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‘Or visiting local detectives,’ Kai put in
Or for friendships, Irene heard behind his words She wished that she had a spare hatpin to jab into Vale Or possibly Kai, asn’t helping ‘Standard procedure tends to advise against high-speed chases in borrowed zeppelins, too,’ she said flatly ‘Bradamant would have told you all this Perhaps she’s the one you should have been working with froot soinvolved ‘I still don’t understand why your, ah, foretelling urges pointed you at us rather than at her If you’d been working together, you’d probably have reat deal faster’
Vale simply stared down at her ‘None of this explains your ability to control the minds of others’
‘Well’ Irene tried to think how to explain it ‘When I use the Language to tell soainst its nature, the universe resists This is why those stuffed ani to return to that state, probably quite soon I hope Inspector Singh is there to sort that one out It’s easy to tell a lock to unlock – these things are in a lock’s nature It’sto behave in an unnaturalstuffed anireed
‘Well, that’s only mostly unnatural,’ Irene said ‘After all, they were once living ani to jump up and fall on someone, but I could tell a roof tile to coic,’ Vale said, clearly interested but also clearly lacking patience ‘But again, how is this relevant to controllingso,’ Irene said, wishing that English was better adapted for this sort of discussion ‘The problem is that the universe resists, as with objects asked to do unnatural things Specifically, the person’s mind resists, and continually resists until – ’ She paused ‘Well, soenerally the results aren’t pretty That’s what I was told in classes But that’s not the salamour does either’ She was fairly sure that Mrs Jenkins couldn’t hear this She certainly hoped so ‘At theher that no, she did not see full authorization When that overcomes my temporary adjustment, probably within the hour, then she will re But would you rather I’d just let Silver catch us?’
Vale gave Irene a cold look and glanced out of theat London beneath the to answer
Irene propped her elbows on her knees ‘If the Library told us not to ht be virtuous But the fact is, it’s very unreliable And once the subject regains their erous’ Irene tried not to dwell on her own lack of ethics Surely she was more than just a book thief? Or was the only real difference between her and Bradaood in black leather? It was easier to think of herself as a valiant preserver of books when there wasn’t so that ‘All I’ve done is applied a very temporary patch’ She looked up at Vale ‘Because I couldn’t see any other alternative, and ere in a desperate hurry As you saw’
‘Were we?’ Vale turned away
Irene raised her eyebrows, even if he wasn’t looking at her ‘I realize that you don’t see Alberich as a personal threat,’ she said, ‘or even as a threat to public law and order’
‘I adenerously
‘He will continue to be a threat to you all as long as the book is here,’ Irene went on She felt Kai squeeze her shoulder encouragingly ‘Once it’s gone, he and Silver won’t be coer’
‘Silver is hardly your concern, Miss Winters,’ Vale said ‘And I fail to understand your distress over one world, when you doubtless have so many to occupy your time Why should you care about us, except as a source of books?’
Irene sed, and felt her cheeks flush with rain of truth to what he was saying This was just one alternate world, and one book ‘So far, I have been assaulted, attacked by cyborg alligators, almost drowned in the Thames, had most of the skin stripped off my hand, poisoned with curare, revived with strychnine, and chased by both olves and giant robots Are you accusingthis seriously, sir?’
‘On the contrary,this extreood cause But consider this’ Vale leaned back, bracing his shoulders against the cabin walls ‘I see a woo to extrele book I have watched you hijack a zeppelin in order to achieve your aims I ask o?’
Wonderful First Bradah, and now Vale was eyeing her as though she were a prize specimen of the criminal underworld ‘I just want to do my job,’ she said ‘I have a duty to the Library’
‘Has the Library laws?’ Vale cut in ‘Has it signed treaties with all the worlds allowing it to steal books? Has it any authority save that which it claims for itself? I would like to know if there is any reason in the world why I should respect it or its servants’