XXXVI - Headache

The dogs charged through the passageway, baying loudly in the frenzied excitement of the hunt. After a long flight, they had finally cornered their quarry. The scent of their prey was strong in their sensitive nostrils.

The hounds bounded into the amphitheater running beyond the point at which Jasmine and Kamon had stopped. They halted suddenly, piling into one another in a tangled heap. They retreated and frantically circled the area near the entrance to the arena, their nostrils dilating, their noses close to the ground, sniffing.

The scent was present and very strong. Yet their prey was gone. They continued circling the small area in confusion. It was beyond the capacity of their limited minds to understand what had happened.

Soon, their keepers would arrive. But it would be beyond the ken of First Commander Agon and her company, also.

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Consciousness began to return to Kamon as eerily as it had left. He faintly perceived that his body was not whole, as if the molecules of which he were made had been scattered and were now trying to reassemble themselves like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Hastily. Abruptly. Weightlessness rapidly gave way to the reestablishment of nature's force on his body. Finally, he was whole again.

His head swirled. His legs buckled at the sudden reintroduction to gravity. The knife slipped from his fingers and made a soft thud as it bounced on the floor.

He saw his surroundings but was only vaguely conscious. He was no longer in the amphitheater, but instead was at one end of a small elliptical room, off-white in color.

As soon as his knees hit the floor, Jasmine's arms were upon him to steady his wobbly form. In a swift and fluid motion she crouched beside him and cradled his body, then stood up, an incredible feat for a woman of her size. She then carried him to a table with a foam cushion on it and laid him there.

Kamon was dizzy, disoriented. What had happened? Had he passed out? Was he dreaming?......Had he died? This was stuff that was pure science fiction. He had been "transported" away from danger. Surely, he was dreaming....or dead.

His mind was sluggish. He really didn't understand any of this. If he hadn't already died, he surely would very soon. He had the opportunity to complete some unfinished business. It would be his last act among the living.

Jasmine wheeled to move away, but Kamon caught her arm. He grasped her hand tightly, desperately. He had one final chance to make peace with the burning in his heart. "I love you, Jasmine," he murmured.

Jasmine's blood-stained face softened and glowed. Her voice was soothing. "Yes, Kamon, but you must rest now." She stroked his forehead with her free hand. "I will take care of you."

He clutched her hand more tightly. It was warm. More than warm. There was life in it. More than life. It was a conduit. To where he did not know. The sensation was strange. Very strange. Happiness. It was in Jasmine's hand. He could feel her. Euphoria. Peace.

Then the dark void claimed him once again.

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Casio closed yet another law book and set it aside. He hated legal matters. Too complicated. Too confusing. No common sense.

His bloodshot eyes stared at the clock in his office. It would be dawn in another couple of hours.

He leaned back in his chair and rocked. He had been poring over these books all night. And he had hated it. No wonder advocates were such eggheads. They read this stuff and then proceeded to regurgitate it all as a matter of daily life. Talking much, saying little. No. Saying nothing. No rational person talked like this. But then, these were advocates.

Still, he had had no choice but to delve into such matters. He needed to find some way to take the heat off the big guy. The law books had seemed the only answer. He should have saved himself the trouble. There was nothing to be found.

He rubbed the temples of his forehead; his head ached. His chair

came forward; he planted his feet on the floor. He began rummaging through his desk. Where had he put the aspirin?

Casio searched through all his drawers and behind every pile on his desk, but to no avail.

His room. There was sure to be some aspirin there.

Rising from his chair, he left his office and headed for the elevator. He changed his mind. His legs were cramped from all that sitting. He would use the stairs instead. He could use some exercise. He suddenly frowned. 'Could use some exercise'?! He had gone too long without sleep. He was becoming delirious.

He headed for the stairs. Odd; no one was standing guard by the stairwell door. There should be. Otherwise anyone could walk up to the seventh and eighth floors, the living quarters.

Casio pushed on the door. It didn't budge. He pushed harder. It still refused to give.

Locked. Why was the door locked?

And who had sent the guard away? The guard wouldn't leave on her own. It never happened. What was going on?

Someone didn't want anybody using the stairs at this moment. Why? Secrets important enough to be locked up were secrets that were important enough to be known. 2-5-1-6-A. Casio quickly punched in the necessary code. Elbe wasn't the only one who knew how to break into things around this place.

Casio pushed on the door once more. This time it gave way. He climbed the steps. He stopped at the seventh floor and pulled on the door. It opened. Nothing here. No locks, no secrets; on to the eighth floor.

He pulled on the handle. Locked! 2-5-1-6-A. His fingers moved quickly.

He pulled the door opened slowly, just a crack. He listened. Voices!

Subdued tones. Whispers. He stood listening to the voices, but he could not make out what was being said.

He frowned. This was getting him nowhere. He would have to chance a peek out the door and down the hall.

Casio cautiously poked his head outward, hugging the door frame as he did so. His head went out no farther than it needed to, just enough to see the people who were talking.

Surprise registered on his face, then puzzlement. What was Galaxo, the Delphi's husband, doing here? And why so late at night?

Why was the Big Chief outside Quartz Lok's room speaking in hushed tones with both Quartz and the Delphi's husband.

Why were all three together like this at this time of the night?

Wouldn't the tabloids love to have a picture of this?! Rumors of marital strife between the Delphi and her husband had been rampant for years, talked about only in whispers among the Capitol crowd, but there nonetheless.

Yes, the tabloids would definitely love this shot. Then they could fill in the story for themselves. No need for messy interviews.

Fortunately, no one was looking in Casio's direction. Thus, he maintained his position. He blinked his eyes several times. Perhaps, the glaze over them was playing tricks on his vision. He had gone too long without sleep.

But after blinking, he still saw the same sight. These three people were unmistakable. Why the conclave among this trio?

He had never seen the Delphi's husband and the Big Chief in the same room together -- until now. Late at night on the eighth floor of the Council living quarters? There was no sense in this!

And what about the Big Chief and Quartz? Come to think of it, they were rarely ever seen together, almost as if they went out of their way to avoid one another. Why would that be?

Casio continued staring at the trio down the hall. He jerked his head back once. He thought Quartz was about to glance in his direction. Not to worry. They were all too intent on their own business, whatever that might be.

He studied the faces. First that of Galaxo, the Delphi's husband. Then the Big Chief's. Then Quartz's. The Big Chief's; Quartz's; his eyes began darting back and forth between these two. What was it about the faces of these two women?.....

The conversation was breaking up. He still could not make out a word that was being said, but he knew they were about to part.

Then the shocker. The Delphi's husband hugged Quartz, followed by the Big Chief doing the same to the younger woman!

Casio saw no more. He quickly jerked his head from the hallway. They were about to head for the elevator. They would have to come in his direction. He could not chance it any longer.

He eased the door shut ever so gently, praying it would not squeak. It did not. He breathed a sigh of relief. It would lock automatically. There would be no evidence he had been here.

Casio turned and raced down the stairs. They might choose to use the stairs. He had to get away. People who snuck around in the middle of the night probably used the staircase...like him.

He hurried back to his office and stood in the darkness, panting and thinking. What now? How could he check on what he'd seen?....

Elbe! Elbe could check this out for him!

Casio picked up the phone and punched in Elbe's home number. The phone rang. It continued ringing for a long time, but there was no answer. He frowned and returned the phone handle to its cradle.

Elbe had to be at home. Where else would he be? He had sent the young man home only two hours ago, weary and exhausted from the night's ordeal. Perhaps, he had encountered trouble along the way.

Not likely. Elbe only lived a few blocks away, and the Capitol area was safe; well, fairly safe anyway.

Or....Elbe had disconnected his phone, because he was tired and he did not want to be disturbed. That scenario seemed more plausible. In any case, he had to get in touch with Elbe immediately.

Casio tore out of his office and raced for the elevator. He could use it now; he wasn't spying anymore. Well, at least, he wasn't peering around corners anymore.

The elevator doors opened. Chief Councilwoman Mavox Pro stood alone inside.

"Nice night for a walk, huh, Chief?!" Casio remarked cheerily as he stepped in.

Mavox Pro nodded a silent greeting, apparently a bit startled to find someone up and about at that time of the night.

Casio took up a position next to her and faced outward, waiting for the elevator to resume its downward course. "It's hell when you can't sleep, isn't it?" he finally added solemnly, but with a curious sparkle in his eyes.

The elevator doors closed quietly on the pair.

END OF CHAPTER