Chapter 15, Dinner For Eight
Cain, Glitch, and Jill reached one of the main atriums in the palace. A young courier running through the halls found them and handed Cain a sealed envelope. He tucked Jill's blue blanket under one arm and angrily opened the envelope to read it. It was a very short invitation that read more like a requirement.
Major Wyatt Cain and Miss Jill Wilkins are to report to the Fanaqquian dining hall at 6:00pm. Formal dress is not required, come as is.
"What is it," Glitch asked.
Cain looked up at him and coldly replied, "Jill and I are invited to supper with you guys." He then outstretched his arm to Jill, "Here, take this. Glitch can take you back to your room and then I'll get you right before six."
Jill took her blanket and held it up to her chest. Before she could thank him, Cain started purposely walking away, and Glitch yelled after him, "Cain! Where are you going?"
Without turning to look back he said, "To cool off."
Cain arrived at Jill's door right before six o'clock. As he knocked on the door, he said loudly, "Jill? It's me Cain."
There was no answer. He was ready to knock again when the door suddenly opened. Jill stepped through the doorway and as she closed the door just softly said a simple, "Hi Cain."
They started down the hallway in near silence. The palace was deserted aside from the occasional guard or chambermaids passing them by. Only the clicking of Jill's low heels and Cain's boots was distinctly audible. After what seemed like forever, Jill finally broke it by saying, "I'm sorry that I took the wagers from those kids but I'm not sorry for going down to the Armory."
Cain glanced at her but kept walking.
"And if you're going to be mad, stay mad at me. Leave Glitch out of it.," she continued.
Cain kept walking but finally said, "It was a stupid thing to do. You need to be keeping a low profile."
"Really," she looked over at him. "And taking a tour with Glitch is supposed to be low profile? And besides, I sound like a pony in these heels; anyone could track me."
Cain allowed his face to soften slightly but said nothing more.
They were nearly to the private dining hall when they encountered Jill's chambermaid, Elsie. Jill noticed that she had her clothes. Most noticeable was her pink jacket on top of the pile.
"Hi Elsie," Jill said as Elsie drew near. "Did you wash my clothes?"
Elsie drew her lips tightly together before answering. "Yes, I personally saw to it that your clothes were washed. Princess Dorothy directed me to do so."
"Thank you Elsie. That was very kind of you." Jill replied somewhat slowly. There was something different about Elsie's demeanor and she was not sure what was causing it.
"I will lay these clothes on your bed and then I will see you in the morning," Elsie curtly replied. And with that she continued on her way.
Jill called after her, "Thank you again Elsie!" But she was not sure if Elsie heard her or not. If she did, she did not acknowledge it. She watched Elsie march down the hallway and then turned to catch up with Cain.
They continued walking and when they turned around a corner, they had reached the private dining hall.
It turned out that the Fanaqquian dining hall was the formal name of the room where Jill had had breakfast and lunch already. However, this time most of the smaller tables had been removed and one large table was set up. The place settings were still kept simple and the lights were dimmed to match the glow of the fire that had been built in the fireplace. It all gave the room a warm cozy feeling.
The head of the table was reserved for the Queen with Lord Ahamo to be seated to her right. Dr. Addison was already seated and was across from Lord Ahamo's chair; to the Queen's left.
Already seated next to Dr. Addison were Azkadellia, DG, and then Glitch. There were chatting about something but Dr. Addison was disinterested in their conversation. He absent-mindedly was playing with his napkin. To the right of Lord Ahamo, the seating was to be Cain, and then Jill. There was an empty place-setting next to Jill.
A side door that Jill had not noticed earlier in the day opened and both the Queen and Lord Ahamo entered. All stood up and Jill followed their lead.
Both the Queen and Lord Ahamo walked over and took their places in front of their chairs. "Good evening family, friends, and guests" said the Queen as she looked over everyone. Then as she sat, everyone once again followed her lead.
Servers quickly came out and after they presented the first course, a simple small salad, Lord Ahamo asked his daughters, "How was the trip to the hospital?"
DG answered first, "It was tough. There are so many that were injured. All of the families that we met are having a hard time dealing with it."
"Did you and Az stay together or split up?" he asked.
"We stayed together Father," replied Azkadellia in a clear voice. Dr. Addison quickly looked over at her and then continued picking at his salad. "How are you feeling Azkadellia? You do not sound tired at all."
"I'm feeling very well Dr. Addison. Much better than yesterday."
"That reminds me Azkadellia my dear. Here is a small packet of the new sleeping medicine that I would like you to try." Dr. Addison reached inside his vest pocket and pulled out a small white envelope and handed it to Azkadellia. Both Cain and Jill looked surprised that Dr. Addison, prescription or not, would pass drugs at the dinner table. But no one else seemed to think that it was out of the ordinary.
Lord Ahamo swallowed the bite of salad he had taken before speaking again. "Did anything else happen while you were there?"
"No Father," answered DG, "If you're wondering about protests or anything like that." She thought back to the newspaper articles that she had read earlier in the day. Azkadellia added, "Most people I talked to want to know if we or the police know who or what is behind the attacks."
"Some people think that the attacks were done by Longcoats that weren't captured or escaped from the western territories." As she said it DG looked over at Cain. He continued to eat his salad and said nothing.
The Queen interrupted, "You did make sure to also give our appreciation to the doctors, nurses, and other caretakers at the hospital?"
"Of course Mother," Azkadellia replied, "We met with as many as we could during the time that we were there."
"Tomorrow we want to spend the day at the NHN headquarters helping where we can too," DG stated. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Jill's confused look. "NHN is the Neighbors Helping Neighbors organization. It's kind-of like the Salvation Army." Jill nodded her head in understanding.
"DG, I truly understand why you and Azkadellia want to go, but please remember that it is very dangerous. The NHN headquarters is not located in a secure area, even under peaceful times. I am not sure that you should be allowed to go," stated the Queen.
"But Mother," responded DG hastily. "We can't be sitting around here doing nothing. The people need us and it's our responsibility to respond." Again she thought back to the headlines, "ROYAL RESPONSE LACKING."
Lord Ahamo spoke up, "Dear, if the appropriate precautions are taken, DG and Az should be allowed to go."
The Queen sighed. "If no further events occur during the course of the night then you may go." She knew that if she did not give her permission that they would both go irregardless of her decision. She admired her daughters for being independent women, but they were still young and these were dangerous times again.
During the lull in the conversation, the servers came out and retrieved the plates of those that had finished. Shortly thereafter they brought out the main course. Again, it was a simple meal consisting of roasted beef, carrots, and potatoes.
After the servers left, the Queen motioned to Dr. Addison and said, "In passing today I have received a complaint from one of the local precincts that they have sent over evidence to the Academy for further evaluation and have not yet received a response."
Both Cain and Dr. Addison looked up from their meals. Dr. Addison smoothly replied, "The Academy has always been supportive in helping the local precincts with their various investigations. Certainly with the recent attack they must understand that the resources are being focused on determining the cause of the explosion. Any little side investigations from the 9th Street Precinct will need to wait."
"Why do you think that it's a little side investigation?" Cain asked as he finished taking a drink of his wine.
Dr. Addison put down his knife and fork, "Excuse me Major?"
Cain paused for a moment before replying. "I would think that right now any new evidence would be treated the same. How do you know if it's connected to the attacks or not?"
Dr. Addison was taken a little aback but quickly resumed his smoothness. He made it a point to be smug in his response, "Certainly Major, you have no idea how many requests for scientific and research assistance we receive in a single day. They all must be prioritized. Right now any objects received that are from the other world are at the bottom of the list."
For another moment the only noise was that of silverware and the faintly audible sounds of everyone eating. Then throwing caution to the wind, Cain said, "The Queen only said that she received a complaint from one of the local precincts. How do you know that it was about evidence from the other world from the 9th Street Precinct?"
Everyone stopped eating.
Dr. Addison slowly put down the bit of roast beef he was about to eat. He glared at Cain, but then smiled at him and then the Queen before answering. "I receive a daily summary of all requests. The 9th Street Precinct always has the most; usually about unusual objects. They also are the most impatient. I naturally assumed that the dear Queen was referring to them." He paused and then added with an almost imperceptible sneer, "Major Cain, am I incorrect about my assumption?"
Cain unflinchingly stared back at Dr. Addison. "No, Dr. Addison, you're not incorrect."
The Queen interrupted the exchange by asking, "Major Cain. How do you know about what I asked Dr. Addison?"
Cain paused and turned to look at her. "I was visiting with Sergeant Costello at the 9th Street Precinct and he mentioned that he had sent some evidence over to the Academy."
The Queen nodded her head. She turned to Dr. Addison and replied, "I would recommended Dr. Addison that you re-review your summaries in the morning. We need to be sure that nothing that could be connected to the attacks is thrown aside. Do you understand?"
"Of course my Queen. I understand quite well," coldly replied Dr. Addison as he stared at Cain. His green eyes flared in the dim light.
The tension in the room had grown during the conversation between Dr. Addison and Cain. Lord Ahamo changed the subject by asking, "Ambrose, I understand that you gave Jill a tour of the palace this morning. How did it go?"
Glitch momentarily looked like a deer in headlights. Jill stopped her chewing and looked at him. He took a deep breath and he resumed his happy self. "It went well sir. We stayed within the palace. I even showed her my old office."
"Did you enjoy the tour, Jill?" asked Lord Ahamo.
Jill swallowed and looked at him. She meekly replied, "Yes sir, I did. Glitch…. I mean, Ambrose is a very good tour guide." Lord Ahamo smiled and resumed eating. Her response may have fooled him but the look she received from the Queen; she knew that it did not fool her. Cain was right. She should have been keeping a low profile.
"Major Cain, after dinner I would like to have a few private words with you," noted the Queen.
"Of course ma'am," he dryly replied as he folded a corner of the napkin on his lap.
Jill thought, Oh shit.
The servers came out one more time and retrieved the dinner plates. Dessert was the last course and to Jill it resembled pumpkin pie.
"Miss Wilkins, you attended secondary school did you not?", asked Dr. Addison.
Jill looked up from her pie and saw Dr. Addison's inquisitive expression. DG added with half a mouthful, "He means college."
"Oh. Yes I did," she replied.
"I thought so," Dr. Addison charmingly said. Without thinking he added, "I saw that you went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. What did you study there?"
DG nearly dropped her fork. "You went to MIT?"
"What's MIT?", asked Azkadellia.
"That's where all the science guys go to college, Az. You have to be really smart to get in there," DG answered.
Cain looked over at Jill and raised his eyebrow. She could almost read his thought of "And just when were you going to tell me this?"
"No wonder you kept picking up all the gadgets in my office," Glitch said admiringly.
Lord Ahamo looked over to his wife, "It's a very prestigious school."
Dr. Addison interrupted to regain control of the conversation, "As I asked before Miss Wilkins, what did you study there?"
"Just the general sciences," she briskly replied. She had no intention of giving him any more specific information.
Dr. Addison ignored her quick answer. "Ah, yes, the general sciences. The basic groundwork. I too enrolled in the general sciences courses. I not only enjoyed, but excelled, in all of them. Little did I know then it would put me on the path of becoming the Royal Advisor to the Queen herself." Glitch straightened up in his chair and DG grabbed his hand and squeezed it. She knew all too well that when Dr. Addison began to brag about himself, it upset him.
Dr. Addison continued, "Did you have a specialty in the general sciences my dear?"
Everyone stared at her, waiting for the answer. She had no intention of amusing Dr. Addison. "No, I did not."
Jill decided that it was Dr. Addison's turn to feel uncomfortable. "Besides, Dr. Addison, how did you know that I went to MIT? I haven't told anyone, even those closest to me." She looked to Cain as she said it.
Once again the room fell silent. Cain looked at Jill, saw her suspicious face, and then looked back at Dr. Addison. His unconsciously let his hand drift down and feel for his gun.
Dr. Addison felt the heat rise to his face. He realized what he had done and it was too late. Between reading Jill's registration application and from the Father's secret knowledge he knew about Jill's life in the other world. He wanted to charm her, to start the process of trusting him, but he fucked it up. His mind frantically raced for a way out.
He cleared his throat. In his most charming voice he said, "From the moment I first met you I thought that you were a very intelligent young woman. I most naturally assumed that you had gone to a secondary school." He paused, looking for Jill's reaction. "We… we have found science text books from your world with the secondary school name of Massachusetts Institute of Technology." He paused again and took a deep breath. He laid his right hand over his heart, "Please understand that it was only an assumption on my part."
"Of course Dr. Addison, only an assumption on your part," Jill repeated and smiled weakly. Liar. She saw that Cain's hand remained down at his side.
Dr. Addison smiled to the group. He carefully folded up his napkin and politely patted the sweat from his forehead. He then laid it alongside his dessert plate. "If you will excuse me my Queen I believe that I will call it an early night."
"Yes, Dr. Addison, thank you for attending dinner with us," replied the Queen. If she had any suspicions of Dr. Addison's response to Jill's question, it was not evident.
"Miss Wilkins," Dr. Addison called out to her as he rose from the table, "Perhaps tomorrow I may take you for a tour of the Royal Academy of Sciences. I would like to show you the other text books that we have acquired from other secondary schools in your world. I would appreciate your input on them."
Jill met Dr. Addison's stare with her own. Her gut screamed out, don't trust him. But she smiled softly and replied, "Yes, Dr. Addison. A tour of the academy does sound interesting. Perhaps we can arrange a time after breakfast." She noticed Cain's eyes narrow out of the corner of her eye but she ignored him.
"Very well, Miss Wilkins. I will send word tomorrow morning." And with that he bowed to the Queen and Lord Ahamo and quickly left the private dining hall. Unbeknownst to the group he raced down the hallway to his office, continuing to pat the sweat from his forehead from a handkerchief he pulled from his vest pocket.
After he left, Lord Ahamo said, "Azkadellia, as we wait for your mother to finish her business, why don't you come to back to our chambers? We found some more pictures of your grandmother that we would like to show you."
DG was ready to say that she wanted to see the pictures too but Lord Ahamo quickly added, "DG, why don't you and Ambrose spend the evening together. I'm sure that you have many things to talk about." He glanced over at Glitch as he said it.
"Oh, yeah, of course Father. We haven't seen much of each other today, have we Glitch," she replied. She realized that she still held Glitch's hand and she released it. Her thoughts drifted back again to the conversation that she had with her mother in the morning. She thought of her mother's request to her to not to let Glitch hanging any more. Did her mother talk to her father about it?
"DG," interrupted Cain.
DG shook her head and made her mind come back to the present, "Yeah Cain?"
"Can you take Jill up to her room? The Queen and I need to talk about a few things," he said.
"Sure Cain." She looked at Jill and smiled, "Are you ready to go?"
Jill nodded and she rose from her chair. She turned to Cain and without thinking lightly placed her hand on his shoulder, "Will I see you later?" DG raised an eyebrow and straightened her posture.
Cain surprised himself by not flinching at her touch and replied, "As soon as I'm done here." We have a lot to talk about Jill and you're not getting out of this time.
Glitch had his arm around DG's waist as they left the room and DG took one last parting look at Cain. And with that, all went their separate ways.
Only the Queen and Cain were left alone in the room.