Days of Bitter Strength by David Wingrove

Author:David Wingrove [Wingrove, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2011-03-11T07:00:00+00:00

* * *

"Colonel I!"

I Ye stopped, a profound sense of apprehension gripping him. He knew that tone. Knew it could only mean trouble. He turned and bowed low.

"Mistress?"

The meeting had ended only moments before and they were barely outside the Council chamber.

"In my rooms! Nowl"

He bowed low once more, then hurried after her.

The meeting had gone well, or so he thought. Pei K'ung had wanted a campaign for a long time and now she had one - yes, and eighty thousand American troops, too! But strangely she didn't seem too pleased.

Back in her study she slammed the door and turned on him.

"I have changed my mind."

He had no idea what she was talking about. "Mistress?"

"About Shepherd. About discrediting him."

"Ah. . ." He felt relief flood through him. Thank the gods for that, he thought. The old crow's come to her senses at last!

"I don't want him discredited," she said, looking clearly, almost icily, at him. "I want him killed."

It was a moment or two before it hit him. "Kitted?'

"Killed," she repeated. "I want him to have ... an accident."

He felt numb. Kill Shepherd? Kill Li Yuan's Chief Advisor? Why, if anything even vaguely suspicious happened to Shepherd, Li Yuan would stop at nothing to find out the why and the who of it. Why, killing Shepherd was tantamount to putting a gun to his own head. Besides which, he didn't understand this sudden switch of mood. The man had abstained, damn it! So what had he missed? What in the gods' names had he missed?

"Well?" she said, still staring at him. "You are very quiet, Colonel I. Did you not understand my order?"

He lowered his head and clicked his heels together. "It shall be done, Mistress."

"Good." She turned away, moving toward her desk. "I don't care how and I don't want to know. I just want it done, understand me, Colonel?"

He kept his head down, his smile a rictus. Oh, he understood all right - the gods knew he understood! What he didn't understand - what he hadn't worked out yet - was how he was going to wriggle his way out of this one.

Killing Shepherd. He shuddered, then hurried from the room. How the fuck was he going to do that and survive?

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