"So all your variants are equally real?"
"Could be."
"I doubt it," said 108. "It's like holding up a mirror to a mirror. You get a startling effect, and you can't tell a reflection from the real thing. But as soon as you quit playing with mirrors, all the reflections cease to exist."
Hochstader 3 smiled. "Yeah, but exactly who ceases to exist and who remains real."
"Only time will tell, pal. Okay, check the portal." Hochstader 3 rose and went to the curtain. He was about to move it aside when he looked back at his double with suspicion.
"Hey, it just occurred to me to ask why you have this curtain up if you haven't been fiddling with portals."
"I told you I was thinking about opening up a door to Earth here. Wanted to duck back sometime. But there's still a warrant out for me, you know."
Hochstader 3 grinned: "And you were going to search for an Earth where there wasn't a warrant out. Right?"
Hochstader's reciprocating grin was a trifle sheepish. "I suppose the notion was floating around in my mind."
"Such as it is," 3 said with a wink. He peeked through the curtain.
"The office is here. Now, just how did you do that?"
Hochstader 3 shrugged. "Just lucky, I guess."
"Oh, sure. But I'm confused now. How do I get back to my variant of the castle?"
"Try going through and waiting a bit. I'll tune out, and something should replace my variant with another. With any luck, it ought to be yours."
"Yeah? I don't understand…."
"Listen, try relying less on technology and more on your magic talents."
"Magic isn't my strong suit."
"Use what talent you have. Castle people never lose their talents, once they get them, and they never lose the castle. You can always find your way back somehow."
"I guess you're right," said 3. "Well, okay."
Max watched the well-dressed Hochstader disappear behind the curtain.
"Say, where does that leave me?"
Hochstader 108 was busy at the terminal. After a few typistly flourishes, he poked a final key. "Press `Enter,' " he said with satisfaction.
Max walked to the curtain and looked behind it. Stone. He turned to the remaining Hochstader with a distrusting frown. "What's the idea?"
"Screw him."
"Why?"
"Not only is he a nogoodnik, he's not so smart."
"What happened to him?"
Hochstader shrugged. "Who cares? He's gone, lost in the quantum flux of possibilities."
Max raised the minitranslator.
Hochstader eyed it calmly. "That probably won't work in here."
"I wasn't going to use it." Max tossed the weapon on the counter of the work station. "You don't care about your twin?"
"He wasn't a twin. He was a reflection. Besides-" Hochstader 108 put his stockinged legs up on the counter. "I'm the real Jeremy Hochstader."
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
The huge chapel was empty save for a few servants sweeping up. The guests had departed, as had the priests and the choir. The altar held innumerable candles, all now snuffed out, wax drippings frozen and hard.
The bride, dressed in white, sat alone on the steps of the altar. The veil and the bouquet lay at her feet.
Melanie came walking across the great stone floor. She approached Linda cautiously.
She asked, "Are you all right?"
"Sure."
"This is absolutely… I mean, it's absolutely terrible."
"I'm relieved."
"What?"
Linda grinned. "I'm relieved Gene didn't show up."
Melanie was incredulous. "You are? But really, when it looked as though he wouldn't show, we should have called it off."
"Nah. I wanted to go through with it. There was a good chance he would have showed up in time."
Melanie frowned, skeptically. "You're not at all upset?"
"Oh, I'm good and ticked off at Gene. I'm going to punch him."
"He deserves it."
"Yes, but he didn't mean to hurt me. He's just that way. Got tied up in some war or revolution, something big and important, and he couldn't get away. He may even be in trouble."
"Oh." Melanie sat on the steps. "Well, when you put it that way…"
"I'm still going to deck him. He shouldn't have left in the first place."
"What a rotten thing. I'd be upset as hell."
"Don't worry about it. Gene's going to take a verbal licking from everybody, especially Deena. I get to play the injured party, and the wedding is off indefinitely, and that suits me fine."
"Really? You've finally decided that getting married is a bad idea?"
"Not in principle," Linda said. "With Gene, it just might be a bad idea. Besides, something else has come up."
"Oh? What?"
Linda smiled slyly.
Melanie said, "Uh-oh. Someone else?"
"Yup."
"Oh. Well, in that case- Uh, I guess I'm not going to get it out of you, huh?"
Linda, still smiling, shook her head.
"I thought so. Congratulations, I guess. Anyone I know?" Linda kept up an enigmatically self-satisfied smile. "You can't even tell me that? Someone off in some aspect, maybe?"
"Let's just say he's a very important man."
"Great. Good for you. I hope you're happy."
"I am. I'm his official mistress."
Melanie's green eyes went wide. "What? Oh. Official, eh? I've never- Wait a minute, I guess I have been someone's official mistress. What am I talking about? Sure. But, you mean like, official official?"
"Oh, the title is only half-serious. But a mistress is a mistress. Let's face it, that's what you are when you sleep with a guy with no assurance of his making an honest woman out of you."
"What a phrase," Melanie sneered. "Anyway, I guess you're right. The rat."
"He's not a rat. He has responsibilities, that sort of thing."
"Yeah, they always do. So, you love him?"
"I can't help but. If you knew, you'd understand."
Melanie shrugged. "I thought I loved Chad. And I'm glad I had his twins, but…"
"I haven't seen your kids in ages, come to think of it."
"They're at day care mostly. You should see the place. It's literally a palace. They love it."
"I'll have to drop by there someday. Anyway, you were saying?"
"About Chad? I used to think I loved him, but- You know, it seems like so long ago. As if I was a child then. I guess I was. Done a lot of growing up since. He was a dork, Chad was. A big, bumbling, goofy dork of a guy-nice, but not very interesting. Just your basic… you know, guy."
"Sure."
"Yeah. And that was that, and that was then, and this is now, and… I don't know exactly what I'm trying to say."
"I do," Linda said. "What you're trying to say is that you have one life and you live it, you take it one day at a time. You fall in love, maybe, and if you're lucky it's nice. If you're not, not."
"Simple," Melanie said, nodding.
"Yup. That's life. What it's all about."
"So, you really love this new guy."
"Yes. You really couldn't find a better one."
"No?"
"No. You couldn't possibly. He… he's the top. He's like Superman."
"Holy heck. You fell in love with Superman?"
"Call me Lois Lane."
"Wow. Hope I get to meet him someday."
Linda snickered.
Melanie said, "I do know him?" Melanie began to think furiously.
"You'll never guess in a million years," Linda said.
Melanie narrowed her eyes. "Is he married?"
"Yes.
Melanie nodded cynically. "I get it. Mistress. Boy, that's rotten."
"You mean I'm rotten, for doing dirt to his wife."
"No, that's not what I-"
"But you should have said it. It's true. I'm a homewrecker. The Other Woman. But hell, I think-I don't know for sure, but it's probably true-I think he has many women. And wives. All over the place."