Chapter 34:
Daphne opened the door at the sight of them out the window. She let Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma enter, along with Mr. Mangetout and Mr. Fizlayer.
It felt kind of odd to be the ones listening to the results of a mystery, instead of the ones reporting what they had found. Oh well. Daphne knew she had played a role in solving it, at least...
"Hi," she greeted Velma.
"They're human," Velma responded, jumping in. "The Veqs, I mean. And most of them don't live all that far from Coolsville."
"So... what did they want the Orb for, anyway?"
"Power," Velma answered, then clarified. "Not 'power' as in what every villian wants... power as in free electricity. Only Mr. Veq, who organized these people, actually wanted the Orb itself. The rest own businesses or medical practices and wanted the free electricity that could be obtained from the Orb. I don't think most of them understood that another planet needed the Orb to survive."
"So that's why the phone died, I'll bet."
Velma nodded. "Mr. Derrick Holton. His work with the phone company enabled him to shut down the lines. I think the Veqs wanted to take precautions. We discovered all this after unmasking them. We took photos, if you want to see who they are. The thing is, we have used some of the businesses involved here. Scary."
Daphne leafed through the stack. Her heart pounded about halfway through.
"I know this one," she told Velma. "This is my obstetrician." Suddenly, she was frightened that she had entrusted this person with her own daughter.
Velma smiled. "Not once he's in jail."
"But... what about the rest of the Veqs?"
"Well, we can at least rest assured that they wouldn't dare make another attempt at the Orb. Mr. Veq may not have been in the basement, but we discovered his location and he was arrested just over an hour ago."
"That's good," Daphne answered cheerfully.
"And the reason Mr. Fizlayer and Mr. Mangetout came with us, Daphne, is that there is still something that needs to be settled."
"What's that?"
Mr. Fizlayer answered. "Amongst my people, there is a custom which is rigidly followed in all situations." He cleared his throat. "When another planet performs something heroic in the eyes of ours, we must bestow a gift on the hero. It is usually a gift which the recipient could not receive anywhere on his or her own planet, such as a piece of technology or medicine. We have conferred and agreed that the heroism here rests with you. Without your advance warning, the Orb could not have been secured in time. We wish to ask what sort of gift might be appropriate."
An idea flashed through Daphne's mind. "You... you say medicine..."
"Yes... Fizlayen practices have expanded the average lifespan to well over a hundred years."
"Can... can they cure cancer?"
"Most definitely."
Daphne turned to Mr. Mangetout. "I know what I would like. But... you're the only person who could give the person I'm talking about security clearance. Can you do that?"
"It depends on the person in question, but if the person is someone close to you, whom you trust, it is quite likely that we can trust him or her as well."
Daphne was crying hopefully. "Can you cure my father's cancer?"