrier pigeons—easy—and vegetarian eagles with pouches for messages, centaurs, talking elephants, manticores, kangaroos with hands and human faces, chimeras, walking mushrooms, winged goats. Or how about creating a unicorn?
Luckily Mr. Chesney did not seem to expect an answer. His eyes traveled coldly on, across the Pilgrims, over more dwarfs, on to Talithan, and then, with a jerk, back to the Pilgrims. “You two,” he said. “Come here.”
Miss Ledbury stood up. So did Dad and Mother Poole. The Pooles sat diffidently down again when Mr. Chesney snapped, “I didn’t mean you.”
Miss Ledbury stayed standing up. “But I mean to talk to you,” she announced. “I am a plainclothes detective attached to the Police Bureau, Missing Persons and Unsolved Murder departments. I was sent to investigate the reason why so many people who go on your Pilgrim Parties never come back.”
“Do you think I haven’t taken legal advice?” Mr. Chesney asked her, flatly unconcerned. “Anything that happens on this world is outside the jurisdiction of your bureau. But you can arrest Wizard Derk if you like. He was the one who closed the portal here, not me. Speak to my lawyers. You’ll find I’ve done nothing illegal.”
“Ah. Then I’d better put a word in here,” Mother Poole said cozily. “I work for Inland Revenue. And my inquiries suggest that the money for your insurance fraud and the fees for bumping people off here are paid in our own world. The tax owing on both must be in millions by now, not to speak of the fact that most of it is illegal income. Don’t talk to me about arresting this nice young bard’s father, my dear. I can’t wait to get you home. And Dad here’s licking his lips.”
Dad Poole cleared his throat. “I’m from the Monopolies Commission,” he said. “I was looking into the way you’re the only one who runs tours to this world, but I’ve since been hearing about a certain mining operation you have here.”
Mr. Chesney waved a cold hand. “I said speak to my lawyers. You’ll find I’m clean. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to talk to my daughter and my stepson. Sukey, Geoffrey, I said come here.”
Shona dashed forward and seized Geoffrey’s arm. “He’s not going back with you!” she said.
“No, indeed he isn’t,” Mr Chesney agreed. “I want to speak to the wizard who had charge of his party. I marked Geoffrey down as expendable myself.”
“You did? You unfeeling—” Shona began.
Geoffrey said, “I can speak for myself, love.” He turned to Mr. Chesney. “So it was all lies about my getting experience of the tours, was it? And the ski lift and the car crash were intentional, were they? I did wonder. I can think, you know.”
“I didn’t want you taking a share of Sukey’s inheritance,” Mr. Chesney said, shrugging a little, as if this was the most natural thing. “It’s a considerable sum these days. That’s all. And I’m not at all pleased with you for bringing Sukey here with you.”
“She was dying to come,” Geoffrey said, “so I arranged it for her.”
“You’d do anything to spite me, wouldn’t you?” Mr. Chesney said.
“No,” said Geoffrey. “You just think I do.”
Mr. Chesney turned aside from him disgustedly. “Sukey.”
Blade had been watching Sukey as she edged around past Mara and Lydda to stand next to Reville. Now he understood why the escaped soldiers had carried her off and then treated her as if she was so valuable. They knew who she was. They must have been hoping for a reward from Mr. Chesney. Blade also knew why he had disliked Sukey so much. She was quite like Mr. Chesney to look at, although even Blade had to admit that she was a great deal prettier. He still thought she was quite like Mr. Chesney in her personality.
She seemed very like her father as she grabbed Reville’s arm and said, “I’m not coming, Daddy,” in the same sort of flat voice Mr. Chesney used. “I’m staying here. I’m getting married to Reville.”
Mr. Chesney was so angry at this that he almost looked human. “What?”
Sukey nodded. “Yup. Reville’s ever so rich. He’s got a lovely house for me. And he’s a thief. You should be ever so pleased.”
“Well, I’m not. It’s plain ridiculous,” Mr. Chesney stated. “It’s not going to happen, and that’s my final word, Sukey.”
Reville gave one of his smoothest bows. He looked around at the large numbers of people all watching and listening and said ruefully, “I intend it to happen, sir. And—this is a fact we don’t like generally known, but it may help to change your mind—I am actually the richest person in this world. Hereditary Head of Thieves Guild, at your service, Mr. Chesney.”
“It’s still ridiculous,” Mr. Chesney snapped. He turned to Sukey, almost pleadingly. “You don’t understand,” he said. “He’s not real life. None of these people are. They’re all just the way they are because I turned their world into a theme park. If they didn’t happen to be under contract to me, they’d be nothing—just rough types in a world that happens to have some magic to it.”
“Dear me,” Querida put in from her perch on the wall. “And now we all come fluttering down like a pack of cards, I suppose.” She cocked an eye up at the demon, still towering behind Mr. Chesney.
I can’t eat this one, the demon told her. The demon in his pocket prevents me. It is my mate, and he keeps it half starved. Set it free. Then I will eat him very slowly.