Sign of the Unicorn

I was treading on slightly mucky ground again for the first time in a long while. I still had a bit of amnesia, and I had decided I probably always would. My memories of the few days prior to the accident were still spotty. The Pattern had restored the lost memories of my entire life up until then, but the trauma appeared to have destroyed recollection of some of the events immediately preceding it. Not an uncommon occurrence. Organic damage rather than simple functional distress, most likely. I was happy enough to have all the rest back, so those did not seem especially lamentable. As to the accident itself, and my feelings that it had been more than an accident, I did recall the gunshots. There had been two of them. I might even have glimpsed the figure with the rifle - fleetingly, too late. Or maybe that was pure fantasy. It seemed that I had, though. I had had something like that in mind when I had headed out for Westchester. Even at this late time, though, when I held the power in Amber, I was loath to admit this single deficiency. I had faked my way with Flora before with a lot less to go on. I decided to stick with a winning combination.

«I was in no position to get out and see what had been hit,» I said. «I heard the shots. I lost control. I had assumed that it was a tire, but I never knew for sure. The only reason I raised the question was because I was curious as to how you knew it was a tire.»

«I already told you that Eric told me about it.»

«It was the way that you said it that bothered me. You made it sound as if you already knew all the details before he contacted you.»

She shook her head.

«Then pardon my syntax,» she said. «That sometimes happens when you look at things after the fact. I am going to have to deny what you are implying. I had nothing to do with it and I had no prior knowledge that it had occurred.»

«Since Eric is no longer around to confirm or deny anything, we will simply have to let it go,» I said, «for now,» and I said it to make her look even harder to her defense, to direct her attention away from any possible slip, either in word or expression, from which she might infer the small flaw which still existed in my memory.

«Did you later become aware of the identity of the person with the gun?» I asked.

«Never,» she said. «Most likely some hired thug. I don't know.»

«Have you any idea how long I was unconscious before someone found me, took me to a hospital?»

She shook her head again.

Something was bothering me and I could not quite put my finger on it.

«Did Eric say what time I had been taken into the hospital?»

«No.»

«When I was with you, why did you try walking back to Amber rather than using Eric's Trump?»

«I couldn't raise him.»

«You could have called someone else to bring you through,» I said. «Flora, I think you are lying to me.»

It was really only a test, to observe her reaction. Why not?

«About what?» she asked. «I couldn't raise anyone else. They were all otherwise occupied. Is that what you mean?»

She studied me.

I raised my arm and pointed at her and the lightning flashed at my back, just outside the window. I felt a tingle, a mild jolt. The thunderclap was also impressive. «You sin by omission,» I tried.

She covered her face with her hands and began to weep.

«I don't know what you mean!» she said. «I answered all your questions! What do you want? I don't know where you were going or who shot at you or what time it occurred! I just know the facts I've given you, damn it!»

She was either sincere or unbreakable by these means, I decided. Whichever, I was wasting my time and could get nothing more this way. Also, I had better switch us away from the accident before she began thinking too much about its importance to me. If there was something there that I was missing, I wanted to find it first.

«Come with me,» I said.

«Where are we going?»

«I have something I want you to identify. I will tell you why after you see it.»

She rose and followed me. I took her up the hall to see the body before I gave her the story on Caine. She regarded the corpse quite dispassionately. She nodded.

«Yes,» she said, and, «Even if I did not know it I would be glad to say that I did, for you.»

I grunted a noncommittal. Family loyalty always touches me, somewhere. I could not tell whether she believed what I had said about Caine. But things sort of canal - to equal things sort of being equal to each other. it didn't much seem to matter. I did not tell her anything about Brand and she did not seem to possess any new information concerning him. Her only other comment when everything I'd had to say was said, was, «You wear the jewel well. What about the headpiece?»

«It is too soon to talk of such things,» I told her.

«Whatever my support may be worth…»

«I know,» I said. «I know.»