ng. Everything's going to hell
around me, but I'm driving."

A red light appeared ahead. Boyd jammed on the brakes with somewhat more
than the necessary force, and Malone was thrown forward with a grunt.
Behind him there were two ladylike squeals.

Malone struggled upright. "Barbara?" he called. "Are you all right--"
Then he remembered the Queen.

"It's all right," Her Majesty said. "I can understand your concern for
Lady Barbara." She smiled at Malone as he turned.

Malone gaped at her. Of course she knew what he thought about Barbara;
she'd been reading his mind. And, apparently, she was on his side. That
was good, even though it made him slightly nervous to think about.

"Now," the Queen said suddenly, "what about tonight?"

"Tonight?"

"Yes, of course," the Queen said. She smiled, and put up a hand to pat
at her white hair under the Elizabethan skullcap. "I think I should like
to go to the Palace," she said. "After all, isn't that where a Queen
should be?"

Boyd said, in a kind of explosion: "London? England?"

"Oh, dear me--" the Queen began, and Barbara said:

"I'm afraid that I simply can't allow anything like that. Overseas--"

"I didn't mean overseas, dear," Her Majesty said. "Sir Kenneth, please
explain to these people."

The Palace, Malone knew, was more properly known as the Golden Palace.
It was right in Las Vegas--convenient to all sources of money. As a
matter of fact, it was one of the biggest gambling houses along the Las
Vegas strip, a veritable chaos of wheels, cards, dice, chips and other
such devices. Malone explained all this to the others, wondering
meanwhile why Miss Thompson wanted to go there.

"_Not_ Miss Thompson, _please_, Sir Kenneth," Her Majesty said.

"Not Miss Thompson what?" Boyd said. "What's going on anyhow?"

"She's reading my mind," Malone said.

"Well, then," Boyd snapped, "tell her to keep it to herself." The car
started up again with a roar and Malone and the others were thrown
around again, this time toward the back. There was a chorus of groans
and squeals, and they were on their way once more.

* * * * *

"To reply to your question, Sir Kenneth," the Queen said.

Lady Barbara said, with some composure: "What question ... Your
Majesty?"

The Queen nodded regally at her. "Sir Kenneth was wondering why I wished
to go to the Golden Palace," she said. "And my reply is this: it is none
of your business why I want to go there.