Free A Phule and His Money by Robert Asprin, Peter J. Heck Page A

her go now."
    "I suppose you've got a good reason for that," Phule said, looking skeptical.
    "Sure, Captain. But let me start at the beginning. You remember how when I got these Yakuza tattoos you were all worried about what would happen if a real Yakuza member showed up?"
    Phule nodded. "I gather that's what happened today."
    "Right. But there's more to it than a family member just showing up," said Sushi. "Somebody here tipped them off about me. In fact, the guy came looking for me, ready to rearrange my internal organs into some nonfunctional pattern if he found out I was bogus."
    "Which of course you were," Phule pointed out. "Your internal organs appear still to be functioning-although I can rearrange them myself, if it seems necessary. For now, I'm still neutral on the subject. What did you say to him?"
    Sushi gulped, then managed a sheepish grin. "Well, Captain, you remember how I told you that my family maintains certain business connections-strictly for informational purposes? After you convinced me that what I was doing might be more dangerous than I had anticipated, I called home and got one of my uncles to dig up some information for me. Specifically, he gave me a few names and passwords that only somebody very high in a family would know."
    "I hope he didn't have to pay too high a price for them," said Phule. "That kind of information can be very dangerous to use. Especially if you aren't absolutely certain of its reliability."
    Sushi nodded, soberly. "Believe me, Captain, I knew that. But I figured that once somebody showed up looking for me-which was inevitable if we stayed here more than a couple of months-I was already in major trouble for impersonating a member of the families. Using the wrong password couldn't get me any deader. So I had to take the gamble."
    "Someday that gambling fever's going to get you into real trouble," said Phule, shaking his head. "So you had these passwords-what then?"
    "Well, you probably heard that the guy started a brawl in the casino. He'd picked a spot where I'd be among the ones responding, and he and the woman with him started cheating blatantly. When Moustache tried to put the pinch on them, they went into combat mode-but I was the real target. When I realized what was happening, I showed him a password, actually a sort of recognition sign." Sushi made a quick gesture with his hand, then continued, "At first the guy-his name is Nakadate, not that that'll mean anything to you-at first he was suspicious, but combined with some fast talking, the fact that I knew the sign convinced him that we needed to go off someplace to talk without the whole casino watching us. So we told the woman to wait for us, and we went to talk."
    "That's the first smart thing you've told me-at least there was some sort of hostage for your safety. Going off to someplace private with the enemy is a quick way to get yourself killed." Phule sighed. It was a relief to see Sushi still alive and kicking; he had begun to fear the worst. But now he had to figure out what was really going on-unless, for once, Sushi was actually telling him the whole truth.
    Sushi grunted. "Captain, I hate to tell you this, but if he was going to kill me, the hostage wouldn't have made any difference. Once Nakadate turned her over to the guards, she was on her own and she knew it. Besides, I doubt she has any information that would help you if something did happen to me."
    "Well, that figures," said Phule. "Security tells me she's not carrying anything that gives even a hint to her origins-unless she grew up in a spaceport convenience shop. And she's playing it like a complete innocent. All we have on her is the blackjack cheating-but we can make that stick, if we need to. Why should we let her go?"
    "Because she really doesn't know anything, and because some of our people could get hurt if she decides to make a break for it. I've seen her fight. She's not worth the risk. Sir."
    Phule rubbed his chin. "Hmmm-maybe that makes