Three Card Monte (The Martian Alliance) (9 page)

“Yes, I’m quite sure. The Underground sees the casino as a way to allow them to expand off our planet.”

“And Orion’s Light is supposed to be their first expansion point, right?”

“Yes.”

Time for the Big Question. “Who’s aware that the Polliworld Palace isn’t really in the black?”

Longdaddy appeared mildly impressed. I didn’t know why. He’d shared this already, by confirming Monte had hired a lot of shills without the Underground’s knowledge. “Only a few. The Leech has done a good job convincing the Underworld that things are going well.”

“But you have people in the casino who know differently. Do you know how the Palace on Roulette is doing without Monte there?”

“The Palace was more profitable when it was being run by the correct being.”

“Makes sense.”

“Why isn’t the Polliwog Palace doing well?” Bullfrog asked. “We Polliwogs love gambling.”

Longdaddy shrugged. “We apparently love to travel to another world that is very different from our own when we are gambling. There is no allure to a casino that anyone and everyone can visit.”

Interesting. I’d never have guessed that, and clearly Monte and the Underground hadn’t guessed that, either. “Maybe over time it’ll have an allure. How many spies do you have in the Underground?”

“Enough. Just as I have enough in the casino.”

“And some in the Diamante Families, too, right?”

“Yes.”

I took the logical leap. “The Diamante Families are also going in on Casino City, aren’t they?”

Longdaddy smiled. “I would be willing to consider interspecies marriage.”

“Flattery’s a lot nicer than threats, so let’s stick with that. Can we trust him?” I asked Bullfrog. “After we do what he wants, I mean.”

I didn’t expect an honest answer from Bullfrog. We were standing in front of Longdaddy, in his secret communications lair, without a lot of easy exit options. But I was very interested in Longdaddy’s reactions to the question.

He laughed. And seemed unperturbed by the question and unworried about Bullfrog’s reply.

Bullfrog shrugged. “Yes.”

Longdaddy nodded. “Truthfully, you can trust me because I need to ensure that this problem is solved, and in the solving, that no blame can come back onto me and my people.”

“Okay. Who are your people?”

“All those who hide in shadows. As you do.”

“I don’t hide in shadows.”

Longdaddy smiled again, but this one was rather sad. “You do. Some shadows are transparent. But I understand that in order to survive you must lie to yourself. Oh, and since you asked before, I know you are not a Polliwog because one Polliwog went in to see the Leech…but two came out to No Frog’s Land.”

He turned back to the screen. I was still the main thing on view. Though, because I did excellent work, Ciarissa was still the main thing on view.

“I was on lookout at the rear entrance.” I ensured I sounded bored. “Your spies must have missed me.”

“Oh, they
believe
they missed you. In part because you count a very strong telepath as one of your friends.”

This was getting creepy and spooky both. I wondered if Bullfrog had told Longdaddy about all of us, somehow.

“No idea what you’re talking about.”

Longdaddy shook his head. “We are having this conversation here because, as you noted, it is well insulated and protected. As you and so many others with you are hidden, so am I hidden, even from those who have known me all their lives. I am hidden until things will change so that I need not hide anymore.”

He was giving me a clue, I was sure of it. Longdaddy was no longer talking about me, or even Ciarissa, because he’d said so many others. He was right—out of our crew, we had all of one being who wasn’t hiding something in some way, and that was Willy. Sure, Bullfrog wasn’t hiding that much, but he was pretending to be Underground in order to keep all of us safe. And get us jobs.

But Bullfrog wasn’t the one Longdaddy was talking about hiding until things changed. Longdaddy had been here too long to be a hidden shifter, at least, that was my impression, and no hidden shifter would be offering another hidden shifter these kinds of clues. We had our ways of spotting the few of us who remained, and nothing Longdaddy had done was in line with those ways.

He wasn’t a telepath or telekinetic, because Ciarissa had taught us how to tell if we were being read, and we weren’t, and no one had tried to make our bodies do something we didn’t want. Sure, he could be hiding either trait, but I just didn’t think he was. So, did that mean he was referring to Roy and Kyle?

Polliworld, like most of the inhabiteds, had a long history. It had gone through turmoil several times before the Diamante Purge, but had survived because the Underground were already in power.

The answer came to me. “Polliworld used to be ruled by kings. But the Underground preferred a propped-up democracy over a monarchy because that gave them more ways to have power, especially if the current ruler was against them. The royal family disappeared. The general story is that they were smuggled off-world. But that’s not the truth, is it?”

Longdaddy wouldn’t have been born, or maybe was a tadpole, when the Underground took over Polliworld, because that had happened well before the Diamante Purge. Meaning he had a grudge against the Underground and the Diamante Families both. Just like Monte did. But unlike Monte, Longdaddy apparently had more to think of than himself. Just like Roy.

Longdaddy smiled. “It’s good that we understand each other. You have proven yourself trustworthy to those in hiding,” he said to Bullfrog. “I hope for the same trust for myself.”

Bullfrog had lost his Polliwog stone face—awe and shock had taken over his expression—but he nodded. “Yes…sire.”

Longdaddy shook his head. “Not now. Not officially. And not until such time as what your ‘scientific team’ truly works for is done.”

“You’re why we were able to come in so easily undercover!”

Longdaddy chuckled. “It helps to have friends in low places.”

“And high ones. Okay, we’re all on the same side, at least in grand, general terms. But if we’re going to fix what’s going on, we need more information.”

“What else do you need?”

“A better understanding of just what’s been going on, especially what Monte’s done and promised. And safe passage back to our ship.”

“Anything else?” Longdaddy asked.

“Yeah. Any suggestions you might have for how to solve your problem without getting exposed or killed, either you or us.”

Longdaddy’s smile widened. “I sense the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

Getting back to the
Stingray
involved more long walks through the underground hut path, but I’d been right—we were much closer to the Space Center than when we’d first entered No Frog’s Land.

Bullfrog and I left Longdaddy well before the Space Center and were handed off from one Polliwog guide to another until we were back at the
Stingray
. Sure, we came into the docking bay via the employee’s entrance, but otherwise it was a relatively normal return.

We were only going to be alone for a few seconds. “Bullfrog, did you tell Longdaddy about us? I won’t be mad at you if the answer’s yes, by the way.”

“No, I didn’t. I didn’t know who he really was until we both found out today.” Bullfrog rarely bothered to lie, and I was pretty sure he wasn’t lying now.

“Huh. Okay. Well, good.” Longdaddy knew who we were and what we were working for. And while all royalty knew or knew of each other somewhere and somehow, I doubted that King Oliver of Andromeda had been the one telling tales out of school.

Which meant someone else had told Longdaddy about us.

I considered this as we walked casually on board and were greeted with a lot of relieved expressions.

“Ciarissa said you two were okay, but I wasn’t sure,” Roy said as he hugged me tightly, even though I hadn’t changed out of my Polliwog form.

“We’re fine. We don’t have a lot of time. Some big things need to happen, very publicly, in a short time from now.”

“What?” Roy sounded ready for action. Pity.

“We can’t actually tell you. Well, we can tell you some of what’s going on, but not all. Not yet. I need Ciarissa, and you need to be ready to leave Polliworld the moment the two of us are back on the ship.”

“What? You just got back and we weren’t sure what we were going to have to do to retrieve you both safely. You are
not
leaving this ship without me, and that’s final.”

I heaved a sigh. “Come help me get into my Polliskin while we argue and you don’t win. Oh, and Ciarissa, please get into your Polliskin, too.”

She smiled serenely. “Of course, DeeDee.”

We went to our quarters, and I changed back into me. Because it hadn’t been necessary, I hadn’t done a complete shift at any time. I hadn’t moved my mind to the place where I didn’t know who I was, because I
knew
I was someone else. The shifts had been short enough that I hadn’t needed to. My mind was still fully my own, and therefore I didn’t need to complete a full shifting ritual or use my Mantra of Self to return to being me.

Which was good, because despite the fact he was upset, Roy managed to kiss me deeply and remind me again why it was great to be his woman.

“Thanks for getting the taste of fly out of my mouth.”

“I’d gag, but I know you didn’t eat any. They have a distinct tang.”

“And you know this how?”

Roy grinned. “You’ve had to eat flies before.”

“Okay, you get to keep your special parts intact.” I began struggling into the suit while Roy helped me.

“Good. What’s going on?”

“I can’t tell you. Yet. I can tell you once we finish helping Monte live up to his name.”

“You don’t mean you’re going to be sucking someone’s blood. Do you?” He sounded just a little worried. Too bad I didn’t have time to laugh about this.

“No. I mean he’s pulling the ancient three card monte routine, or as they call it here, the Jumping Game—but with land, not cards. And he’s doing it with the biggest players around, thusly endangering everyone if things went wrong. Which they were, until we showed up.”

“We’re being played?”

“I don’t think so. I think we’ve been recruited to be the third card, so to speak. And we’ll be getting paid. You just have to trust me and do exactly what Bullfrog and I tell you. And you have to let me and Ciarissa leave the ship. Alone. I promise we’ll get back safely, and if we’re in trouble, you’ll know.”

“Great. I hate it when you don’t tell me what you’re doing.”

“Oh, I can tell you what I’m going to do. I’m rigging Monte’s Jumping Game to ensure that it works and leaves everyone thinking they’re the winners.”

Ciarissa and I left the ship and headed into the Space Center. She was still wearing the head covering that made her look as if she was from Convent. I’d shifted to human male, big and imposing enough, without any clear planetary distinctions, in the kind of suit favored by both Underground and Diamante Families enforcers. However, this look was also fairly common on Convent.