The Purple Emperor

CHAPTER SIXTY SEVEN

Cossus Cossus met Chalkhill at the steps to the main doorway. 'Nice to see you again, Jasper,' he said tightly.

'He wants you to behave normally,' said the wan-garamas Cyril. 'No mention of wyrms. Hairstreak has listening devices throughout the mansion.'

'How do you know?' Chalkhill asked mentally.

'Had it from Bernadette, of course.'

'Who's Bernadette?'

'The wangaramas in Cossus Cossus's bottom.'

'And you,' Chalkhill said to Cossus, following the instruction to behave normally.

'You've come to report to Lord Hairstreak,' Cyril prompted.

'I've come to report to Lord Hairstreak, Cossus,' Chalkhill said.

'His Lordship is not currently in residence,' said Cossus woodenly. 'I would suggest you come inside and wait.'

He followed Hairstreak's Gatekeeper up the steps and into the mansion. Cossus strode off down a corridor, setting such a brisk pace that Chalkhill found himself struggling to keep up. He was relieved when a suspensor tube finally carried them into a comfortable open-plan suite furnished in the old-fashioned Nighter style, complete with closed shutters and low-level lighting.

'My private quarters,' Cossus said. 'You can speak freely here. I have programmed a golem to feed random conversations into the listening devices, otherwise they broadcast as if in an empty room.'

Chalkhill blinked. 'A golem? Isn't that illegal?'

'Yes,' said Cossus shortly.

'And hideously dangerous?' He looked around, half hoping to see the creature, half fearing he actually might.

'Would you like a drink?' Cossus asked.

'I think I would,' said Chalkhill.

He was admiring an admirable picture when Cossus approached him with a silver tray and two glasses. Behind each glass was a hypodermic needle.

'What are those for?' Chalkhill asked, frowning.

'Hold out your arm,' Cossus ordered.

Suddenly Cyril was thrashing about inside his bottom and his mind. 'Don't let him do it!' the wyrm screamed.

But Cossus already had one of the hypodermics in his hand. He moved with extraordinary speed and Chalkhill felt a painful prick as the needle entered his arm, followed by a sudden surge of warmth as the plunger was pressed.

The room began to revolve slowly around him and his eyes lost focus. 'What have you done to me?' he yelled.

Cossus smiled grimly and picked up the second hypodermic.

Cossus plunged the needle into his own arm.

'What are you doing?' Chalkhill shrieked. He watched, fascinated, as the liquid emptied into Cossus's veins. Cyril, the wangaramas, had stopped thrashing about, thank heavens, so Chalkhill no longer desperately needed a loo. The momentary dizziness was gone as well, but it was replaced by a weird sort of… emptiness, as if there was a hole in his head.

Cossus withdrew the needle and dabbed at a tiny, welling drop of blood at the site of the puncture. 'I'm ensuring we can talk privately. How's your bottom?'

Chalkhill bristled. 'I'll thank you to keep your nose out of my bottom.'

Cossus closed his eyes momentarily and sighed. 'I merely meant to ascertain whether your wyrm has ceased to function.'

'It has, as a matter of fact,' Chalkhill said, frowning. 'But I'm answering no more personal questions until you tell me what's going on.'

T need to talk to you,' Cossus sighed, 'so I've put our worms to sleep. They'll be out cold for an hour or more, which should be ample. I've put a little lethe in the mix, so they won't even remember anything untoward has happened to them.'

Chalkhill stared at him suspiciously. 'What do you want to talk to me about?'

'Perhaps I should answer that,' said a familiar voice behind him.

Chalkhill's heart rocketed into his throat, his scrotum tightened alarmingly and a wave of icy chills passed through his body. He didn't want to move, didn't want to see who was standing behind him, but his feet moved anyway, turning him slowly of their own accord. He gave a sickly little smile.

'How nice to see you again, Lord Hairstreak,' he said.