Suddenly, those eyes focused on Matthews. "Ah, Agent Matthews. I see you're taking your surveillance duties seriously, though I had assumed" you would tail Mr. Mercury in a separate vehicle. And what has happened to your partner?"

Matthews, squinting in the sunlight, shrugged. "Had some trouble with the car. Mister Mercury was kind enough to give me a lift while Phelps stayed with the vehicle."

Quentin Strapp's thick eyebrows narrowed. "We'll talk more about this later."

Matthews smiled. "I'm sure we will, sir. I look forward to it."

Nadja took Ryan's hand and led him up the steps. Up close, Quentin Strapp was a short man, but broad and powerful. Without thinking, Ryan's vision shifted to the astral, where he was surprised to see that Strapp's aura was whole. With the exception of a datajack just behind his right ear, the man was completely unenhanced. Perhaps he's a mage.

"Quentin Strapp," Nadja's voice was pure honey, snapping Ryan back to the conversation, "I'd like you to meet Ryan Mercury. Ryan, this is Quentin Strapp. Mister Strapp has rearranged his busy schedule to meet with you this afternoon."

Ryan took her cue. She was on full political alert, all defenses up, all polish on the surface. He smiled and stuck out his hand. "Glad to meet you. I've heard good things about you. They say if anyone can find out what happened to the President, you're the man."

Strapp took Ryan's hand, shook it precisely once, then dropped it. "Shall we go inside? These damn flowers are giving me a. sinus headache."

Nadja smiled, and motioned toward the doorway, giving Ryan's hand a squeeze before letting go. "Of course. Won't you please come inside." She turned toward the entrance, and for the first time Ryan noticed Nadja's aide, Gordon Wu, standing just inside the door, watching everything with an alert intensity. The demure Asian man gave Ryan a slight nod of recognition. He was no doubt recording everything on his headcamera.

Nadja looked at Wu as she led Strapp into the house. "My study should give us adequate privacy for this conversation."

Ryan got the message. Strapp was dangerous, extremely dangerous. For Nadja to take them into the study was a sign of just how dangerous. She was trying to make him feel as comfortable as possible without giving him any control. It was a ploy she usually reserved for people of Damien Knight's caliber.

Damien Knight was CEO of Ares Macrotechnology, one of the eight transnational megacorporations. He was an extremely important individual, someone whose support was critical and whose anger could have devastating consequences. If Strapp was anywhere near as dangerous, Ryan would need to be in top form.

They entered the long main hall. Thick Persian rugs covered the shiny green and black marble floor, and an eclectic collection of art adorned the hallway. It consisted mostly of mosaics from the late Ottoman Empire period, mixed with modern sculpture from Africa. They passed the broad, curved staircase sweeping up the left-hand wall. Nadja took the lead, followed by Strapp and Ryan. Gordon Wu brought up the rear.

The air grew imperceptibly warm and humid as they passed the ornate double glass doors that led to the arboretum. The doors were dragon scale and inlaid with pewter in the pattern of huge ferns. Ryan breathed deeply and grew melancholic for a minute as he remembered the times he and Dunkelzahn had trained together inside the arboretum.

He recalled the room's massive proportions, fifteen meters high with a clear ceiling made of sheets of macro-glass held up by eight huge marble pillars. The pillars were ornately carved to look like trees, and they came complete with huge stone branches and roots. Dunkelzahn grew prize orchids and tropical trees in there, but he'd also liked to use the room for training Ryan in the Silent Way.

Ryan remembered one time when the dragon had taken human form, looking exactly like Michelangelo's David. Youthful face, brown curls, perfectly proportioned body.

In the memory, the dragon's words came into Ryan's mind. We fight now. Then Dunkelzahn had disappeared into the forest of marble trees.

Ryan had drawn a slow breath in his black nightsuit and had taken cover himself. It was dark, and moonlight shone through the stone branches, casting skeleton shadows across the floor. In the hot, humid air Ryan wiped the sweat from his brow and tried to center himself, to gain focus so that he could hear Dunkelzahn. Could pinpoint his location by sound.

One of the keys to the Silent Way is the ability to remain absolutely quiet, and to use that silence against your adversaries. Never reveal your position, Ryanthusar. Until you are ready to strike.

Hearing nothing, Ryan began to edge around the tree. He glanced at the shadows of the tree trunks, hoping to see a bulge or a distortion that would betray Dunkelzahn's position. His own shadow was hidden by the tree at his left.

In this way, the Silent Way is like chess. A game of misdirection and cunning.

There it was, the narrow shadow of a knee and leg, jutting slightly from the silhouette of the branch overhead. Ryan made the quick calculation and rushed to Dunkelzahn's position, ready to strike.

No one was there.

A follower of the Silent Way uses the terrain to his advantage, Ryanthusar. Uses all his assets in a fight, even those that seem to be lost.

Ryan heard nothing, but felt the slight air pressure change as Dunkelzahn moved into position behind him. The shadow had been a lure. A trap.

Even in his human form, the dragon struck quickly and with enough force to send Ryan flying across the room. Pain scissored through Ryan as he landed across a stone bench. Pain was the price for failure.

Come, Ryanthusar, Dunkelzahn said in Ryan's mind, let's try again.

They did it again until Ryan got it right. Until he was able to fight Dunkelzahn to a standstill. He'd never beaten the wyrm, but as time went on he lost less and less often.

The memory faded. And in its place, Ryan felt anger fill him. He was furious at Strapp for interfering with his return home. Ryan quickly stifled his anger as they entered Nadja's study. Now was not the time.

The cluttered atmosphere spoke volumes about just how tight Nadja's schedule had become since Dunkelzahn's death. Sim-recorded depositions lay scattered across her huge desk while several of the room's end tables were piled neatly with hardcopy requests, all sent to the Draco Foundation. Memos from President Kyle Haeffner's office were arranged in stacks by date. No doubt these had to do with her nomination for the vacant vice-presidential spot.

Nadja 's been very busy.

Ryan looked closely at her as she turned, trying to be objective, and not see her through eyes clouded by emotion. Yes, he could see the strain there, the pressure she was under. She still looked lovely, but the exhaustion was like some monster lurking just below the surface of a placid, beautiful lake. It could explode out of the water at any moment.

"Mister Strapp, you're welcome to have a seat." Nadja gestured to one of the two high-backed leather chairs facing her desk as she walked around and sat in her own.

Ryan took a seat, but Strapp remained standing. "Thanks just the same, but this won't take long." He pulled out a small audio recorder and showed it to Nadja and Ryan. "Do you mind if I record our conversation?"

"Not at all."

Gordon Wu closed the door and stood just inside.

Strapp turned to face Ryan. "Mister Mercury, I'm sure you have some idea why I'm here."

Ryan nodded. "Of course, and I'll help in any way I can. Finding the President's assassin is of paramount importance to the country generally, as well as to myself personally." Ryan allowed himself a frown. "Dunkelzahn and I were close, and I feel guilty for not being there when it happened. I keep thinking I could have done something. I'm not sure what, but I still believe that if I'd been here, instead of out of the country, I might have been able to prevent what happened."