A Change of Fortune, Page 3

Chapter 3:

  There was a Committee meeting, the leaders of Enclosures 1 and 2, Helene and Carol, and six other representatives seen as responsible and mature. Valencio was not on the Committee and had no aspirations to be on the Committee. He regarded the women as strong and sensible, himself as weak, apt to do stupid things.

  Tiffany said, “Well, there’s one child again, I had it from Abimael. Zhor had a baby boy and dotes on him.”

  “It’s been nine months, Hicham’s frightened to leave his room, Yiko hasn’t budged from Japan, and no-one’s heard of Ahjmed or any of the others since.”

  “No women or children, either. This John Bellamy has to have done something very effective.”

  “She destroyed his mind in revenge and then had him dumped naked in a New York gutter - we’ve heard that from a few sources.”

  “Enclosure 2 has had no work since the two months with Zhor - that’s a worry. What’s going to happen to us?”

  “They’re ignoring us, it seems. We scarcely see Abensur any more.”

  Helene said, “We’re not so much affected, though it’s quiet. We never see Hicham, who nearly always used to have a Favorite.”

  “Is it true he’s lost his magic?”

  “Only a hint, and then Gehry looked worried and said nothing else.”

  “Gehry?”

  “Transferred from Japan, not long qualified as a Fighter, and terribly proud of his stripe.”

  “I hate to think how they get their advanced training.”

  Their talk was quiet, worried. They had no hope of release, whether or not the family was losing its power. There were so many now in Enclosure 2, fed, sheltered, clothed, and of no apparent use to anyone. Helene said, “You’ll make sure that Valencio doesn’t do anything stupid. It’s best if we’re very inconspicuous these days.”

  “Hilde and I keep a close watch on him, but he keeps as far away from the wizards as possible, even the cleaner and gardener.”

  Valencio, that day, managed to get his hole a little deeper, hidden under a bush. There was an adjacent bush the other side of the intervening fence. He always had scratches again, but there was lotion kept in one of the bathrooms. He didn’t want his scratches noticed, not even by the women, if possible. It still hurt to dig, very severely, but the concerns of the Committee were no secret, and the ability to pass items from one enclosure to another could be useful. Besides, he had nothing better to do with his time.

  As Carol had suggested, he’d been trying to develop any slight telepathic talent he might have, but didn’t think he had any. All the same, he was pretty sure there was no imminent threat to their lives. He thought he’d know.