ROMULUS (The Innerworld Affairs Series, Book 1) (18 page)

Heredity had cursed Edward with an imperfect exterior and average intelligence, and not even head-to-toe cosmetic corrections could make him tall, well-formed and brilliant. So Edward did nothing at all about his deficiencies. Had he been born centuries ago, before genetic experimentation was outlawed, he might have been pleased with himself... like Romulus.

As young men, Edward and Romulus had attended the academy together and Edward remembered well his former classmate's accomplishments and personal charm. Romulus only had to smile and girls fell at his feet. He had achieved the highest scores without opening a book and he had excelled at any game he tried with absolutely no effort. Edward's resentment of his lot in life had always centered around Romulus, since Edward firmly believed that everything the man achieved was merely fate smiling down on one more beautiful person. Now people were talking about making Romulus governor, while Edward envisioned himself floundering indefinitely at his current level.

Hoping to change his lot, Edward had seen the arrival of the Outerworlders as a golden opportunity to discredit Romulus and, at the same time, to prove that the Terrans were too uncivilized to be permitted to live freely among Noronians. If his impromptu plan using Karl had succeeded, he was certain his great-great-great-grandfather would have been impressed and would have given him some recognition. But he was not discouraged. Next time he would plan ahead. Next time he would be more careful.

Victor's appearance broke into his mental grumblings. No wonder the criminal had been released unchanged, Edward thought. He was one of the privileged, an attractive specimen. Then Edward noticed the man's eyes and felt chilled by the beast he sensed was hiding behind the attractive façade.

"Please sit down. My name is Edward. Your file contains insufficient background information for me to assist you in selecting a career. Perhaps we should begin with you telling me at what you excel, aside from breaking the law."

Victor's lip curled up at the ugly, squat man. There was something strange about the way the counselor looked at him, as if he were examining a bug. Yet Victor's instincts told him he was dealing with a nobody, the easiest kind of victim to manipulate. "Would you mind answering a few questions for me first?" Victor inquired in a respectful tone.

"Certainly not. I am here to help you in any way I can."

Victor wondered just how far the little creep could be encouraged to help. "Where am I?"

Edward looked at him curiously. "I understood that you had been briefed before you came to me."

"I watched a video of some guy named Romulus telling the rest of the people from the ship about how we all got here. At the time, I figured it was a hoax." Edward's grimace at the mention of Romulus did not escape Victor's notice. "Then today I saw things that don't exist where I come from."

"What you heard is true. Falsehoods are not tolerated here."

Now Victor studied the counselor who sounded disgusted by the system. It was an impression worth testing.

"All right, let's say I believe I'm in the center of the Earth, even though I definitely saw a sun out there. And everything here is wonderful and everyone is good and honest. How the hell do I get out of this damned Utopia and back to where people are more, uh, human?"

Edward's pulse quickened. The criminal's attitude was delightful. He often felt the same way but saying it aloud was dangerous. Such ideas could result in being reprogrammed. "I strongly suggest you keep such thoughts to yourself. Most people would not consider your sentiments to be, shall we say, appropriate. You are here to stay. It is in your best interest to accept your situation as soon as possible and try to fit in."

Victor noted that Edward's use of the phrase "most people" clearly did not include himself. "No way. I have to get back."

"Only a few individuals have the power to authorize a departure. The man you referred to earlier, Chief Romulus, would be one of those. I assure you, nothing you could say or do would convince him to agree to your return to Outerworld."

Victor recalled Karl's sloppy attempt to force Romulus's assistance at the end of the orientation. He certainly could do better than that. "Would you care to make a wager on that?"

"Pardon me? I am sorry. I do not follow."

"Naturally, I'm just speaking hypothetically."

"Naturally." Edward was not sure what the man was leading up to. It sounded devious and he wanted to hear every syllable.

"Let's just say the chief has a weakness, a soft spot perhaps. If someone learned what that was, then that someone might use it to force his cooperation." Victor had gone much further with this man than he had intended but the gleam in Edward's eyes told him he had found the inside help he would need. Lady Luck had apparently stayed on his shoulder all the way to this weird-ass world.

"That would certainly prove to be an interesting experiment, hypothetically speaking that is." Such an incident could cost Romulus the governorship, Edward thought, a glimmer of hope beginning to rise inside him.

"Of course, one would need help," Victor continued. "Inside information, so to speak, to pull such a thing off. I'm sure there would be some way to reward such a person."

"It is possible that the success of the experiment might be reward enough. I am certain, though, that the accomplice would want to remain in the background. Let me ask you something now. By a weakness, could you mean a loved one?"

"Exactly!" Victor responded excitedly. He had not expected a plan to formulate itself so soon. The simplicity of the scheme amazed even himself. "Did you have someone in particular in mind?"

"No, not at the moment. I was only curious. It presents an interesting scenario." Edward squirmed in his seat with nervous energy. He only had his suspicions, which would have to be confirmed before passing any information along. But the beauty of such a plan boggled his mind and this criminal would work out so much better than Karl had since he would be acting entirely on his own.

Victor knew he had his pigeon. He did not care what was in this for Edward. Maybe the man needed a little excitement. He really didn't give a fuck why the guy had it out for this Chief Romulus character, just so he could get back before his network of associates forgot about him. "If you do think of something, I'd be glad to discuss the
experiment
further. One other thing." Victor dropped the last pretense of submissiveness with the civil servant. "There was a woman on the ship, a friend, Aster Mackenzie. Would you know how I could find her?"

Edward smirked. Could this be a simple coincidence or did this criminal already suspect that she had wiggled her way to the chief's attention? "Friend you say? I suppose that would be in order." He wrote her address on a piece of paper. "Now, as much as I have enjoyed our hypothetical discussion, I am required to find you immediate employment."

"That shouldn't be too hard. What can you get for me at the Rehab Clinic?"

"The Clinic?" Edward asked incredulously. "But are you not concerned about Zenton? He does not trust you."

Victor was getting a charge out of playing teacher to his attentive, but completely naïve, pupil. "If I work there, the warden will have me watched constantly. If I am under his nose, I will quickly prove what a good citizen I intend to be and he will relax." The real reason for working at the clinic he would keep to himself. "Also, I would prefer to live on the premises, if that's possible. Can I do that?"

Edward had never witnessed such negative use of intelligence. He would have liked to observe this Terran at closer range but right now he had to complete the man's processing. Edward quickly arranged a low-level job assignment and living quarters at the Clinic, commencing in three days.

As Victor left his office, Edward mulled over the interview. There was no question who had controlled the appointment but he was not in the least disappointed.

Chapter 10

By Friday afternoon, Aster realized that the week had sped by in an orgy of studying. At work she had immersed herself in economics and finance and at night she had researched details of Innerworld's technology. She needed to believe that someday, somehow, she would return home and share her findings with her own people. She also knew that eventually she would have to reestablish communication with Romulus. There didn't seem to be any way to leave Innerworld without the approval of a high-ranking official and only in her dreams did she admit that was not the only reason she needed to see him again.

Hearing the door open and close behind her, she turned to say good night to Keshu. The words she meant to say disintegrated at the sight of the imposing figure standing there.

"Hello, Aster," Romulus said quietly.

She opened her mouth but no words came. Instead, all the stored-up emotion of the last week threatened to spill over. She lowered her eyes.

"I behaved abominably, but I swear it was a mistake. I need you to forgive me." He had spent the last four days berating himself for wandering the halls, hoping to bump into her. Work had piled up until his desk looked like he had gone on holiday. This afternoon he had finally given up his futile struggle to keep his distance from her.

His sincere apology made her look up at him again. She had seen rain-drenched puppies look better and his voice actually cracked when he spoke. This could not possibly be the same confident chief administrator. Always a sucker for the underdog, the last remnants of her uncertainty melted away. Offering him her hand, she took the first step in closing the gap between them. "It's already forgotten. Maybe we could just start over."

Romulus met her halfway and enclosed her hand in both of his. As soon as he touched her, he knew he was lost. During their separation, his fever had worsened to the point where he thought his blood was boiling. He was certain that the only way to reduce the pain was to couple with Aster. Even if violence was not abhorrent to him, he instinctively knew it would do him no good to take what he needed. His only choice was to court her until she was willing to accommodate him.

"I have a surprise for you but you'll have to come to dinner with me to see it," Romulus teased, back in a semblance of control.

The rumbling quality had returned to his voice, tickling her deep inside, and she decided it was worth the risk to be with him again. "All right, let's go." She felt so much better, she didn't even mind his holding her hand as they headed out.

"We can walk to where we're going. It's not far."

Aster would not have believed it possible but, as they walked together along the sidewalk, the city appeared more beautiful than the first time she had seen it.

"Here we are," Romulus announced, coming to a halt in front of a restaurant. The overhead sign read,
Feinstein's Honest-to-Goodness New York Deli
.

As Romulus opened the door for her to enter, the aromas of garlic and dill pickles assailed her senses and she wondered why there were no customers.

"Paul! Paul! Look who's here." Sheila Feinstein bustled from behind the pastry counter, anxiously wiping her hands on her apron. She rushed forward and gave Aster a vigorous hug and a pinch on her cheek. "How wonderful! You'll be our first customers. Come, sit down. First you'll eat then we'll talk. Whatever you want, we've got it. I worked a few miracles and you'll never know you're not eating the best pastrami ever sliced." Sheila's enthusiasm bubbled around them.

"This is absolutely fantastic! I can't wait for Cherry to see it. But how did you manage it in one week?" Aster asked, stunned.

Paul joined the happy reunion. "We owe it all to this young man. He helped us find something we'd enjoy doing now that we've been given a new life." He pulled Sheila close and planted a loud kiss on her forehead before continuing his explanation.

"We remembered our happiest times together were spent working our tails off in the little deli we owned in Brooklyn. We described what we wanted and, poof, here it is."

"That's enough talk, Paul. Go finish what you were making. You two, sit down. I'll get the menus."

Paul stopped Sheila with a light touch on her arm. "I'll get the menus. I want you to go back and taste the sauce for the stuffed cabbage. Make sure it's got enough salt. You always were a better judge."

Sheila gave him a suspicious look but headed for the kitchen anyway.