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  “A few hours. I felt her recently, knew she was fine, then suddenly nothing. I don’t feel her anywhere.”

  Were they bonded? I stared into Marshal’s tear-filled eyes. Heartache, fear, panic, and distress were obvious, but I didn’t see any indication of total devastation. I clung to that and spoke softly to his mind. How long have you been soul bonded? And how could I have not seen it?

  Years.

  Then you would know if she were dead. I don’t see that in your eyes. She is still alive. And we will find her.

  Marshal sagged in relief. I turned to the guards. “Uncuff him. I need his help.” I looked at Marcus and Ryad. “Things are getting bigger and bigger every second. I don’t want the people to panic, but we have not seen this much trouble in centuries.”

  We hurried into my room followed by two of the guards, the rest stayed outside the doors.

  Ryad stood between Marshal and me, his arms crossed over his chest. “When was the last time you saw Delilah?”

  “This morning, just after breakfast.”

  “Did you know her plans for the day?” Ryad asked.

  Marshal shook his head. “We don’t usually discuss everything we’re doing.”

  I tapped Ryad on the shoulder. “I asked her to speak with the scientist about niamon.”

  “So she could have gone to visit the scientist this morning?”

  Marshal nodded.

  “And the dignitaries?”

  Marshal’s eyes narrowed. “I suppose so.”

  “Do you know of anyone who could verify her whereabouts throughout the day? Does she have a secretary or an assistant?” Ryad asked.

  Marshal took a step forward. “What are you implying? That Delilah was involved in these murders?”

  “She is skilled at finding ore. That sample Itury had could have come from her. She was also assigned to check out the scientists, and we find one dead. Now she’s missing. I’m just putting the pieces out there.”

  Marshal rushed forward and struck Ryad, knocking him down. My guards tackled Marshal and pinned him to the floor.

  “Stop this immediately!” I shouted. I stood over Ryad, who was struggling to come to. “That is enough. I understand it’s your job to search for all possibilities, but until you have proof, you will not jump to conclusions and blame Delilah for this. Search for evidence, find it, then make your case.”

  I moved over to Marshal and knelt down near him. The guards eyed me and pressed harder on Marshal’s back. With firmness, I spoke, “I trust Delilah. I don’t believe she was involved in the murders. I am worried for her as well. But reacting like this will not help her. You will control your emotions. Do you understand?”

  Marshal blinked back a tear. “Understood.”

  I rose and turned to the guards. “Move him over to that chair. You can cuff him until the questions are finished, but you will be respectful.” I turned to see Marcus smiling at me with approval. “Would you care to lead the questions from this point on?” I asked.

  Marcus shook his head, but the smile in his eyes remained. “I believe Ryad will do an adequate job. We should contact the other dignitaries then make plans on what to say to the public.”

  Chapter Twenty Three

  The Dignitaries

  “He’s been murdered?” Lady Berkum’s hand came up to her chest as she sat at her small table near the windows by the balcony of her room. I watched her closely to see if she would give anything away. Had she reached for her neck, it would have given me some clue she knew more about the case than anyone had revealed yet.

  “What are you doing to find his killer? Are we safe here?” Master Lecity stood behind Lady Berkum and snapped his fingers for an aide to attend him. I wished the Densinne would work on the Dempka race so we could hear their thoughts. I would have to find another time to question Master Lecity about what he knew of a material to disappear.

  “We have our best people investigating the case.” I turned to Lady Berkum. “You are perfectly safe here, but I must ask you to keep your guards close by. Do not attempt to leave the planet. All Traveling has been put on hold until the case is solved. If you have any concerns, you may contact me personally on this communicator.”

  I passed the small bracelet embedded with a chip that allowed conversation anywhere on Rommader. I wouldn’t tell them it would also track their movements. I could only give one to Lady Berkum and one to Master Lecity. Too many would be obvious we were doing something.

  The diplomats from Dempka secured the bracelets to their arms and nodded.

  “If you have any information about this case, hear anything from anyone, I encourage you to contact us. If I am unable to respond personally, Marcus will be the next contact, followed by Captain Ryad.” Everyone else could contact those in the investigative departments, but I wanted direct connection to the diplomats.

  “Where was he murdered?” Lady Berkum asked.

  “In his rooms. It appeared to have been done by someone he knew,” Marcus said.

  Lady Berkum looked around her room as if searching it for hiding places a murderer might be. She called for her guards as we left the room.

  Inside the apartments of the diplomats from Oshan, Marcus led the discussion. He handed one communication bracelet to the top aide, Sir Cavendish, and one to Lord Mercan.

  “You expect us to stay here in a palace where a murder occurred?” Cavendish shouted. “You will be sorry for this, keeping us hostage here! I will not stand for it. Lord Mercan cannot be confined to his rooms like a common criminal! We are innocent of any wrongdoing, and when we get home you can expect severe censures against you. Our trade agreement will be canceled. You cannot afford to make us angry!”

  Cavendish continued to rant about how unfair the circumstances were and how we would regret ever being born. Marcus stood up to the insults thrown at us. I couldn’t help thinking Cavendish was acting like a spoiled child. I glanced at Lord Mercan, who rolled his eyes. I took a step toward him and spoke softly.

  “I apologize for the inconvenience, Your Grace. I do hope you will forgive us for keeping you here, but it is your safety we are concerned with. I would hate for anything else to happen to my guests.”

  Lord Mercan held his hand up and Cavendish silenced immediately. Marcus turned to look at us and Lord Mercan spoke softly. “I do not find fault in your thinking. Though it will be an inconvenience to not have the freedom of movement we once enjoyed, our safety is worth the precaution. I do not envy you in your search to find the murderer. Of course we will stay here and out of harm’s way.”

  I bowed to him, the knot in my stomach easing slightly. He seemed genuine enough now, but how much of Cavendish’s threats did he agree with? We would have some serious negotiating ahead of us to maintain our trade agreements. If Oshan canceled our shipments of langstrom, communications across the galaxy would suffer. But without the trade of our yoshida and rodite, Oshan would have nothing to cool their reactors or power their artificial gravity boosters. I doubted they’d want to try Space Travel without our supplies.

  Lord Mercan snapped the bracelet into place on his arm, then placed the other on Cavendish. I hoped Cavendish would not be the one to try to contact us. I doubted we’d be able to hear a thing of worth from him through all his ranting.

  His complaints followed us through the hallway until we turned the corner. How Lord Mercan could tolerate the obnoxious man I’d never know. We continued on toward the apartments reserved for Kas, our last stop.

  I was tired of reliving the telling of Itury’s murder, feeling like a failure each time I had to admit one of my guests had been murdered in my home. Yet I had to be the one to spread the news. The visiting dignitaries would have felt slighted had I sent someone in my place.

  We knocked on the door and were met by the top aide to Mistress Laela. “What can we do for Your Majesties?” Mr. Kalson asked.

  “We have some news to impart,” Marcus said. “May we come in?”

  Mr. Kalson opened the door wid
e and allowed us through. My guards did a sweep of the room before ushering us inside. Mr. Kalson motioned for us to follow him into the office where Mistress Laela sat at the ornamental desk. He still limped from the blister on his foot, but I knew he wouldn’t appreciate me offering to send a Healer again. Mistress Laela stood and bowed at our entrance.

  “Welcome, Your Majesties.”

  “Thank you for allowing us to visit unannounced. We have something serious to discuss with you.” I shook her hand when she offered it, thinking it was much better than the other dignitaries who insisted on kissing my knuckles.

  “Please have a seat.” Mistress Laela motioned for us to sit in the high backed chairs off to the side of her desk. She and Mr. Kalson joined us.

  “I regret to inform you that Sir Itury was murdered early this morning. We are concerned about the safety of our guests and we request that you remain here in your apartments, or always have your guards with you if you must move about.”

  “How dreadful. Do you know who is responsible for such a horrid act?” Mistress Laela hugged herself. “How was he murdered?”

  “It is still under investigation. I have assigned someone highly capable of solving this murder to the case. He will be contacting you and your escorts. Everyone must be questioned. All interplanetary travel has been canceled. Until this case is solved, we cannot allow anyone to leave Rommader. I hope it will not inconvenience you. I understand you had plans to stay for one more week.”

  “Yes, that was our plan. However, if it has not been solved by then, we have no problem remaining here for a few days more. I do hope you can solve it quickly, though. I am sure Sir Itury’s family and people will want answers.”

  I nodded. It would be best to solve it as quickly as possible. The longer it dragged on, the more time the other planets’ visitors would have to search out things on their own. If one of them knew about the formula, they could gather more information about it.

  I wished I had burned the formula the moment I realized the danger of having that much freedom in Traveling. Whoever had leaked the information was responsible for a lot, but ultimately the fault would lay on my shoulders if Traveling with ease became commonplace.

  Before I knew it, I found myself staring into the camera with the signal to begin speaking. I squeezed Marcus’s hand and felt a squeeze in return.

  “People of Rommader. It is with heavy hearts we inform you of the death of Itury Obaji of Nexleen. He was found murdered in his rooms. A second murder has been reported of Dr. Richard Salb. Our hearts go out to their families.” I paused a moment to allow the news to sink in and for a moment of silence for our dead.

  “These deaths come as a shock to all of us. Rommader has enjoyed peace and civility for generations. King Marcus and I believe in our world. We have some of the best investigators leading the case and ask for your help as well. If you have any information about either of these murders, we ask you to call our hotline.”

  I knew the number would be posted on the bottom of the screen. The camera left us and turned to the news anchor. Marcus and I were motioned to move away from the interview area. He offered me his arm and escorted me to our guards.

  Now to find out what Ryad had learned from Marshal. We had to find Delilah. If she had been kidnapped for her ability to find the ore, then she’d be kept alive.

  If she had stumbled upon a plan to steal the niamon, her life could be in danger.

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Empty

  Jonah Plurz stared down at me from his seat at the head of the council the next morning. “You’ve done what?”

  Marcus cleared his throat, and Jonah blinked rapidly and swallowed before continuing in a more civilized tone.

  “By grounding the dignitaries from leaving, you’ve most likely created the beginnings of a war.”

  “Why would you think that?” I asked calmly. I agreed with him in a way, but knew if we handled things right, everything would work out smoothly.

  “You are not allowing them to get on with their lives. None of them will want to be trapped here. They’ll contact their homes and complain about us. We’ll be thought of as tyrants and all trade agreements will be suspended. We need them to like us! We must have their continued support.”

  I raised my eyebrow at Jonah. “And whose fault is it they are here? Who invited them?”

  “Who was supposed to make sure they were taken care of?” Jonah snapped back.

  Marcus took a step forward. “You forget who you are speaking to, Speaker Plurz. If you can’t keep a civil tongue, you will be dismissed.”

  Jonah sputtered and grumbled. “You can’t do that.”

  “Of course I can. You have shown incompetence in more ways than one. And if you continue on this path, I will have no choice but to strip you of your position and replace you. We came to you and this council to have a civilized discussion. The only thing we have received is censure and accusations. What is your choice?”

  At Marcus’s words, my heart swelled with pride.

  Jonah sat down and clasped his hands tightly in front of him on the table. He glared at Marcus, then turned to meet my eyes. “Please continue, Your Majesty.”

  I was happy to see he had a bit of restraint and common sense still.

  “All residents of the palace are suspect. Anyone who works here is as well. You will each be questioned. What I want to discuss with the council is whether you deem it advisable to use the truth serum secretly. Is this event something that warrants making an exception to the rule?”

  The council buzzed with communication, both verbal and telepathic. It was obvious they were all shocked I would suggest using such a means to extract answers without the interrogated suspects’ consent. I still didn’t know if it was morally wrong. Ryad was one of the best trackers, and he could find nothing more to indicate anything in the room had belonged to anyone but Itury, his aide, and a woman Itury was romantically involved with. The aid had been cleared of all suspicion because of a rock-solid alibi. The woman was in custody in the hospital, but we were relatively sure she was innocent.

  The small piece of niamon held no clue either. The only thing that could be determined with any amount of surety was that it had come from the Fuhan Mountains. But all of my ore finder Talents could find nothing to indicate there was any more easily available.

  The council eventually quieted down and looked to Jonah. The Speaker stood and brought the question to a vote.

  “Those in favor of relaxing the law to allow the use of truth serum say aye.”

  No one spoke.

  “Those against?”

  Every voice answered in unison.

  I nodded my acceptance. “Thank you for taking it into consideration. Next question. Who here knows of the method of transportation I used in my Travels from Rommader?”

  They all looked at each other, most with blank or confused looks. Jonah’s eyes held knowledge and he didn’t look away, but didn’t answer.

  ****

  Ryad stood at the doorway to the office Marcus and I shared as we approached after meeting with the council. I wasn’t ready for anything else to go wrong. He didn’t speak, but opened the door and allowed Marcus and I to enter the room first. He turned to the guards. “Stay out here. Do not let anyone enter.”

  I raised one eyebrow and glanced at Marcus. What do you think it is?

  I’m not sure.

  Ryad motioned for us to sit and I moved to my desk. Marcus sat in his customary spot on the sofa and I wished I had waited to sit so I could have joined him. To move now would look odd, like I needed his comfort.

  The detectives on the case believe they have identified Itury’s murderer.

  Who? I asked.

  All clues lead to Dr. Salb.

  The scientist that was found murdered as well?

  Ryad nodded.

  How did you discover this? Are you sure it was him? Why would he have done such a thing? Do you know who is responsible for Dr. Salb’s death?


  Ryad lifted a hand to stop my barrage of questions. I don’t know why. And I still have not discovered who murdered Salb, but I am certain he was killed in a different location and the body was dumped where we found it. I know it was him because there are traces of DNA and his own personal ownership signal on the knife used to slit the throat of Itury. There is nothing on the knife but Itury’s and Dr. Salb’s DNA.

  Where was the knife found? Marcus asked.

  It was dropped in an incinerator, but got stuck in the chute. There are traces of blood leading from the room to the hallway with the incinerator chute.

  Ryad handed me a piece of paper. This was in Salb’s pocket.

  The paper crackled as I unfolded it. Inside, in small writing was a list of all but two of the materials needed for the new Traveling medallion formula. The blood left my face and I looked up at Ryad.

  Handwriting analysis says this is not Dr. Salb’s handwriting, and it has traces of Itury’s ownership signature.

  I shook my head. Why would Salb have murdered Itury? Was he trying to keep the formula a secret? I turned to Marcus. Did you know Dr. Salb? What kind of person was he? I looked at Ryad. Have you done research on his background?

  I’m still in the process of the investigation, but he seemed to be honorable. I can’t understand the reason for his involvement other than he knew the formula. But where did Itury get this list? Has the information leaked?

  I rubbed my temple, trying to ease the developing headache. There weren’t many who knew of niamon. I know for certain the two of you and myself, Delilah, Marshal, Ramal, Dr. Salb and Dr. Nye, and my father’s other assistants who explored Earth on the first trip knew of the ability to Travel. But who knows what information was leaked by Shander? He could have told any of our neighboring planets we had something that allowed Traveling when he went looking for me. It seems Speaker Plurz knows something of it.

  Marcus sat forward, his elbows propped on his knees. Have you questioned those Amira named?

  Ryad nodded. All but the dead or missing. Without the truth serum I can’t be positive the information given is accurate, but as far as I can tell, none of them have spoken of it.