“3.135.2. Miner Raethe Avarti is found by superiors talking about low yield in the Furnace,” stated the computer voice, as the appropriate date on the visual was highlighted.
“Two months later, 3.135.4, the Synergy survey of the mines is completed. One month later, 3.135.5, Avarti’s guild membership is revoked, and he joins the Dailjan. Also during this month, an anonymous tip leads to the apprehension of the mantis Xuche by the AEA. One month later, 3.135.6, the Mother Lode mine survey is completed, and Mother Lode signs off on the Synergy survey.”
Dina gave a verbal command to the computer to stop running the time line. Xuche. Dina had dismissed thoughts of him when it was discovered he wasn’t the Uz-Dailjan, and she had only asked Rayn about him briefly. But there he was, right in the middle of things. And found on an anonymous tip. Why? And by whom? And why at that particular time? Dina stared at the blank wall and mentally threw the glass of juice at it. Why hadn’t she thought to investigate Xuche more thoroughly? Jon had viewed the initial report. She returned to his room where Jon was sitting at his computer, his leg propped up.
Dina balanced on the edge of the bed and leaned forward. “Jon, I’m curious again about the mantis, Xuche. It’s too coincidental that he was found when he was. Who submitted the AEA report on Xuche?”
“Katzfiel himself.”
Dina swore. “I knew it. I think Xuche is our link between the desert and Aeternus, and I think Katzfiel’s dirty.”
Jon leaned back and put a hand in front of his face. “Whoa, Dina, hold on a minute. Where did that conclusion come from?”
“My instinct, Jon.”
He raised both brows.
“Okay, okay, I know. You want more. But don’t you think it at least deserves looking into?”
“Perhaps, but let’s not go accusing anyone when we have no proof.”
“Where’s Xuche now?” asked Dina.
“He was deported as a dark outworlder. He was found eight months ago, when the spaceport was still open.” Jon paused. “So what do you propose we do? If you question Katzfiel, do you expect him to tell you anything other than what’s in his report?”
“No. But I still think it’s worth a shot. It should be interesting to see what a mind probe on him reveals.”
“What do you expect to pick up that you failed to on previous probes?”
“I won’t know for sure until we talk to him, but I sensed a real fear before. Fears are powerful emotional programs. Those programs are interpreted by the inner self as goals to be achieved. If the fear is strong enough, maybe I can gain some insight into his motivations. Or, if he lies, that should produce a stress that’s easily detectable.”
Jon sighed. “All right. But I’ll do the questioning. We have to proceed very cautiously here. Katzfiel has a lot of clout.”
Dina nodded. “I was going to suggest you conduct the interview. It’s clear he has a poor opinion of me. Can you set up a meeting for as soon as possible? I’ll just need a few moments to review the Xuche file.”
Jon gave Dina a pointed look, telling her in no uncertain terms that he would do it, but his way. He contacted Commander Katzfiel, who agreed to meet with them at the AEA Center in one hour.
Dina had no time to waste. She returned to her room and brought up the computer file on Xuche. There wasn’t much in the report other than what Jon had told her. As she viewed it, she dictated questions to the computer, and mentally kicked herself again for not having asked Rayn about Xuche in detail. If she knew the true facts regarding Xuche before going into the meeting with Katzfiel, it would be a big advantage. Dina checked the time. She could still call to Rayn and ask him about Xuche. If she could swallow her pride.
The image of Rayn’s face as she had walked out on him earlier came into sharp focus. Why did he have to display such a contempt of Jon just because Jon doesn’t have the power of the dens?
She stared at her computer. No. She wasn’t going to run to Rayn for help every time she had a question. If she did, it would only justify his disdain for them. She saw again the controlled features in her mind, but the image dissolved, and all she could see were his eyes. The strange golden eyes. What had been behind them? Pain? Or something darker?
Dina went into the bathroom, splashed cold water on her face, and shook her head. She couldn’t afford to think about Rayn now. She would need all her faculties sharp for Katzfiel. She dried her face, swiveled onto her bed, sat cross-legged, and ordered the lights to dim.
She took a moment to seal her senses from any distractions, then imagined herself on Glacia, gazing at a late afternoon sky, the crisp, clear air magnifying the clarity of the aquamarine hue. She saw the color on the backs of her eyelids, pure, crystal, ice blue. A watersky blue she had never seen anywhere but on Glacia. The color of the full moon on a winter night. She took three deep, slow breaths, then let her body go limp as she exhaled. She counted backward from twenty to one, and recited one of her inductions. I am calm. I am relaxed. I am comfortable, and am ready to move to a higher state of consciousness. My awareness expands, and my perception widens. I see all.
Satisfied that her mind had reached the proper mental state, she nevertheless wished she had had more time. In answer, she heard a tiny voice in her head tell her she would have had more time except for her preoccupation with Rayn. Annoyed, she pushed the guilt aside, printed out her questions for Jon, and knocked at his door.
Jon looked at the questions and nodded. “Okay. We’ll see how it goes, but I don’t think it’ll be pleasant. Whatever you do, keep your mouth shut and let me do the talking.”
“Yes, boss. I’ll sit quietly like a good girl, but he’s going to get the most thorough mind probe I can muster.”
“Just make sure your expressions don’t give you away. If anyone here knew you were a telepath, there’d be hell to pay.”
“Don’t worry about me. Besides, I don’t think there could be much about Katzfiel that would surprise me, except maybe to find out he was a choir boy as a child.”
Moments later, Jon and Dina sat with Commander Katzfiel in his office. Katzfiel’s expression, as always, was stern. His hair—short, severe and cut flat across the top—reflected the harsh angles of his cheeks and jaw line. Only the restlessness of his liquid silver eyes, like transparent fish, relieved the severity of the straight lines comprising his other features. Dina didn’t like his eyes. Their unusual color notwithstanding, they were cold and unyielding, taking in everything, but giving nothing back. She glanced down at her recorder, pretending to adjust it, while she sent out a probe to Katzfiel.
“Now then, Agent Rzije. Just what is it about the mantis Xuche that merits a personal meeting with me? And how is this person, long gone from Exodus, connected to your murders?”
Dina thought briefly that the ill-disguised contempt of the man before her now rivaled even the arrogance of DeStar. She glanced at Jon and knew that a similar thought was running through his mind.
“Just routine follow-up, Commander. We believe the killer to be a denizen of the desert, and since Xuche lived in the desert, there’s a good chance he had contact with the killer. There’s a possibility Xuche might have said something during your interview with him that would be helpful to us.”
“Xuche was found and deported before the killings even started. Everything he told me is in the report.”
“Who took the anonymous tip that led to Xuche’s apprehension?”
“Corporal Khilioi recovered a written note delivered to this building’s entrance by a young boy. We found the boy who made the delivery. The offspring of one of the mercari. He could only tell us that one of his father’s customers gave him the note along with a chip if he would deliver it. Frankly, I don’t quite see where all this is going.”
Dina continued her probe as Jon asked for details of Katzfiel’s interview with Xuche. She felt the contempt th
at was obvious even without the probe, and skirted those feelings, hoping to touch other, less apparent emotions. She felt hatred, then what she was hoping to sense. Fear.
The fear, while sufficiently hidden from normal observers, was clear to Dina, and quite strong. She probed the area of fear as thoroughly as she could, trying to locate an association for the dread. He wasn’t afraid of Jon and Dina. Then she touched it. Failure. There it sat, as deep-seated as the trunk of an ancient tree, its roots firmly entrenched in its host.
Dina looked at the Commander’s face while he explained, with exaggerated patience, that Xuche had claimed to be the Uz but refused to name any of the other Dailjan or to divulge the locations of their encampments. He was very good. The man didn’t sweat, and his fluid gaze continued to support the facade of cool indifference.
Since Dina knew Xuche had lied about being the Uz, she doubted any of his other statements were true. But why had the mantis lied? Or was he indeed someone else’s puppet?
Katzfiel made a gesture of checking the time. “Really, Agent Rzije. It’s getting late. I fail to see what this has accomplished. There isn’t anything I can tell you that isn’t in my report. I do have other pressing matters to attend to.”
Jon gave the Commander his most charming, innocent smile, complete with dimples and smile lines emanating from the green eyes. Dina briefly wondered how many opponents had been conned by one of those smiles.
“You’ve been more help than you know, Commander. We appreciate your time, and apologize for any inconvenience our meeting may have caused. We’ll see ourselves out.”
Jon and Dina rose, and as they exited Katzfiel’s office, Dina glanced backward over her shoulder. The Commander sat at his desk, his right elbow propped on the smooth desktop, his fingertips lightly drumming his jawbone, as if he were sending a message which begged an answer. The black pupils, strangely enough, didn’t dart around the room, but floated in their liquid sea.
Back in Jon’s room, he dropped to his bed, stretching his injured leg before him. Dina relayed her findings while she ran two glasses of ice water.
“Contempt, hatred, nervousness, stress, fear. The contempt was most surface, the fear buried the deepest. He fears failure, but failure of what, I’m not sure. Was he lying? I don’t know.”
Jon took the water from Dina and sipped at it thoughtfully. She sat at the computer, making room on the table amongst the paper files for her glass.
Finally, he set his water down and looked at her. “Dina, listen to me. You know I value your ability and what it can do for us, but I think the time has come for you to put it aside. Personally, I, too, have a pretty strong dislike for just about everyone we’ve met on this rock, but we can’t let those feelings dictate our investigation.”
“Jon, my ability is more than just liking or disliking someone.”
“I know, but I really want you to look beyond it and concentrate on solving this thing logically. You’re a good investigator, Dina, I know you are. Don’t let your ability be a crutch.”
“Jon . . .”
“No, no arguments, Dina, please. Just do as I ask, all right?”
She fumed, but what could she do? She gave Jon a curt nod. “I’ll be in my room.”
Moments later, she sat, frustrated, and thought about Jon’s words. Proof. Jon wanted proof. As valuable as her ability was, proof was the one thing it couldn’t provide. Maybe he was right. She certainly wasn’t making much progress as it was. Dina took a deep breath, cleared her mind, and had her recorder replay the conversation with Katzfiel. She heard his final words, leaned back, and closed her eyes. Of course. Why hadn’t it struck her before?
She sat at her computer and issued commands for file retrieval, but before she brought up the file she wanted, her head started to throb relentlessly. She ordered the computer to pause. She needed to rid herself of the headache. Her mood had been blackened by Katzfiel’s and Jon’s words, and she wouldn’t be able to make headway until she was able to think clearly.
There was so much to think about. Rayn, Gyn, Hrothi, Katzfiel, Xuche. The names were like puzzle pieces drifting through her mind. They teased her, the pieces touching, then breaking away again, daring her to bring order to the chaos. The throbbing in her head bloomed. She needed fresh air.
Dina left a message for Jon that she would be at the Cave. Donning a suit with an attached cloth hood, she pulled the hood up and put a pair of narrow sunshields on. Thus attired she was able to walk to the Crown undisturbed. Dina sat in the Cave and ordered a mocava, but as she sat sipping the drink, the petals of pain behind her eyes continued to unfurl. Maybe the peace and quiet of the Oasis would be better.
She swigged the remainder of her drink and hurried next door, anxious for the relief the peaceful room promised. There were few people inside, and Dina wound her way to the fountain with the waterfall and aquatic animals. As she drew up next to the fountain, a man stepped out from behind the cover of several of the tall, potted plants. His long hair hung loose down his back but was braided with a fine silver chain on either side of his face.
“Well, young lady, have you thought about what I told you?” he asked.
Dina stood frozen. The pounding of her heart replaced that in her head, and was so loud that the happy burbling of the fountain seemed far away. She tried not to panic. This was a public place. Surely T’halamar wouldn’t try anything here. She cast her eyes quickly from side to side. To her consternation, there was no one else in sight.
“Well?” he repeated.
“Yes, I thought about what you said.”
“But you haven’t changed your mind, have you?”
There was no point in lying. “No,” she said.
“Then let me give you something else to think about. Let me tell you what I’ll do to your friend DeStar if he even so much as thinks about making a move against me.”
Dina stood motionless, vaguely wondering if he were compelling her to stand so still. Energy started to well from the man’s body, thick and viscous, like body fluid. It crawled over her skin, hot and suffocating, and Dina thought she would faint. She closed her eyes, but saw nothing but a blood-red pool behind her lids. Not sure if she preferred that to looking into his eyes, she opened hers.
“First I’ll show him how much stronger I am than he is. I’ll have him groveling at my feet until he acknowledges my superiority and begs for mercy. Then I’ll tell him what I’ll do to you when I’m through with him. I’ll paint him a very detailed picture of the two of us, you and I, and of all the infinite ways you will please me. Oh, and I want you to start thinking about that, too. Because when I’m done with DeStar, rest assured I’ll come for you. This is a promise, from me to you, and from me to him. Tell him that.” The words were very slow and deliberate, as if he wanted to make sure she heard and remembered every one.
“You’re mad,” was all she could whisper.
He responded by broaching her mind swiftly and sharply, and she gasped, helpless against his invasion. Silent laughter filled her head.
“DeStar is more useless than I thought. He hasn’t even begun to satisfy himself on you, has he? I, on the other hand, want you very much. And you, everything you do for me will be of your own accord, because you will know that never will you find another man who can satisfy you as I can.” The black eyes danced before her, and she saw nothing else.
His flow of power over her abated, but in its place she felt a fabric of fear weave itself around her, as if with each word he spoke new threads spun out to her. She tried to shake the fear, tried to shake her head and say “no,” but she couldn’t get the word out.
“After DeStar fully understands the way it is, and the way it will be, I will put him out of his misery.”
“You can’t . . . kill him.” Dina’s voice was low and hoarse. The four words had been a struggle to voice. The fabric tightened arou
nd her and drew her closer to him. She took a step forward.
The full mouth twisted. “Oh, I don’t think I’ll kill him. I just may leave his body intact, although it would give me great pleasure to destroy that, too, but I’ll definitely destroy his mind, bit by bit. I’ll erase his memories so that he won’t know you, this place, or who he is. He’ll be like a child in the desert.”
Again Dina tried to shake her head, and her mouth opened, but no sounds came forth.
He released his power to flow over her once again, and she cried out. She felt as if she were standing inside a funnel of flame. The violence and heat spun around her, and she felt a suction pull her closer to him.
“You feel it, don’t you? The promise of power. It pulls you.” The low voice dropped to a whisper.
She took another step forward. She was horrified, and yet . . . the tanned face was not unattractive. The angles were sharp, the nose narrow and straight, the jaw line almost square. The dark eyes beckoned like jewels.
Dina took two more steps, her face now only a handbreadth from his. She tentatively put a hand to his face and stroked his cheek. His skin felt hot. She jerked her fingers away. She moved her hand to the side, trailing her fingers down one long braid to his chest, bronzed and smooth. She ran her fingers over the contours of his hard muscles. She was more afraid than she had ever before been.
Was she being compelled? Surely she must be, for she couldn’t stop. What of Rayn’s commands, instructing her to respond to no one but him? Was Gyn that much stronger than Rayn? Just what had Rayn injected into her mind? Or was she doing this all on her own?
“You want me, too, don’t you?” he asked quietly.
She looked up at the eyes that flashed like obsidian. Did she?
“Don’t you?” the man repeated.
“Yes,” she replied, surprised at her answer. He leaned down and teased her lips with his own, until hers parted for him, admitting his hot tongue. His kiss was hard and insistent. As he continued kissing her, he ran his hands upward from her waist. She hadn’t put on a cooling vest due to the evening hour, so when he cupped her breasts in his large hands there were only two thin layers of clothing between his skin and hers.
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