Wrede, Patricia C - Mairelon 01 Read Free Page B

straight out?" Kim said,
exasperated. "All I said was, I'd keep an eye out for it, and that's
truth!"
                "So
all you agreed to do was come in, look around, and let him know whether you saw
this bowl?" Mairelon said.
                "That's
it," Kim said. Hunch snorted, and she glared at him. "There wouldn't
be no harm done, after all; just lookin' about. But he ought to of said somethin' about you being a real magician with fancy
locks and exploding chests."
                "What
did this toff of yours look like?"
                "A real swell. Top hat, and gloves better'n the ones
Jamie sells, and a silk cravat." Kim shook her head in wonder that was
only partly simulated. "A top hat, at the Dog and
Bull."
                "What
color was his hair?"
                "Muddy.
Thin, too."
                "His hair or himself?"
                "Both."
                Mairelon
nodded, as if he had expected that answer. "And did he give you something
to make it easier for you to get in here? And into my
chest?"
                "No,
and I wouldn't of took it if he'd offered. I ain't no flat."
                "Then
suppose you show me how you managed it," Mairelon said.
                Kim
nodded, and the magician reached for the rope that bound her hands. Hunch made
a strangling noise. Mairelon paused and looked at him with an expression of
innocent inquiry.
                "You're
never letting 'im go?" Hunch said, plainly appalled by the idea. "You
got no idea what 'e's up to!"
                "I
think the two of us can handle her."
                Hunch bit
down hard on the right side of his mustache. " 'Er ?"
                "Oh,
you didn't realize?" Mairelon said. He turned back to Kim while Hunch was
still gaping mutely, and gave one of the loops of cord a sharp tug. The knot
slid apart as though someone had greased the rope, leaving Kim's hands free. She
blinked, then darted a hand forward and yanked on the cord that held her
ankles.
                Nothing
happened. "There's a trick to it, of course," Mairelon said blandly.
"I'll show you, if you like, when you've finished your own
demonstration."
                Kim
looked up in disbelief. Mairelon was smiling in what appeared to be genuine
amusement. "You will?"
                "Yes.
When you're finished," he added pointedly. Hunch scowled ferociously at
his master's back, but did not dare voice any more criticism.
                "All
right, all right," Kim said. She reached into her pocket, pulled out the
bit of wire, and set to work. She was fairly sure by this time that the
magician would not turn her over to the constables, but instead of reassuring
her, the knowledge made her even more uneasy. Why did he hesitate?
                She
watched Mairelon surreptitiously as she wiggled the wire. He didn't look
particularly impressive, but he was no flat, that was certain. He was no
ordinary street magician, either, not with the inside of his wagon done up like
a gentry ken. Not to mention that thing in the chest
that had blown Kim halfway across the room.
                The
memory slowed her fingers. True, she'd actually been poking around in the chest
when the spell or whatever it was had gone off, but Mairelon could easily have
changed it while she was unconscious. She had no desire to repeat the
performance.
                Hunch
shifted impatiently. "She ain't going to get it, not with just that bit o'
wire."
                "Give
over," Kim snarled, and twisted her wrist. Again she heard the faint
click, and the lid of the chest rose fractionally. Kim lifted it open and
looked triumphantly at Hunch.
                "Impressive,"
Mairelon said. He looked at Kim thoughtfully, and the gleam of interest was
back. "I didn't think anyone but old Schapp-Mussener