As the morning grew older, he wondered about his strange dream. Was it really a dream, or a partly recovered memory that he still couldn’t remember consciously? Could it have anything to do with what Serpentine had called his talent for Travelling?

It seemed that the Green Alliance were all on the same team, at least for now. It might have been a good idea to tell them about his strange dream, and hear what they thought. Something stopped him though.

He felt Joey’s surprise inside him when Diopside came by with the money before the morning had grown old. It was neatly stacked and wrapped in a leather bag.

Perhaps the approach would be a little harder than he had first assumed. Given what they had paid for a single pair of guns, that entire store with all its inventory must be worth a great deal more than twenty thousand dollars. The owner might want the money, but probably didn’t need it desperately, unless he was deeply in debt.

Would he scruple to tell them about another customer with the understanding that said customer was not to know?

Joey said, “Let me handle this part. I’ve dealt with humans all my life. I’m practically one myself.”

Despite the heavy irony, Emerald found himself more and more inclined to go along. Humans were funny creatures. He tried to think about what Joey’s plan might be, thus waking Joey up.

As Joey followed Able down the stairs to the shooting range for his lesson he said casually, “This is a small city. Are there many people seriously interested in flintlock pistols here?”

The other man shook his head. “Only two, including you. Not that I don’t keep busy. Before you wear our your prize dueling pistols I should show you some cheaper stuff that’s lot’s of fun to fire.”

Joey fought to contain his excitement and keep his voice casual. He was pretty sure he knew who the other man was. “A small community, we are. The only other connoisseur I know of in the area is a man named Mario. Does he practice here?”

Able abruptly stopped descending and turned to look at Joey. “Well, since you’re clearly acquainted with him, perhaps you should ask him.”

Joey was unhappy with the sudden sharp reaction. Suddenly he thought that if this man knew Mario at all, there was no telling how close the two of them were. If the Green Alliance could come up with such sums of money and share them, perhaps the better prepared and coordinated Blue Alliance could as well. The wad of currency didn’t seem such a big deal now.

He admitted, “We’re not actually acquainted, though I know of him.”

Able frowned. “So you’ve never met him, but you’re interested in him. Is there some sort of wager going on? Did you perhaps want me to spy on him for you?”

That was uncomfortably close to the truth. Of course he could have just agreed and offered Able the money, but his instincts screamed otherwise.

Emerald said, “Offer him the money. We’ll probably have to kill him anyway, to keep him from selling us out.”

Joey felt pretty sure he had committed crimes in his previous and forgotten life, but didn’t think he was actually a cold blooded murder. Anyway, the same idea might occur to Able, and make him shut his mouth to string them along until he could save his own life.

Finally Joey said, “Do me a favor. Don’t assume I’m the baddie. Only you can decide what you want to do, but please don’t say anything about me or my questions unless you decide that’s what you really want to do. There are things I can’t tell you, but there really is a lot at stake. Please ask him a few questions without mentioning me, and see who you think he really is.”

The other man paused a moment before replying. “Oh I know who he is. He’s involved with the mafia. There are rumors he’s a hit man. I don’t trust him, but I’m sure he could get many better and cheaper tools for murder than an antique flintlock pistol. I can’t think of any circumstance where that would be the best way to murder someone in modern times, can you?”

Joey could only answer, “It would have to be a very unusual set of circumstances.”

Then he wondered how much his face and intonation had given away.