ROMULUS (The Innerworld Affairs Series, Book 1) (37 page)

"Aster." Falcon said her name in his low voice which vibrated like a cat's purr. "You were with Romulus, not me. I only assisted. I did not know it would embarrass you so. You are better now though. Even the illness has left your body. We can leave whenever you are ready."

Aster uncovered her face and sat up straight. She supposed she was being foolish, as far as Falcon was concerned. Apparently, he had not been affected by what had happened to her. Taking a cue from his behavior, she determined to act as if it had been a perfectly normal occurrence. She buckled her seat-belt and started the car.

Falcon kept his expression impassive but he was very shaken by the episode. He often felt the emotions of others, but not his own. He had never tried to do that for anyone before and had not been certain it would work. He had felt no desire for Romulus's female. He was only trying to help. Once he had planted the image in her mind, it was she who had supplied the details and had carried the fantasy to its satisfying conclusion, satisfying for her, that is. To help her hold the image, he had shared her emotions but not her physical orgasm. He never would be able to experience that part of being human. But he had been unable to resist a small taste of what it would be like. That was really why he had kissed her.

An hour later they arrived at a small airfield outside San Diego. "The two men brought Romulus here," Falcon explained. "A small plane and pilot were waiting. I cannot tell you where they went and I am still not picking up his signal."

"What about the log? They should have logged in at the office over there before they could take off." Aster flushed with the excitement of being able to help. In the office they were bluntly informed the log was confidential. When Aster began to protest, Falcon pulled her outside.

"I already have the destination, Aster. The man's eyes moved to the log as he spoke."

"You mean you can see through things also?" Aster's voice was a mix of awe and fear. She stopped herself from asking if he was originally from the planet Krypton.

"It depends on the depth and material. That book was simple. Now that I know the coordinates I can take us directly there. I have no way of knowing what we might encounter. You should stay here."

"Not on your life, Falcon. I'll stay out of your way and I'll do whatever I can about my...
emotions
, but don't make me stay behind. I'll die of worry.
Please.
"

"Romulus refused to stay behind when you were in trouble also. The two of you had better join as soon as you get together again. I saw your reason for objecting, Aster. You are wrong. Romulus would never resent a part of himself and that is what you are. You cannot deny both your souls' desire to mate. The fever will only get worse. If for no other reason, you should join just to keep track of each other. I may not be available next time." For the first time since Aster had met him, he smiled at her, then his usual serious expression returned. "Go to Norona. Your answer is there."

Aster laughed at his joke and accepted his advice. "You're right. I know that now." Romulus had warned her the day might come when she would attack a delivery man to get relief. What had happened with Falcon was proof of that.

"Let us return the car to that crowded restaurant down the road. It will be much less conspicuous there."

Once the car was safely parked, Aster watched in fascination as Falcon worked the pattern of nodes on his opal ring and turned the stone. Then she shouted, "Wait!" She opened the car trunk and grabbed the shopping bag. "I'm ready now." Falcon finished programming the ring and gripped her shoulders in his strong hands.

The migration took much less time and was less frightening than the first trip. Aster looked around. They were standing on another airstrip, only now they were in the desert. The only objects visible for miles were a small jet and a dilapidated house.

"Is Rom in there?" Aster asked excitedly.

"No, but he is here, very close. Wait."

Aster held her breath.

"He does not answer. Either the device has been removed or he is unconscious somewhere below us. I cannot see it, but I can feel life forms under the ground. His brain waves are among them but they are very weak. He was carried into that structure, so I think it is safe to say that is the usual way in and well-guarded. We are going to have to migrate in as close to Romulus as I can get and pray we do not wind up part of a wall or piece of furniture." Aster's horror-stricken expression made Falcon laugh aloud. "That was a joke, Aster."

Aster stood perfectly still, feeling useless as Falcon walked back and forth over the ground, searching for Romulus's brain waves. It was a painfully slow process. He moved to one side a few feet, turned and took two more steps. If anyone else saw him, they would assume he was drunk or doing an Indian dance of some kind. Finally he stopped and waved her toward him.

"His brain waves are strongest here. Ready?"

Aster shook her head vigorously until she saw him pull a black box out from his jacket. She had seen the weapon at orientation.

"It will only put someone to sleep."

Aster held herself stiffly in his tight embrace as they passed through the earth to whatever lay below. Instantly, they rematerialized in what appeared to be a hospital room.

Z-z-z-t! Z-z-z-t!
Falcon's lightning bolt struck a man in a white lab coat. His body went rigid and thumped to the floor. Keeping one eye on the door, Falcon balanced the man back on his chair. He touched his mind, replacing the reality of what he had seen with a less astounding memory.

Aster hovered over Rom's still form. "Oh, my Lord! Rom, can you hear me?" Aster whispered through the tears choking her throat. She touched his ashen face and clasped his cool hand tightly. "Falcon, please, is he all right?"

The tracker touched Rom's temple, nodded to Aster, then placed his finger to his lips and pointed to the door. Someone was out there.

Aster, a very black presence is moving this way. We must hurry!
Falcon reprogrammed his ring for their destination then quickly ripped all the tubes, hoses and wires from Romulus's body. Suddenly one of the machines started making a continuous beeping sound. By the fourth beep, he pulled Romulus into a sitting position between him and Aster. A millisecond later, they were back on the surface.

* * *

"What is the meaning of this?" Gordon Underwood bellowed as he stood in the doorway, absorbing the scene before him. Dr. Quinn sat in a chair, slack-mouthed, with his eyes fixed on the empty bed. Hoses swung freely from the bottles they were attached to, tubes and wires dangled over the edge of the bed and machines beeped out an insane cacophony. "I repeat, what the hell is going on here?"

Frowning, Doctor Quinn stood up but looked back at the bed one more time before speaking. "It was the damnedest thing, Mr. Underwood. I was sitting here monitoring the man's life signs and then, I don't know, I seem to have passed out. And when I opened my eyes, he was gone."

Underwood turned to Wink and Cooper who had followed him into the room. "You two, did anyone, other than Quinn, enter or leave this room today?"

"No, sir. We took our breaks separately so one of us was outside of the door at all times since we brought him in," Cooper answered somewhat defensively.

"We heard the machines start beeping at the same time you walked up." Wink's eyelids fluttered nervously.

"Okay, you two may as well go."

As soon as Wink and Cooper left, Underwood's big fist latched onto a glass bottle beside the bed and hurled it against the wall. Clear fluid streaked down the wall to join the broken glass on the floor.

"Damn! They got him. Right from under my nose. I should have come straight here and had you examine him later but, no, I wanted to be sure he was the real thing. Damn it all to hell!"

The doctor was not sure if he was expected to respond. "They who? You heard your men. No one's been in or out of here but me."

"His people, you idiot. What do you think this was, some sort of locked-room mystery? We're underground, Quinn. There is only one way out. They
beamed
him out, just like in a movie. Thank god I had the woman followed. Maybe I'll discover something about her. Damn! You said there was a ring. I want to see it. Now!"

Doctor Quinn fetched the ring as quickly as his feet would carry him and placed it in Underwood's palm. Underwood felt its considerable weight and held it to the light. The design in the center caught his eye and when he touched the stone, he found it could be moved.

"This is not merely a gaudy ring, Quinn. It's bait. They will send someone back for it, I'm positive. And when they do, I'll be ready. Yes, next time, I'll be ready for them."

* * *

Falcon gave Aster's hand a gentle squeeze as Doctor Gemina walked toward them.

The doctor nodded briefly to Falcon, who stood beside Aster like a lion guarding his cub.

"Romulus will be fine in a few hours. He was heavily drugged but we're cleansing his system now. They used some rather primitive chemicals on him. While he's recuperating, we can do both of your post-journey physicals."

"No, I can't." Aster shook her head. "At least not yet. I have a job to finish."

Falcon placed his hand on her shoulder. "Let someone else do it, Aster. You have had enough adventure."

"I'm afraid that's irrelevant, Falcon. Romulus promised Doctor Houston we would meet her and another scientist in New York tonight. We're past due but I'm sure they'd wait all night if necessary. If someone else went to meet them, he'd have to waste precious time convincing them he was legitimate. Doctor Houston already trusts me."

Falcon nodded once. "Shall we go?"

Aster smiled broadly at her new friend. "Thank you, Falcon. I knew you'd understand. There's only one other problem. We have to take someone else with us. Do you know Professor Schontivian?"

The elderly professor was not at all pleased with the turn of events but once they arrived in the lobby of Le Parker Meridien, he relaxed. Using a house phone, Aster informed Doctor Houston they had arrived and got directions to her suite.

Kate opened the door then narrowed her brows at the two men who accompanied Aster inside. "Where is Romulus?"

"He was abducted during the night." Kate gaped at her in shock. "Apparently someone learned that he was special. He's being cared for right now in Innerworld. So, I've brought you another expert. This is Professor Schontivian." She gestured to him then to Falcon. "And this is Falcon, my guardian angel."

The black-garbed man with the dark glasses looked the opposite of angelic but Kate smiled and shook both men's hands. "I'm Kate Houston. This is Professor David Ingram."

As Aster shook his hand and introduced herself, it occurred to her that his electrified crop of white hair made him look a bit like Albert Einstein.

David was anxious to get started. "It's incredible—the asteroid, alien communication. Kate started spouting formulas for a fuel unlike anything we have on the drawing boards. I'm sorry that Romulus had such a bad experience during his visit. Do you know who was responsible?"

"Are you familiar with a man named Gordon Underwood?" Falcon questioned in return.

Kate, Professor Ingram and Aster showed their surprise. Kate answered, "Of course. His institute is one of the benefactors of this observatory. The man's a famous philanthropist."

Aster quickly added, "He's a financial genius with a rather loose code of ethics. Why do you ask?"

"When I touched the physician's mind before we took Romulus out, I learned he was working for Gordon Underwood and the facility we were in was owned by the Underwood Institute. The doctor had no idea why he had been ordered to examine Romulus. From the perversions I saw in that man's mind, Romulus was lucky we reached him before the doctor was given permission to use him for one of his private experiments."

"It wouldn't take much imagination to suppose what Underwood might want with Romulus," Aster reflected, "but how did he know we were here?"

Kate's eyes became very sad. "I didn't think anything of it at the time." She sighed aloud. "After you left, I discovered my intercom had been open while Romulus gave me his information. It is possible my assistant, Walter, overheard our conversation and relayed it. That would mean he had a connection to the Underwood Institute. It's hard for me to believe Walter would do such a terrible thing. He was a very devoted employee and as close to a son as I ever had. I'm afraid we'll never know for certain now."

"Why do you say that?" Aster asked.

"Walter died of a heart attack last night on his way home. His neighbor called before I left this morning." Kate wiped the dampness from her eyes. "Walter had a lot of stress in his personal life. Now it appears he was spying too."

"There doesn't seem to be much we can do about it," David concluded. "Even if Walter was alive, we couldn't bring any charges against Underwood without bringing up Romulus and his world. Who would believe us?"

Kate thought for a moment. "You're right about that. But perhaps there's a way I could stir up an investigation about Walter's death. For all we know, Underwood precipitated Walter's death to keep him from talking to anyone about what he knew."

Aster wanted to see Underwood punished too but she knew it would never happen—not with his clout. Although she had never met him, she knew of him. Their foundations were often at cross-purposes. "At this point I just want to be able to assure Romulus that his mission was a success when he awakens."