My Enemy's Son (The Two Moons of Rehnor, Book 2) (6 page)

“Thank you,” he said again and slipped off
the jacket.  “And no, I am not from a dome.”

“Have you come to see Dr. Kenak?” I asked.

The man looked around the office as if
Kenak might be hiding under the sofa.

“I'm Dr. Mattson,” I said.

“Hello Dr. Mattson,” he replied.  “I am
looking for someone and I believe you know him.”

My heart froze mid beat.  He was looking
for Senya.  Maybe this man was his slave-owner.  This man must have come from
Rehnor and he was here to take him back.

“Let me ring Dr. Kenak.”  I turned toward
my vid to think.  Kenak might turn Senya over.  As proud and happy as he was
with Senya's accomplishments this last year, he fervently believed that other
societies were to be studied and not interfered with.  If the Rehnorians wanted
their runaway slave back, Kenak would return him.

Speak of the devil, the door opened again
and Kenak and Donak came in.  They were arguing about something as they usually
did after lunch.  I could see them doing this forever, even when all they had
to argue about was whether they should nap or play pinochle and in which order.

“Dr. Kenak, Dr. Donak,” I jumped up. 
“This is…”

“Good day,” the sweaty foreigner said and
held out his hand.  “I am Captain Loman of the Royal Mishnese Guards.”

Kenak's eyes immediately flew open.

“Good day, good day,” he cried,
enthusiastically pumping the man's hand.  Donak raised his eyebrows and glanced
over at me.  I frowned.

“How can we help you, how can we help
you?” Kenak practically begged.  “Please sit down.”  He led Captain Loman to
the sofa.  “Donak, get the Captain something to drink.  What would you care for
Captain, water or soda?  We have this wondrous drink here now from our friends
on Earth.  It’s called Coca Cola and it’s quite tasty.”

“Water would be fine, please,” the Captain
replied.

“The Royal Mishnese Guards,” Kenak sighed
happily and sat down on the sofa next to the Captain.  “The Mishnese are still
a monarchy then?  Are you still ruled by the descendants of Mishka Kalila?”

“Yes,” the Captain replied wiping his brow
with the water bottle Donak handed him.  “Yokaa Kalila is our King.  I am the
Captain of his guards.”

“And do the de Kudishas still rule
Karupatani?”  Kenak anxiously leaned toward him.

“Yes,” Captain Loman said.  “Merakoma de
Kudisha is the King of Karupatani.”

“Ha!” Kenak exclaimed.  “I have attained
more information in these five minutes from Captain Loman than in nearly two
years from…”

“Don't say it!” I screamed.

Everyone looked at me.

Captain Loman chuckled.  “So you do know
him, Dr. Mattson?”

“We're not going to tell you where he is,”
I said.  “He's a citizen of Rozari now and you can't take him back.”

“You don't need to tell me where he is,
Dr. Mattson.”  Captain Loman smiled.  “He is listed on the staff roster of your
medical centre.”  Twisting the cap off of his water bottle, he took a long
drink.  “I do not intend to take him back at this time,” he said, again wiping
his face with the sweaty bottle.  “I am merely here to check on his health and
his progress.  You are his personal physician, yes?”  He turned to Donak.

"I suppose so," Donak replied as
he pulled up a chair from the student desk.  "I did attend to him when he
first arrived in our midst but he has had no need to see me since. 
Regretfully, I have never been able to study his blood proteins or ocular
tissue or anything else that I had hoped to study."

“I have some medical records and information
I would like to forward to you,” Captain Loman said.  “Might I?”

“Really?” Donak’s eyes lit up.  “I should
like very much to see his medical records.” 

“He is doing well then, yes?”

“Indeed,” Kenak cried jubilantly and
patted the Captain’s knee.  He began to rattle off Senya's accomplishments as
if they were his own son's.

“He is staying off the drugs?”  Loman
smiled politely at Kenak but turned his attention to Donak.

“I believe so,” Donak replied.

“What drugs?” I asked.

“He is healthy?” Loman persisted, ignoring
my question.

“He seems very healthy,” Donak replied. 
“Extraordinarily healthy.”

“Then the King of Karupatani has bid me
give to you specific instructions in the event he seizes.”

“Seizes what?” I said.

“The King of Karupatani?” Kenak asked. 
“But you are from Mishnah.”

“I am indeed,” Loman replied.

“Seizes what?” I repeated, wondering if
Donak was right and Senya had come here to take back the planet.

“There are times when he may have
convulsions,” Loman continued.

“Oh, that kind of seizure.”  I sighed with
relief.

“Epileptic?  He will never get his license
to practice surgery if that is the case.  Why did he not reveal this to us?”
Donak demanded.

“Let him finish his sentence, Donak,”
Kenak interrupted.  “What kind of convulsions?”

“He is not epileptic.”  Loman drank from
his water bottle and then placed it on the floor by his feet.  “And the
seizures tend to be infrequent and somewhat controllable.  I tell you only so
that you will be able to assist should he need you.  Sometimes there are
weather disturbances.  Most of these events are precluded by a loss of temper.”

“Wait a minute,” I said.  “What are we
talking about?”

“Weather disturbances?”  Donak raised his
eyebrows.

“As I am sure you know by now, Dr. Donak,
there are unique proteins in his blood.  When the beta protein levels get too
high and if he gets angry…”

“What does that have to do with the
weather?” Kenak asked.  “Are we still speaking about Ron?”

“Senya,” I said.  “Are you saying
something happens to the weather if he has a temper tantrum?”

“He prefers to be called Ron now,” Donak
interrupted.

“Sehron,” Kenak explained to Loman.

“Maybe we are talking about someone else,”
I suggested.

The door opened and speak of the devil
again, Senya came in.  He was dressed as usual in jeans, one of the t-shirts I
had bought him, which now had a jagged tear down the side, and a worn-out pair
of lace-less, sockless runners with holes in the toes.

“Sir,” Loman jumped to his feet, knocking
over the water bottle which proceeded to spill its contents all over the floor.

“Oh my,” Kenak gasped and stumbled off the
couch.  He bent down and tried to wipe up the water with a handkerchief.  Donak
knelt to assist and then Loman followed suit except that Loman was kneeling in
the puddle and not making any effort to clean it up.

“You’re getting wet, Captain,” I said and
grabbed some tissues from my desk.  Now, all four of us were on the floor at
Senya’s feet, as he smiled benevolently down upon us.

“Hello Loman,” Senya said, his voice
translated by the Universal Translator in Loman’s pocket.  “Nice of you to come
visit.  Please rise.”  He held out his hand, I thought to pull Loman up.

“My pleasure, Sir.”  Loman kissed Senya’s
hand and then rose to his feet.  “You are looking well.  A bit shabby but
certainly better than the last time I saw you.  Let me see your eyes.  His
Majesty of Karupatani is quite worried about you.”

Senya lifted up his glasses.  His eyes
were amazingly bright, practically lighting up the entire room.

“My goodness,” Loman exclaimed and shook
his head.

Senya shrugged and put a cigarette in his
mouth.  He glanced down at the rest of us.  “Shelly?”  Offering me his hand, he
helped me to my feet.  I wondered if I was supposed to kiss it too.  Donak and
Kenak pulled each other up.

“Captain Loman is here,” Kenak said and
cleared his throat.  “From Rehnor.”

“Yes,” Senya agreed.  “Captain Loman is
here from Rehnor.”

“He is worried that you will have a
seizure,” Donak added.

“Are you feeling okay, honey?” I asked.

“Perhaps you should come back with me,”
Loman suggested.  “Just for a day or two.”

“I will take care of it,” Senya replied,
exhaling grey smoke.

Loman looked at him askance.

With the cigarette propped between his
teeth, Senya showed Loman the inside of his right wrist.  A long pink scab ran across
it.  Donak, Kenak and I peered closely at it.

Loman nodded.  “Stay on top of it, son. 
Don't put it off.  A bolt of lightning in this dustbowl might set the whole
planet on fire.”

“Yes, Mother,” Senya replied, retrieving
his cigarette.  “I will be good.  How is Berk?”

Loman smiled broadly.  “Doing well since
you scared the shit out of him.  He graduated the University of New Mishnah and
just got married.”

“Good.”  Senya nodded.

“Do you want me to tell him I saw you?”

“No.  His wife has a loose tongue and big
mouth. 
‘Tis
better I remain dead a while longer.”

“Not too much longer, I hope.”  Loman
looked at Senya fondly.  “Tell me can you actually see out of those things
now?”  He pointed at Senya's dark glasses.

“No.”  Senya moved back toward the door. 
“But I scare less people this way.”

“That I can believe.”  Loman chuckled and
moved to the door as well.  “Come my son, have you got a moment to break bread
with me?  I want to hear of your school work and your doctoring.”

“Sorry Loman.  I can't right now.  I've
got to get back to the hospital.  Walk me back if you like?”

Loman scoffed.  “Me walk?  On this dusty,
hot planet?  I'd have a heart attack before I got there but then again, you're
a doctor now and can revive me!”  He chuckled.  “Of course you certainly could
have revived me before too.  One zap with your little finger ought to have done
it, eh?  Tell me, lad, do you actually practice surgery or do you just will
your patients better?”

“Loman,” Senya sighed.

“Sorry, Sir.  I am just having a little
fun with you.  Lord Dickon shall enjoy sharing this bit of news with the press,
when you are ready of course.  You'll have to come back then so we can snap
some new pics for all the girls to drool over, now that you're all cleaned up
and pretty again.”

“Must I?”

“Ah, better yet, I can send the press here
to follow you around for a few days.  You've got some doctor clothes or
something you can wear, yes?  They can take pics of you tending to some poor
old lady, or better yet, a child.  We'll show everyone how compassionate you
are and then we shall all forget about your propensity to break things and kill
people.”  Loman’s large belly shook as he laughed heartily.

“Aren't you clever,” Senya responded
humorlessly. 

“I am at that, Sir,” Loman said and cupped
Senya's face in his big hand.  “It's good to see you healthy again.  You have
fun playing doctor while you can.  You know, we are always at your service so
do not hesitate to ring me or Lord Dickon if you need anything, right?”

Senya headed out the door but turned back
for a moment.  “Actually, I do need something,” he said.  “I'm going to start a
project and I need money from my holdings to finance it.  I'll email you how
much.”

“Of course, Sir,” Loman replied. 
“Whatever you need is at your disposal.  You've also got your mother's trust
available to you now as well.”

“I won't need that much.  Why don’t you
set that up as a charitable fund and start distributing it.  I don’t want it. 
Got to run.”  Senya pulled out his cell and glanced at it.  “Thanks for visiting,
Loman.”

“Any time, Sir,” Loman replied as the door
swished shut.

We all stood looking at Loman with our
mouths hanging open.

“Why did you call him Sir?” I asked. “I
thought he was a slave.”

“What did you mean when you said you are
going to share this with the press?” Donak demanded.  “You're going to make
pinups of Senya?”

“How could a slave have a trust fund and
holdings?” Kenak puzzled.

Loman smiled at his feet before turning
his pale blue eyes back to us.  “Clearly he has not told you who he is,” he
said.  “Not surprising really.  He's been running from it his entire life.”

“He's a de Kudisha, we know that,” Kenak
declared.  “He must be related to the King of Karupatani.”

“He is indeed.  He is the grandson of the
King of Karupatani.”

“I told you he was a prince of
Karupatani,” Kenak cried.  “I was right all along.  The marking you know,
clearly indicated…”  He slapped Donak across the back.

“You were not right all along,” Donak
snapped, pushing Kenak away.  “You were just speculating.”

“I speculated that!” Kenak insisted.

“He did,” I agreed.

“Among other speculations,” Donak
retorted.

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