“They wish the Atreides name to become unpopular,” the Duke said. “Think of the Landsraad Houses that look
to me for a certain amount of leadership C their unofficial spokesman. Think how they’d react if I were
responsible for a serious reduction in their income. After all, one’s own profits come first. The Great Convention
be damned! You can’t let someone pauperize you!” A harsh smile twisted the Duke’s mouth. “They’d look the
other way no matter what was done to me.”
“Even if we were attacked with atomics?”
“Nothing that flagrant. No open defiance of the Convention. But almost anything else short of that?- perhaps
even dusting and a bit of soil poisoning.”
“Then why are we walking into this?”
“Paul!” The Duke frowned at his son. “Knowing where the trap is C that’s the first step in evading it. This is like
single combat, Son, only on a larger scale C a feint within a feint within a feint?- seemingly without end. The
task is to unravel it. Knowing that the Harkonnens stockpile melange, we ask another question: Who else is
stockpiling? That’s the list of our enemies.”
“Who?”
“Certain Houses we knew were unfriendly and some we’d thought friendly. We need not consider them for the
moment because there is one other much more important: our beloved Padishah Emperor.”
Paul tried to swallow in a throat suddenly dry. “Couldn’t you convene the Landsraad, expose C”
“Make our enemy aware we know which hand holds the knife? Ah, now, Paul C we see the knife, now. Who
knows where it might be shifted next? If we put this before the Landsraad it’d only create a great cloud of
confusion. The Emperor would deny it. Who could gainsay him? All we’d gain is a little time while risking
chaos. And where would the next attack come from?”
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“All the Houses might start stockpiling spice.”
“Our enemies have a head start C too much of a lead to overcome.”
“The Emperor,” Paul said. “That means the Sardaukar.”