‘I know. Logic’s like that sometimes. It doesn’t always happen, but these attempts to kill me usually come sometime not long after I’ve taken out the Bhelliom and caught a glimpse of that shadow.’

‘Some kind of connection, you think?’

‘Isn’t it possible?’

‘Almost anything’s possible, Sparhawk.’

‘All right then. If the shadow’s something like the Damork or the Seeker, it’s probably coming from Azash. That “probably” makes the logic a little shaky, but it’s something to sort of consider, wouldn’t you say?’

‘Under the circumstances I’d almost have to agree.’

‘What do we do about it then? It’s an interim hypothesis, and it ignores the possibility of pure coincidence, but shouldn’t we take some steps just in case there is some connection?’

‘I don’t think we can afford not to, Sparhawk. I think the first thing you should do is to keep Bhelliom inside that pouch. Don’t take it out unless you absolutely have to.’

‘That makes sense.’

‘And if you do have to take it out, be on your guard for an attempt on your life.’

‘I sort of do that automatically anyway – all the time. I’m in a nervous kind of profession.’

‘And, I think we’d better keep this to ourselves. If that shadow comes from Azash, it can turn our friends against us. Any one of them could turn on you at any time at all. If we tell them what we suspect, the shadow – or whatever it is – will probably know what’s in their thoughts. Let’s not warn Azash that we know what He’s doing.’

Sparhawk steeled himself to say it, and when he did, it was with a vast reluctance. ‘Wouldn’t it solve everything if we were just to destroy Bhelliom right here and now?’ he asked her.

She shook her head. ‘No, dear one,’ she said. ‘We may still need it.’

‘It’s a simple answer, though.’

‘Not really, Sparhawk.’ Her smile was bleak. ‘We don’t know for sure what kind of force the destruction of Bhelliom might release. We might lose something fairly important.’

‘Such as?’

‘The city of Cimmura – or the entire Eosian continent, for all I know.’

Chapter 6