Deathstalker 06 - Deathstalker Legacy

you. Douglas has been called to an emergency Session of the House, and he's going to need all the support he can get.
    "You may have noticed the commotion outside, when you weren't busy eating each other's faces. Well, that march is just one of seven, all of them equally large, equally angry, and equally determined. They're all headed straight for the Parliament building, and absolutely no one thinks they're coming to hand in a petition. There's a really bad feeling in the air, Lewis. We've called in every peacekeeper in the city, but we can't afford a direct confrontation. The Church has made it very clear it isn't going to be stopped, or diverted. We even try and put up barricades, and they'll use that as an excuse to hit out with everything they've got. If we don't find just the right way to defuse this ... it'll all end in tears. Guaranteed. Now get your arses moving, both of you. I've got a gravity barge waiting out the back."
    Jesamine just nodded, and headed for the cloakroom to fetch her fur coat. She passed straight by Anne, her head held high. She still hadn't said anything, and Lewis could only admire her grace under pressure.
    He could feel the flush reddening his face, and he didn't know what to do with his hands. Anne and he stood and stared at each other until Jesamine returned with her coat, having dismissed her security people. She headed for the rear of the tea rooms with a calm and composed face, as though she didn't have a care in the world. Anne glared at Lewis, and he almost flinched.
    "How could you?" she said, her voice so low it was almost a growl. "What the hell did you think you were doing, Lewis? She's marrying Douglas in two weeks' time! Your best friend! She will be Queen to his King. You're going to ruin everything!"
    "Do you think I don't know that?" said Lewis, trying hard to keep his voice under control. "I don't know how it happened. It just. . . happened. I know it was wrong, but . . . it's not like she loves him. It's an arranged marriage. Not much more than a business merger. And Jesamine . . . she's special. She matters to me. Damn it, aren't I allowed anything for myself? I'm not a Paragon anymore. I'm supposed to be the Champion, but no one seems to know what that is. And ever since my best friend became King, he's had no time for me. I'm so alone, Anne ... I never wanted to be Champion. Never expected it. I only agreed because I thought Douglas needed me. And now it seems like I've lost everything that ever mattered to me. Am I so wrong to want something for myself, Anne? She makes me happy. She cares for me."
    "Don't fool yourself, Lewis." Anne's voice was more contemptuous than angry. "She's an actress, remember? I've known her for years, and there never was a man she couldn't twist around her little finger. Much more likely, she was bored and you were there. She's going to have to give up a lot to become Queen, including a lot of freedoms she's always taken for granted. You were just a last fling, a last gesture, one last taste of freedom before she has to give it all up and become respectable. I thought you were smarter than this, Lewis. Stronger than this. If even a hint of this were to get out, the gossip shows would have a field day, you know they would. And the King's enemies would use you to destroy him. Is that what you want?"
    "Of course not! He's my friend!"
    "Then act like it! And from now on keep your mouth shut and your hands to yourself whenever you're around little miss hot-to-trot. I may not be able to trust her, but I thought I could trust you."
    "You can," said Lewis. His face was calm now, and his voice was cold and steady, and only someone who knew him really well could have seen the sadness in his eyes. Anne, who had known him since childhood, took him gently by the arm and guided him towards the rear of the tea rooms.
    "Come on, Lewis. There's work to be done, and we're needed. It's not the same as being wanted, but it will have to do."
    Over at Finn's charming apartment, the Durandal and his people were watching the Church/Neumen demonstration on the oversized vidscreen that took up most of one wall. The colors were a bit overpowering, but the three dimensions and surround sound made it just like looking out a window. Finn didn't have much use for toys, as a rule; but when he did decide he wanted something, he never settled for anything but the very best version available. He sat, completely relaxed, in his favorite chair, drinking a fashionable wine