The Green Millennium — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
The Green Millennium
John Stuart Mill · en
She jerked a silver-fanged thumb at the ceiling. "That mirror's
transparent from above. He likes to watch what his patients do when
they think they're alone, either singly or by couples. Olympian voyeur!
Well, I marked him tonight." And she flashed the claws, which were
faintly stained with reddish brown.
Phil felt a little sick but took the opportunity to ask, "If that
mirror's transparent from above, why didn't you see me when he locked
me in here?"
"He always shuts the mirror off when he's not using it," she said,
"and I was interested in opening it, not seeing through it. I only
discovered the trick of the fastenings a half-minute ago. Father
probably doesn't even know it can be opened. Although well equipped
with the nastier psychological skills, he's no mechanic."
"Well, you seem to be skillful at things all around," said Phil.
"Fencing and that."
She thoughtfully licked the center of her upper lip with the tip of her
tongue. "You're kind of likable in a feeble way," she said. "Why did he
lock you in here anyhow? Too interested in sex? I thought he encouraged
that in his patients and only tried to forbid it to his darling
daughter."
As Phil searched for a suitable way to phrase a denial or confirmation,
her dark eyes grew speculative. "Say," she said, "how about you and
me?" She paused, then decisively whipped down the knife, so that it
stuck quivering in the floor. She advanced toward Phil. "Yes, you and
me."
"Your father'll be back any minute," Phil protested agitatedly.
"True, and I'll so enjoy seeing his face." She lifted her arms. "See
how beautiful I am. Look at them. Like two rose buds."
She was very beautiful indeed. Nevertheless, Phil froze. She bared her
teeth and struck at his cheek with her clawed hand, but at the last
moment turned the blow to a contemptuous pat.
"Don't worry," she said. "I know my glamor is a sort that terrifies
weaklings. Besides, the raven does not mate with the rabbit. And I
only wanted to do it to spite Father. Why did he lock you in? You seem
completely puerile."
"I just mentioned something about a green cat," Phil said with a
certain huffiness.
She rolled her eyes. "Tammuz! And just after encouraging the Akeleys in
their Bast worship. The man's so erratic I sometimes think he must be a
crypto-communist with his cover personalities jumbled."
"Of course he did say something about my waiting here while he got rid
of a violent ex-patient who carries around a--"
"That gold squirt gun story," she interrupted, "is his pet dodge for
getting rid of patients."
"He doesn't seem to want to get rid of me."
"No," she agreed cheerfully, jerking her knife out of the floor, "he
seems to want to keep you."
"I think he wants to send me to a mental hospital," Phil ventured,
rather hoping to be disagreed with, but she merely nodded.