Jack let Makkari go as he stepped into the apartment he had taken from their mortal

enemy. He grinned as he walked across the room. Josie arrived a second later, clothed

in lightning. She let her persona go as Jack stepped into the kitchen to get another

glass of water.

“I can’t believe you cheated like that,” said Josie.

“You teleported in a street race,” said Jack. “Too late to call foul now.”

“I can call foul if I want to,” said Josie.

“Don’t cheat and that won’t happen,” said Jack. He toasted her with the glass of

water.

“I’m going to get even,” said Josie.

“Cheaters never get the cookie,” said Jack. “Let’s see what the kids have for us.”

“Cheaters never get the cookie?,” said Josie. “What is up with the mangled sayings?”

“I don’t know,” said Jack. His uncle used to do that all of the time. He wondered why

he was doing them now. He hoped he wasn’t getting dementia like his uncle had.

There were no nursing homes in fantasy kingdom.

“Do I need to look at you as Occult?,” said Josie.

“I hope not,” said Jack. He paused as the girls looked at him from their papers. Plates

and empty cups were everywhere. “What do you guys have for me?”

“We put together what we think is the only logical conclusion,” said Elaine. “It’s a

flying boat.”

“Really?,” said Jack. “What does this boat look like?”

Laura showed him a rough drawing of what looked like an ark with sails stretching

up over the top. It didn’t need to be that big, but they had thought of chicken legs to

land on. He nodded at that.

“We also thought about something like your sculpture,” said Beatrice. “We couldn’t

figure out how to make it fly.”

“We also came up with this,” said Melanie. She gave him a picture of a bird. “The

wings flap to carry you along.”

“A bird is pretty close to what we have back home,” said Jack. He took the drawings

and stacked them on top of each other. “People back home figured out that if you had

a wing of a certain shape you could direct air under you. If you went fast enough, the

air would lift you up. We also had balloons that could lift a basket high enough that

the wind above the ground would push the balloon. It wasn’t nearly as controllable

as a plane since they didn’t usually have wings to grab anything.”

“There was also the zeppelin,” said Josie.

“The Goodyear,” said Jack. “You’re right.”

He took a piece of paper and charcoal and drew a rough egg shape on it. He added

lines on the back with a quick touch. A basket went underneath.

“There is gas in this bag,” said Jack. “It gives lift. It kind of makes things lighter than

air. The propellers are driven by an engine inside the basket. The propellers push the

zeppelin through the air like a slow moving barge on a river.”

“Why does it look like that?,” asked Laura.

“The shape is to cut down the air wall,” said Jack. “Air passes around things when

you go high enough. So you don’t want something blocky. You want something that

the air will run down the sides without a lot of resistance.”

“How fast could you make a zeppelin?,” asked Josie.

“I don’t know exactly,” said Jack. “I’ll have a lot of work ahead of me if you want to

take off by noon.”

“I’m just meeting them in the morning,” said Josie. “It would be nice to take off then,

but not really necessary as long as we get something done.”

“Don’t worry,” said Jack. “I might have a solution if Guin will help us one last time.

Do you mind if I take these drawings with me? I’m going to need them to make things

work.”

“What are you planning?,” said Josie. “I can see it in your eyes.”

“I am going to ask Guin for some help getting the material together,” said Jack. “Then

I am going to put your airship together by the Adventurer’s Hall unless you want me

to put it together somewhere else.”

“And if he says yes?,” said Josie.

“Then I will have the keel done by sunrise,” said Jack. “The rest might take a bit

longer depending on how fast the material comes in.”

“If he doesn’t want to help out?,” asked Josie.

“Then I will figure out where to get the raw material I need to do what I need to do,”

said Jack. “It will probably be best to build the thing away from the city. That will

obey the scale back rule the Society asked for us to abide.”

“Abide?,” asked Josie.

“The Dude abides,” said Jack. He grinned at her expression. “The Big Lebowski?

Have you not seen that?”

“No,” said Josie. “And I probably never will now.”

“Your loss,” said Jack. “All right. I think we have a plan if I can get some cooperation

from Guin. Then I can start putting the prototype together somewhere. I had thought

the Adventurer lawn would be okay, but it’s too flashy for this. We want to keep it

concealed so no one knows we can fly anywhere on the continent.”

“Can we watch?,” asked Laura. “I would love to see something like real magic.”

“You see real magic everyday,” said Josie.

“Not like this,” said Laura. “Please. Can we watch?”

“All right,” said Josie. “When the time is right, we’ll go out to watch things unfold.

It will look like any other building project.”

“I think it will be great,” said Laura. “I don’t care how boring it will be.”

“All right,” said Jack. “Grab something to eat. I asked Master and Madam Harp to eat

with us when Josie goes out of town. We need to check supplies for food when we

get done with this.”

“I’ll put a list together for us to pick up at the market,” said Elaine. “How do we get

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

to the building site?”

“I’ll take you out there as soon as Jack has a place he is happy with to put things

together,” said Josie.

“Let me see if Guin is at the Coin,” said Jack. “We’ll go from there. Chances are I

won’t be able to start until the morning. You guys might have to show up early in the

morning, so be ready to get some sleep if I can’t hammer something out.”

“Have you done something like this before?,” asked Angelica.

“Not exactly like this,” said Jack. “But we have magic here, so the job should be a

snap once I get started.”

“We’ll wait for word from you,” said Josie. “I’ll write the letters to Warner to see

what he thinks of all this.”

“All right,” said Jack. He smiled at the assemblage. “Let’s see what I can do with

what you have given me.”

He walked out the front door and started down the street. He touched his watch and

became the Falcon. He flew over to the Coin and dropped down at the head of the

line. The doormen nodded when they saw him coming up the steps.

“Is Guin in?,” asked Jack. “I need some help.”

“You need some help?,” said the one doorman.

“Just because I am incredibly handsome, athletic, brilliant, and humble,” said Jack.

“Doesn’t mean I don’t need a hand from someone with a ton of goons at his

fingertips.”

“I don’t think the boss thinks of things like that,” said the doorman.

“I am about to make him happy if things work out,” said Jack. “I’m sending Josie out

of town.”

“I think he would be more happy if you went out of town,” said the other doorman.

“Can’t,” said Jack. “Josie is the one that got the call. I’m just her support at the

moment.”

“Don’t kill everybody,” said the first doorman.

“I’ll work on that,” said Jack.

People started saying things about Jack talking to the doormen and how they couldn’t

get inside the casino to waste their money. He waved at them before he stepped

inside.

He made his way to the main office over the casino floor. Kray didn’t seem inclined

to let him through. He expected that. He was intruding on a man at the center of his

domain. A certain wariness after what he had done would be on everyone’s mind.

“May I pass?,” asked Jack. He waved at the office door.

“Not yet,” said Kray. “The boss has someone in there who wants more money out of

the business.”

“Really?,” asked Jack.

“He’s trying to level some new tax levy,” said Kray.

“I would like to meet this man,” said Jack. “Knock on the door, please.”

“What if I don’t want to do that?,” asked Kray.

“Then I will,” said Jack. “Just do it. I’ll talk to this tax man. I have a feeling he tried

to grab Josie and the kids under the guise of a tax bill. I want to express my

displeasure.”

“Don’t turn into a werewolf and bite his head off,” said Kray. He knocked on the door

with a big fist.

“I am not going to promise that,” said Jack. “A lot depends on what he tells me, but

biting might have to be done.”

“You dump the body,” said Kray. He opened the door.

“I am willing to do that,” said Jack. He walked into the office.

Guin sat behind his desk, Linus standing to the right. An thin man with glasses on a

lanyard stood to the left. A stack of ledgers sat on the desk. Four guards stood to

either side of a man sitting in the visitor’s chair. He had some finery on, and two large

rings on his hand.

“Master Guin,” said Jack. “Linus. Josie is going out of town and I thought I should

invite you to eat with us and the girls.”

“And who are you?,” said the visitor. He had a lemon expression on his face.

“I’m Jack,” said Jack. He put on a harmless grin. “And who do I have the pleasure of

addressing?”

“I am the new Duke Hent,” said the new duke. “We were talking about new rules for

the casino. What is your position here?”

“I don’t work here,” said Jack. “Master Guin helps me out on some things, and I help

him where I can. That’s the other reason I came by, Master Guin. I was wondering

how much pull you have with suppliers around here.”

“Then I think you should leave,” said the Duke. “You have no place here.”

“That’s fine,” said Jack. “Master Guin, I will be setting up on the old Duke’s property

and destroying the manor to get part of my supplies. If you could pass the word

around that I might have to buy the rest on credit from the local shops, that will be

good.”

“What?,” said the Duke. “That’s my property!”

“For how long?,” said Jack. “The way things are going, you might not make it out of

this room. You see, someone sent some guys down to my place with a false tax bill

and my partner had to kill most the collectors involved. The rest she gave to the elves

to be straightened out. Now I see you here, and I am thinking you gave the orders that

got those collectors killed. And I am wondering if I should do the same to you before

you become a pain in my behind. And if I have to kill you right here and now, I’m not

going to spare your bullies either.”

“Do you know who I am?,” said the Duke.

“What you should be asking yourself is who is this guy?,” said Jack. “I’m the guy

who made you the Duke, and I can make the next guy the Duke if I am not happy with

your dukedom. Are we clear with where we stand here?”

“You can’t be serious,” said the Duke.

“I’m just visiting the city,” said Jack. “It means nothing to me to put another guy in

your place. If I were you, I would think about not being a corrupt scumbag and

enjoying the rest of my life doing my job to help people to the best of my ability. That

will make you happier and give you a longer life.”

“I will see you hanged for this threat,” said the Duke.

“How?,” said Jack. “Do you really think these four guys are going to get you what

you want?”

“Take him,” said the Duke. He waved at Jack.

The four guys reached for their swords. Jack reached for his watch. A flash of light

created a cloak of darkness with a skull for a head and a scythe in hand. The guards

realized they were in serious trouble. They backed away from the specter in their

midst.

“Your time is running out,” said Death. “I think you should use it a little more wisely.

I will be keeping an eye on you from now on. If I see you do something out of line,

I will visit you in the dark.”

Jack switched back.

“And I am taking the old Duke’s house,” he said. “When I am done, there will be

nothing left of it. Is there anything else you would like say before you leave?”

“I will make you suffer,” said the Duke. “You can’t get away with this.”

“My partner is going out of town,” said Jack. “Be glad she decided not to come with

me to talk to Master Guin about the supplies we need. The new Duke would already

be throwing your stuff out on the street so he could take over. Also I know you

fraudulently filed tax bills on people to take their stuff. I want you to give all of it

back before she comes home. Once I tell her about meeting you, I can’t imagine you

are going to stay alive for much longer after that.”

“Do really think you are untouchable?,” asked the Duke.

“No,” said Jack. He grinned. “I just know what will happen to you if I did get

touched. It wouldn’t be pretty, it wouldn’t be painless, and the collateral damage

would be greater than what I could estimate. Go home, quit being greedy, think about

whom your successor will be if you don’t. And think about how many others will die

with you when you go. The previous Duke took most of his circle with him after all.”

“I’ll take my leave of you,” said the Duke. “I want what I am owed, Guin.”

“As I have shown you, you are owed nothing,” said Guin. “And Jack isn’t the only

one who has buried his enemies over the years. Go home, Your Grace. The way you

are going, someone will think they are paying too much, and that will be the end of

you. The city is full of malcontents, and lately more than a few have dropped dead.”

“We’ll see,” said the Duke. He gestured for his men to follow him from the office.

Guin sat back in his chair, hands interlocked.

“You didn’t do us any favors killing the old Duke,” said Guin.

“I guess I assumed that the crooked collection was all in with the rest of the stuff he

was into,” said Jack. “I can see that I will have to do something to him.”

“He is not part of the Montrose,” said Linus.

“Doesn’t matter,” said Jack. “I have a writ to stop evil wherever I find it. Of course

that writ comes from a group of what could be imaginary creatures, but I am not

going to let that stop me.”

“That makes me feel better,” said Guin.

“You are invited to dinner tomorrow,” said Jack. “I do need as much material as you

can gather for me. I will pay for it as soon as I can get the money out of the bank. If

you want me to set that guy on fire while I am taking care of other stuff, I can.”

“His bill is so out of order,” said the man with the glasses. “He is just trying to

squeeze the business to enrich himself.”

“He is going to go after you over the money,” said Jack. “You can expect him to go

after your employees.”

“I will tell everyone about this so they can be ready,” said Guin. “We might have to

spend time in court over this. He has the ability to use that against us.”

“I guess it would be too much to go by the local judges and talk to them,” said Jack.

“Maybe,” said Guin. “Some of them were caught up in your rampage through the

former duke’s manor. I don’t know how their colleagues will take that.”

“You would think that it would be a guidepost to do a better job,” said Jack. “I don’t

want to set him on fire, but I will if I see anyone come by the Hole in the Wall with

less than good intentions. Even if this guy isn’t trading people, he is doing enough

stuff to attract my attention. And I already gave him his one warning.”