Deathstalker 05 - Deathstalker Destiny

liked hotels. People always at your beck and call, and never far from the next meal. All the comforts of home without the bother of having to maintain it. I never did gave a damn about the responsibilities of maintaining Tower SummerIsle. Cheerless bloody place; I sold it the moment I inherited it. Bit hard on the next generation of SummerIsles, I
    suppose, but then, what did they ever do for me? I didn't even like the previous generation. That's why I killed them all. What's left of my Clan is pretty much dispersed these days. The name will probably die with me. Good to know I've achieved something worthwhile." He looked directly at Brendan for the first time, and the Cardinal had to fight hard not to look away or flinch back in his chair. The SummerIsle smiled knowingly. "The wake is over, time to get back to work. I am a killer, and must go where the killing is. Many people have made themselves known to me, bidding for my services with all kinds of coin, but it seems to me that Clan Chojiro offer the most opportunities for me to employ my unique skills. I interrupted my wake to do you that small service on Loki; I trust you found my work there satisfactory?"
    "Of course," said Brendan. "You were everything we expected."
    "So; who do you want me to kill now?"
    "The Maze people are becoming a major concern," said Brendan carefully. "It may become necessary to remove them from the body politic. How would you feel about that?"
    The SummerIsle stretched slowly, sensuously, as unselfconscious as a cat. "A challenge. A real challenge. I would enjoy killing Jack Random and Ruby Journey.
    I do hope Owen and Hazel aren't dead. I always wanted a crack at Owen. I killed his father, you know. So I could be said to have started him on the path that made him what he was. Owen Deathstalker would be one hell of a challenge, a real test of my abilities. I put off challenging him while David was alive. Dear David secretly admired his cousin, and wanted to be just like him. That was part of what got him killed on Virimonde. Trying to be the hero, like his cousin Owen. I should enjoy gutting the legendary Deathstalker, and watching him crawl
    in his own blood before me."
    "We'll worry about him as and when he turns up again," said Brendan. "Clan Chojiro has more immediate concerns. Namely, Constance Wolfe and Robert Campbell. Robert has undergone Blue Block conditioning, and we hope to control the happy couple through him. But it is just possible he could break or subvert his conditioning, and if that happened, and he and Catherine became…
    impediments, it might be necessary for you to deal with them. You would not be able to take public credit for the kills, and they would have to be sufficiently bloody and unpleasant to discourage those who would take their place from being equally obstructive. How would you feel about that?"
    "I've never killed a King or a Queen," said Kit SummerIsle, almost lazily. "I came close with Lionstone, but she escaped me. I think I'm going to enjoy working with Clan Chojiro. You're almost as unscrupulous as I am. And of course, in working for you I also work with Blue Block. Correct?" He smiled as the Cardinal stirred uneasily, and fixed him with his icy blue eyes for a long moment. "I never went through Blue Block; my Family didn't trust them. What was it like, Brendan?"
    "Trust me; you don't want to know. It would give you nightmares."
    "I don't have nightmares," said Kid Death. "I give them."

    Jack Random agreed to give Toby and Flynn a short private interview before the big meeting. He didn't say why, and Toby didn't feel like asking. Real exclusives with Jack Random were as rare as hen's teeth even at the best of times, and after his return from Loki he'd refused to speak to the media at all.
    Random met with Toby and Flynn in a small side chamber with absolutely no fittings and furnishings. Toby was honestly baffled as to what function the room
    usually served. He'd heard that Random preferred to live in spartan surroundings, but there weren't even any chairs to sit on. They had to do the whole interview standing up. Ruby Journey stood leaning against a wall, arms folded, glowering silently. It had quickly become clear that she didn't know why Random had called his big meeting either, and was hoping to gain some clue from this interview. Toby checked with Flynn that all was well with the camera and lighting, did a few words for sound, and then turned to face Jack Random.
    "So," he said brightly,