A Game of Universe by Eric Nylund Read Free Book Online Page A

disappear.”
    I wandered into the living room and sat on one of the two divans there. “You’re a full-apprentice card plate dealer,” I said. “From what little I know of the game, that takes two years. You must have lost quite a sum.”
    “Only two hundred,” she replied and followed me, wobbling, into the living room. Her dress made a crisp metal-on-metal tinkling with every step. I offered her a seat. She declined with a shake of her head.
    “Two hundred thousand?”
    “No, two hundred.”
    I leaned forward, intrigued. “It shouldn’t have taken more than a week to work that off. Are you a compulsive gambler, Miss Virginia?”
    Her eyes narrowed. “Living here costs money, eating in this dump costs money, they even charge you for the water flushed down your toilet.” She chewed her lower lip, then said, “After eighteen months of double shifts, I owe the casino two hundred and seventeen.”
    I understood. This con had many names: debtor’s prison, indentured servitude, the democratic middle class. Whatever you called it, it had one thing in common, a poor worker forced to spend more than he had. I saluted Erybus’s business savvy.
    “So what do you think I can do for you?”
    “You can pay my debt and buy me passage off this rock. You won over four million, so it shouldn’t be too much to ask.”
    “Only that? If what you claim is true, certainly your silence is worth more.”
    “I’m a hard worker. I’m honest. I just want to get out of this snake pit, get back to my Guild, and do what I do best—pilot.”
    Her hand drifted closer to that hidden weapon, and she added, “I know you’re some sort of sanctioned assassin. I don’t want trouble. I just want out of here. If I disappear, the casino will investigate. Probably not as thoroughly as if I told them about that card, but the way I see it, you’re better off paying me.”
    I looked appropriately shocked at her accusation. “What makes you think I’m an assassin?”
    “I hear things,” she whispered. “Things like the owner hired a bunch of licensed killers. You said you were going to the Turquoise Room. I can put two and two together.”
    She had made a shrewd guess or she knew more than she was telling. Either way I didn’t like it. “Yes, I heard that rumor too, but it was mercenaries and war heroes your owner hired, not assassins.”
    She looked me over once, and remarked, “You’re no war hero Mister Germain.”
    “No. I’m not.”
    Maybe it would be better to pay her off, yet another option occurred to me. Nothing along the lines of what Celeste might enjoy. This girl had integrity. I knew how hard Golden City worked its dealers. With a body like hers, she must have been offered other ways to settle her debt. “You said you were a first-class pilot?”
    “Second,” she corrected.
    “I can settle your account, but if you’re interested I have a different proposition, one you might find more appealing.”
    She sat on the divan opposite me and carefully crossed her legs. “If you’re thinking about sex, forget it.”
    She doesn’t mean it, Celeste whispered.
    “My ego is bruised,” I said, “but that’s not what I had in mind. I have a better use for your talents. May I offer you a drink?”
    She glanced to the well-stocked bar across the suite. “Quantum ice, please.”
    I used the pad on the coffee table and watched her drink dissolve in reverse; a blue crane materialized, the ceramic cup upon which it was painted came next, then the steaming liquor within appeared.
    Quantum ice was a mixture of solvents that boiled at room temperature. It got you very drunk, very quick. She tossed the cup back, blushed, and blew a smoke ring straight up. Her full lips made a perfect “O.” Very sexy.
    “As I was saying, I am engaged in what you might call a scavenger hunt. I have a computer full of clues to search through, but that will take far too long for my purposes.” She summoned another drink and sipped it as I