“You’ll learn not to expend extra energy,” said Aradia. “That is excellent progress, Decius.”
Knowing that she must go out tonight, at a time Aradia would not approve, Julia was on her best behavior. She tried to duplicate Decius’ tricks, to no avail. However, she did not allow frustration to upset her today, although she was glad when Aradia took Decius off to the hospital to start teaching him to heal.
Wicket appeared at the noonday meal, and murmured to Julia, “Contact made. All set.”
Pyrrhus raised an eyebrow to see his friend sharing a secret with Julia, but for once made no snide comment. He looked exhausted, and Julia wondered fleetingly what Master Clement had put him through.
Then it was Julia’s problem to hide her excitement over the evening’s plans from Master Clement when she joined him in the Academy library.
It was not difficult to hide her thoughts, however, when the Master of Masters said, “I have found the records we’ve been looking for,” and held out a scroll to her. This one was new, still supple, but Julia Read without unrolling it. And without touching it. She did not want to feel the essence of Portia in those last days of power-madness. What the woman had written was poisonous enough.
The technique used on Pyrrhus was an experiment- one Portia deemed highly successful. The only reason it was not repeated was that the Adept she had used left Tiberium. If he had returned, or if she had been able to find another who could do the job, Portia would have crippled others.
When she had Read it, Julia asked, “Do you think Pyrrhus will feel any better knowing he is the only Reader they did that to?”
Master Clement replied, “I don’t know. Possibly there are some acts that cannot be forgiven. I never believed that, but now I wonder. How could Pyrrhus possibly forgive Portia? Could I, if she had done that to me? But if Pyrrhus cannot forgive, he cannot heal.”
There are some acts that cannot be forgiven. Julia understood why Aradia’s father might have allowed his wife to die after she tried to kill their daughter.
Should she tell Master Clement about Aradia’s dreams? No, she should urge Aradia to tell him. It was what Aradia would urge on Julia were their situations reversed.
Master Clement was piling scrolls on the desk. “Julia, take these home with you, and read them in the order in which they were written. Seeing how Portia changed over the years may help you understand her, as it has helped me.”
Julia only nodded and gathered up the scrolls. Her thoughts were on how to get away to join Galerio an hour after sunset.
As it turned out, Aradia and Pyrrhus had an appointment with Master Clement after the evening meal.
Julia could not help wondering whether Master Clement wanted Aradia there to discuss what purpose Pyrrhus might serve in the Savage Empire, or if he wanted an Adept for protection. Julia found Pyrrhus’
habit of constantly shielding his thoughts eerie, and wondered if it also disturbed the Master of Masters.
She spent some time with the early scrolls her teacher had picked out of Portia’s collection, Reading Portia’s growing frustration at how little influence Readers had on Aventine politics. The Emperor at that time was Portia’s brother, and it galled her that the very fact that she was family caused him to give her advice little credence.
Julia was far in the past when a sharp “Psst!” broke her concentration with a start. Wicket was at her window, dressed in the clothes she had borrowed for him. It was dark, “Aren’t you ready?” he whispered.
“Yes,” she replied, lighting a candle. She had changed into a cheap but gaudy orange dress belonging to one of the maids. Now she threw her plain blue mantle over it, and she and Wicket #ent out by the servants’ entrance. There would undoubtedly be gossip tomorrow that Marilys had been Read slipping out with Wicket. Julia hoped that her skills were sufficient to make Torus, who guarded the door, accept the surface impression of Marilys.
Once outside, Julia went straight ahead to meet Galerio, Reading to make sure there were no spies on Wicket. He took one of the circular streets to the east, then turned and approached Capero’s house as if coming from one of the elegant inns in that area.
Capero knew who Julia was, but the rest of the gamers were not supposed to. The gaming room was crowded, but the lighting “was concentrated over the tables, leaving the players in subdued light.
Gambling was legal; some people simply did not want to be identified-especially those responsible for other people’s money. Julia was unsurprised to Read no Readers there other than Capero’s Reader and herself. If his patrons found out Julia was there, they would never trust him again, and his business was built on their trust. Julia swallowed as she realized how important it must be to him to get Galerio into his power.
Capero was a minor Adept, of course, as Julia had to search for him visually. She was open to Reading, but not concentrating, lest Capero’s Reader spot her. She wasn’t sure if the woman knew that she was a Reader, or who she was.
Galerio put his arm around Julia as they threaded through the crowded room, Mosca and Antonius in their wake. They had agreed with Wicket to play the coin toss first, while he gambled at cards. All would then move on to the dice table. It would appear they were in the same game by chance.
Capero was a tall, balding man with a thick brown beard liberally sprinkled with white. He was dressed in understated elegance in brown velvet with satin embroidery that glowed softly, an occasional gold thread glinting here and there. The effect, though, was spoiled by his hands, where every finger carried at least one ring, solid gold or silver with huge, gaudy stones.
The owner moved through his establishment, quietly greeting patrons, occasionally glancing toward his Reader, a faded blond woman who sat at the back of the room. She was a Dark Moon Reader, ostensibly in the employ of the city, supposedly there to see that there was no cheating by either the house or the customers. Galerio said the house paid her far better than the city, though, so she quietly ignored subtle techniques that gave the house a higher percentage than allowed by law, at least as long as the extra percentage did not get so high that customers began to complain.
Capero watched Galerio play two tosses, both of which he won. “Good,” said the big man. “But why play a boy’s game? The stakes are too low here to make it worth your bother.”
Julia stopped Reading for a moment to shed uneasiness. Wicket wasn’t even here yet.
“I like this game,” Galerio replied casually. “It takes a certain degree of skill. You didn’t specify that I had to play any certain game, only that I had to win. I don’t care if that takes all night.”
Capero laughed cheerfully. “Be careful you don’t die of boredom!” he warned.
Wicket came in, went to the card table without making any effort to locate Julia or Galerio-a real pro.
He appeared just slightly inebriated, and cheerfully accepted a flagon of ale as he settled into the game.
The barmaid whispered to the dealer as she passed, “That’s the one. Let him win tonight.”
They continued with their plan as Capero played into their hands. By the standards of this establishment, the sums Mosca and Antonius owed were small. Within an hour, Wicket had won almost half that much at the card table, while Galerio won more than he lost at the coin toss. Still, it was obvious he could not win enough at that game even if he did play all night, so he picked up his money and moved to the dice table.
Wicket remained where he was. It would be too obvious for him to move at the same time Galerio did.