Stephanie smiled coldly. "By the time he works out what's happening, it'll be too late. Control over stardrive production will give us control over him. He depends on it for his station at Court. A sudden drop in numbers, just when the Empress had called for an increase, would humiliate him without harming the company in the least. There are lots of other things we can do, too, that will reflect on him, rather than us. It shouldn't be too hard to throw all the blame on Valentine; after all, we're the ones with access to the company books. And after a steady stream of embarrassments, we shouldn't find it too difficult to convince Lionstone it would be in her and the Empire's best interests to take the company away from Valentine and give it to us. We'll bring him down, little brother. We'll bring him all the way down."
Daniel scowled unhappily. "I still can't help worrying what it is he's after, that he spends all his time pursuing it rather than running the company he depends on. Whatever it is, it must be something really important."
Stephanie shrugged. "Who knows where Valentine's thoughts are these days? I'm surprised they're still on the same planet as the rest of us."
"We'll get him," said Daniel, trying hard to sound as confident as she did. "We'll drag him down. Father never intended a sick degenerate like Valentine to head the Family. And then we'll run things. The both of us."
"Yes," said Stephanie. "Of course. The both of us."
Daniel looked at her, and his voice dropped. "Are you all right? Cold getting to you? Come to little brother, and let him warm you up."
He held open his cloak, and she snuggled up against him as he wrapped the cloak around them both. And if they held each other a little more closely than brother and sister should, no one noticed it, hidden under cover of the cloak and the still respected Wolfe name.
Not too far away Lily Wolfe, wife of Daniel, and Michel Wolfe, who had to take Stephanie's name when he married her, stood together watching their respective spouses staring at Valentine. An impartial observer might have noticed that they were standing more than companionably close together. This same observer might also have deduced, from their body language and occasional long melting glance, that they were seriously involved with each other. The impartial observer, assuming such a thing could be found in Lionstone's Court, would have been absolutely right. Lily and Michel were lovers, and had been for some time. Everyone knew except Daniel and Stephanie, who were preoccupied with other things. Even Valentine knew. The only reason he hadn't said anything was because he was still trying to decide whether it would be funnier to tell Daniel and Stephanie or to let it go on.
Lily was six foot six, willowy but still nicely curved, with a long silver wig that fell past her shoulders, framing a pale freckled face. She always wore wigs over a shaved skull on the grounds that wigs were so much easier to look after. She wore the latest fashions and wore them well, with a natural style that infuriated other women, for none could look that good on their best day. Lily was strikingly pretty, with prominent cheekbones and dark lustrous eyes. She had a smile that could stun a charming gigolo and a laugh that could start a party at fifty paces. Daniel didn't appreciate her. She took that as a personal insult.
Michel was barely six feet in height, but his wide frame was covered with the best muscles the body shops could provide. They tended to go off after a while, because he could never be bothered to exercise enough. But a quick trip to the body shop was all it took to perk them up again. He was handsome in a dark and swarthy way, with a thick mane of long jet-black hair that was his pride and joy. He preferred loose clothing with plenty of open spaces to show off his manly physique. As a result, he was now shivering so hard he had to keep his jaw clenched to prevent his teeth from chattering, and his skin had turned a pale blue color that contrasted unappealingly with his dark hair. Snow had begun to gather on top of his head. However, he also favored knee-length leather boots, so at least his feet were warm. The thought somehow failed to comfort him. He glared across at the Empress sitting serenely on her Throne and hugged himself tightly.
"If you squeeze yourself any harder, dear, your insides will pop out your ears," said Lily calmly.
"I'm bored," said Michel through gritted teeth. "I'm bored and I'm extremely cold. There are icicles hanging from my extremities. See if you can spot someone of lower status, so I can steal his cloak."
"Behave yourself, my dearest. Try not to draw attention to yourself, just this once. The auguries in the sheep I sacrificed this morning were quite clear. Today is not a good day in be noticed."
"Why couldn't the auguries have warned you that the Court was going to be a bloody icebox this time? They're all very well when it comes to sounding grand and mystical, but they're no bloody use at all when it comes to predicting practical things, are they? I'd ask for your money back, if I were you. Or a new sheep."
"Don't scoff, darling. You know you don't understand these things. And watch your language. You're an aristocrat now."
"I should have stayed an accountant. The Empress had never heard of me, and I could still feel my fingers."
"If you'd never married Stephanie, you'd never have met me."
Michel considered this point and produced something meant to be a smile. "Well, there is that. Only lucky thing that ever happened to me was meeting you."
Lily reached out and patted his cheek soothingly. "Luck has nothing to do with it, darling. There are powers and influences and mysteries, and they rule our lives."
"The only one who rules our lives is currently sitting on that Throne, wrapped in furs, and laughing her socks off at the rest of us. Why are we here, Lily? We're not important enough for our absence to be noticed. We could have spent the afternoon in each other's company, doing all sorts of interesting things. It's not often we can both get away from our respective spouses. You know how I miss you."
"And I miss you, my darling, but we must be careful. We're Wolfes now, and Daniel and Stephanie would be most upset if they thought we were bringing the name of the Clan into disrepute through our absence. They might even investigate further and find out about us. I have a strong feeling that if they did, they'd probably take it quite personally, the poor dears. If we were really lucky, they'd just have us killed. Much more likely, they'd divorce us and throw us out of the Clan without a penny to our name. We'd be outcasts. No one would lift a finger to help us, not even our own Families. I've grown quite fond of our current lifestyle, and I for one do not intend doing anything that might put it at risk. And that includes getting horizontal and sweaty with you, darling. Our times together must be carefully planned, with every precaution taken. Be patient, my darling. Things won't always be like this. And as for why we're here, the auguries were quite specific, for once. Something important is going to happen here at Court. Something of great significance. Something that will launch a tidal wave of possibilities, which you and I might just ride to greatness."
Michel looked at her fondly, wrapped in her faux peasant dress and shawl, but kept his peace. Lily liked to see herself as the last of the great mystics, a pagan witch from the distant past with rare and subtle powers. Actually, she'd just read a few old books and fallen madly in love with the role. It was much more likely she just had a great imagination, backed up by a touch of esp, but he wasn't dumb enough to tell her that. He was very fond of her, and besides, she tended to throw tantrums when she got annoyed. Still, he trusted her intuition. She'd always understood Court politics much better than he did. He'd keep his eyes open, if they didn't freeze solid first, like certain other parts of his anatomy.
He'd originally taken up with Lily because both of them were bored. As one of Jacob's legacies they were assured of a place in Clan Wolfe, but no one felt any obligation to make them feel welcome. As a result, they were allowed no place in the Clan, neither business nor social. Jacob had arranged the marriages in the first place to gain control of certain subsidiary business interests involved in stardrive manufacture. But now those had been taken over and absorbed by the Wolfes, Lily and Michel w
ere redundant. They could not be allowed any part in business because they weren't really Wolfes, and therefore not to be trusted with anything important. But they were also kept from any contact with their own Families, because they were Wolfes. And since they were Jacob's choice, Daniel and Stephanie wanted nothing to do with them. They managed a stiff smile when procedure demanded they appear in public with their spouses, to put across the polite fiction that all was well, but that was only to appease the Church and keep other Families from sniffing out a possible weakness in the structure of Clan Wolfe. The rest of the time, Daniel and Stephanie had time only for each other and the business they ran, so that Lily and Michel were left to their own devices to keep themselves amused. Everything that followed was inevitable, really. Their only other option had been plotting treason with some other Clan, and they were both too scared of Valentine for that.
At least so far.
Meanwhile, watching everything the Wolfes did with great interest were the representatives of Clan Chojiro. Still defiantly Oriental in appearance and tradition despite the countless centuries that separated them from their original ancestors and founders, the Chojiros had risen to prominence in the Empire through hard work, subtle cunning, and killing anyone who got in their way. They made few alliances with other Clans, preferring to stand alone. That way, they knew who they could trust. With the destruction of the Clan Campbell they had moved smoothly into the open gap, edging other contenders aside with subtle threats and the occasional quiet bloodbath, until now they were second only in the Empire to Clan Wolfe. And since no Chojiro had ever been willing to accept being second best at anything, there was a quiet, undeclared but quite deadly war going on between the two Families.
However, the Chojiros specialized in computers: building, programming, installing, and maintaining them at every level—including the kind of computers used in starships. As a result, the Wolfes and the Chojiros currently found themselves in an uneasy partnership, not daring to upset each other's business for fear of attracting the wrath of the Empress. In fact, the situation had become so complicated that both sides had declared a temporary truce while they tried to work out where the hell they stood.
The systematic trashing of the computers at the Tax and Tithes Headquarters had done great damage to the Chojiros' reputation, which was why there were so many Chojiros at Court today, to remind everyone of the size and power of the Clan. They were currently replacing the Tax computers at their own expense, and adding extra levels of protection to ensure the same thing could never happen again. Within the Clan, those responsible for installing the original security systems had already taken their own lives, to make atonement. A few had to be helped, but that was the Empire under Lionstone for you. There was no room for weakness or failure in Clan Chojiro. They were cutthroat businessmen, sometimes literally, and had made an art form of the hostile takeover. It was truly said: if you see a Chojiro smiling, run.
BB Chojiro had come to Court specifically to act as spokesperson for her Family. She had been trained to appear the perfect smiling front, the acceptable face of a feared Family. She was diplomat, deal maker and deception incarnate. And though her standing in the Family had been a little tarnished by the escape of the esper Julian Skye, that was deemed the fault of the prison security, and she was still regarded as entirely trustworthy. She was Blue Block, after all. Accompanying her, in a matching kimono, to remind everyone of the harsher Chojiro face, was the Investigator Razor. His face and hands showed the marks of recent burns, but no one was stupid enough to ask how he'd got them. Investigators never acknowledged their pain. If indeed they actually felt any. It was hard to tell with Investigators. Everyone was giving BB and Razor plenty of room, for all sorts of reasons, allowing them to talk in private. BB smiled at one and all, and talked quietly with Razor, who stared straight ahead, his cold eyes ready for any threat.
"I take it there have been no further developments in the search for Julian," said BB, her smiling lips barely moving.
"I would have told you if there were. Security is doing its best, but the city's a mess. If he's out there, we'll find him and bring him back. Or his body."
"I need him alive, Investigator. There are many questions still to be asked of him. Not least how he got away."
"If he's out there, we'll find him, but I can't speak for his condition. A lot of people died in the city today."
BB sighed. Razor could be very single-minded when he chose. "Let us talk of happier things. How is our infiltration of the Wolfe businesses going?"
"Surprisingly smoothly. Daniel and Stephanie are so concerned with their own intrigues, they haven't noticed a thing.
Valentine has his own interests these days and has left them alone to sink or swim. They've done well enough, but they have little real experience with industrial espionage. We have people, apparently entirely unconnected with Clan Chojiro, on every level of the company, from the very bottom up to and including the board of directors. Wolfe security is good, but without competent management to direct it, it's been drifting aimlessly of late."
"It's been too easy," said BB. "I can't believe Valentine is completely uninterested in the company. It's the base of his Family's current wealth and position. He's had to invest practically everything in the Wolfe and Campbell coffers to get the stardrive companies up and running, with hardly anything left for a safety net. And soon we'll be in a position to subtly sabotage stardrive construction from beginning to end. I can't believe Valentine doesn't know what we're doing."
"He has his own interests. I regret to say, my people are unable to confirm exactly what those might be, apart from the obvious. People we send to find out tend not to come back."
"And you don't find that worrying?"
"Investigators don't worry. It's bad for the image. You continue with your schemes; I'll see no one bothers you."
BB nodded curtly. "We can't hold off any longer just because we're not sure what Valentine's up to. If anything. Give the orders; I want to see significant errors in stardrive construction appearing by the end of the week. Make sure it's something showy. Something the news shows can run with. Once the delivery of the new drives has been not just slowed, but all but stopped, it shouldn't take too long to convince the Empress that the Wolfes aren't fit to be in charge of such a vital concern. And we'll be right there, ready to take over at a moment's notice. After all, who has a better claim? We're already producing all the computers for the new starships."
"Unless Valentine does know and is already planning something really devastating."
BB looked at him sternly. "Just whose side are you on. Investigator?"
"Don't ask questions like that. The answer would only upset you. All that matters is I have pledged my life to protect the interests of your Clan. For as long as I stay with you."
"Very reassuring." BB sniffed, deliberately turned away, and looked across at Valentine, chatting brightly with someone who looked as though they wished they were somewhere else. BB watched them for a while, her eyes cold as death. "Sometimes I think we'd be better off launching a preemptive strike against the Wolfes, beginning with Valentine. A really hostile takeover."
"I wouldn't recommend it," said Razor. "There's too much we don't know about the Wolfes in general and Valentine in particular. Only a fool jumps off a wall without finding how high it is first. There's more to Valentine than we see. There has to be. My own recommendation is for a more leisurely approach. The Wolfes' weak spot is Daniel and Stephanie. There is much in their tangled relationship that might be profitably exploited…"
"And that is why you're in charge of carrying out security, rather than planning it," said BB tartly. "I could do anything to those two, up to and including killing them slowly, and Valentine wouldn't give a damn."
"But if we could reach them, turn them to our cause, perhaps through pressure on their current closeness… or by providing information about Lily and Michel…"
"No," said BB firmly. "Daniel and Stephanie are too er
ratic to place any trust in. They're weak, but they're still Wolfes. I have a better idea."
Constance Wolfe, widow of Jacob, stood alone in the crowd. She was always alone now, no matter where she went. Eighteen years old, still wearing black in mourning for her murdered husband. Tall and blond, breathtakingly lovely even in a world where beauty was commonplace, the fire had gone out of her, leaving her looking like a crushed flower. Out of perhaps all the Wolfe Family, she had truly loved Jacob. The others mourned for a while, even Valentine, but they all had their own lives to get on with, and they did so as soon as they properly could. Constance had had nothing but Jacob. He was her life. Now he was gone, and she didn't know what to do with herself. She had no interest in politics or intrigues, and she was allowed no place in Family affairs. Jacob's children had never approved of his last marriage, to someone even younger than them. There had always been the possibility Jacob might disinherit them in favor of her or her children. Now he was gone; they were able to ignore her with something like relief.
She looked around at the assembled courtiers, and no one looked back. She was no one now. They had no time for failures. Until one woman met her eye and smiled. BB Chojiro. Constance looked at her thoughtfully, and BB moved unhurriedly toward her, still somehow graceful despite having to trudge through the deep snow. Constance knew she should see the woman as an enemy, but she didn't have the energy. BB stopped before her and smiled again.
"We should have got together before, Constance. We have a lot in common. It's hard to be a woman alone. I know. But just because one Family's abandoned you, it doesn't mean we all have. You have friends, Constance. If you want them."
Constance looked at her icily. "I may have fallen from grace, Chojiro, but I'm not so low I would consider betraying my kith and kin."
BB's smile didn't waver. "What I have in mind is in the best interests of the Wolfes. Valentine is leading you all to disaster. He's lost inside his own head and sees only what he wants to see. Daniel and Stephanie only have eyes for each other. The new stardrive will fall from their hands, and then what will happen to the Wolfes? To the Family Jacob built and brought to greatness? What will happen to you, Constance?"