The Sapphiri

by R Gene Curtis

  But staring at Cassi made me feel like I wasn’t a Sapphiri agent. She took me past my identity, and I knew I would never be the same again.

  I talked to her.

  It wasn’t the first Sapphiri rule I ever broke. But it was the biggest. My call back to headquarters was over two hours late.

  And my rule-following only got worse from then on, at least related to Cassi.

  And now we’re going back. To Pittsburgh. To Cassi.

  “You’re really sure we need to go to Pittsburgh?” I ask Pearl. We reach Pennsylvania in less than two hours. I set the cruise control a couple mph faster.

  Pearl looks up from the packet of notes she’s being staring at for hours. “Yes, Bob. We do. First Base. I don’t know why you keep asking about this.”

  “Where are we staying? You don’t have any viable false identities, do you?”

  She sighs. “I haven’t figured that part out yet.”

  “I know a place we can stay.”

  Oh. I know a place we can stay.

  * * *

  I know the place like the back of my hand.

  Long Drive. Cassi worked on Pitt campus, but she lived east of the city out in a place called Penn Hills. It’s a nice area with lots of older houses. The homes were built shortly after World War II, and some of the original owners still reside in homes they purchased for a few thousand dollars. You’d be hard-pressed to find a neighborhood as picturesque and red-brick as this one. I should know; I’ve been on countless walks through it, Cassi’s hand in mine.

  Breaking rules with Cassi was an incredible experience. All the while, she never broke a single rule from her society—and was oblivious to how many I was breaking in mine.

  Long Drive weaves through a forested area before opening up into the neighborhoods. Left turn, right turn, house, house, stop.

  We’re here.

  My nerves are doing the funky chicken dance. My heart pounds in my chest, and any minute it’s going to break through my ribcage and leave me dead in its escape.

  I wipe my hands on my pants. Is it possible Cassi found someone new? What if she isn’t willing to put us up?

  I rub my hands around the steering wheel and take a deep breath.

  A small hand rests on mine, cool to the touch compared to my hands. “You’re nervous,” Pearl says. She’s scowling.

  I wonder what her first clue was. The gleam of sweat coating the steering wheel, my rapid breathing, or the regular bump of my heart against my ribs.

  I grunt and get out of the car. “Stay here.”

  “I’m going to keep my gun trained on you.”

  Undercover agents. They’re all the same.

  I start up the steps to the front door. We timed our trip to arrive in the late evening. The fewer people who see us here, the better. You never know how broad the Sapphiri spy network really is. After all, we only ever find out about people we work with. Everyone else has colored contacts and normal BMI. They might be a little taller than average, but lots of people are taller than average. And, there are a lot of blondes in the world, too.

  As I reach the top step, I hear the engine rev and Pearl spins the car around. Of course, she’s thinking get-away. I would have parked that way, too, if I was thinking straight. But, I’m not. Pearl leaves it idling as she fixes her gun on me.

  Put the gun down already. Cassi’s harmless.

  Harmless, except that she made me break almost every rule and that I nearly died when I had to leave her.

  The door is still dark maroon. The keypad. I type in my birthday, and the door unlocks. Click! There’s no way she’s with someone else if the combination lock to her house hasn’t changed.

  I push the door open and walk inside. The lights are off. It’s odd she isn’t here—she is strict about her schedule and that means getting home at 5:25 PM. Nearly an hour ago.

  I flip on the light and two small lamps light the room. The white couch still sits on the bright blue floor across from the TV and video game set.

  This is where I played my first video game. I smile at the memory. Cassi would never play with me, but she bought it for me and watched me play. Those were hours I was supposed to be tracking Karl, but those were hours he spent sitting in his office. Tracking Karl was the easiest job I ever had.

  Karl truly was the best assignment I ever had. He never went anywhere except for his apartment and office. He never did anything but study. And eat. He ate a lot, too, but the Sapphiri really didn’t care about that.

  And I spent the extra time hanging out with Cassi and no one ever knew because my reports were always 100% accurate. And spending those hours snuggled up to Cassi was a much better use of my time.

  I step out of the front room into the kitchen. The kitchen is more of an after-thought in this house. Just a small room off the hall between the main room and the bedroom.

  “Cassi?”

  No answer.

  I check her bedroom, but it is empty and spotless. As always.

  I pick up the home phone and call her cell number. She answers on the second ring.

  “Hello?”

  Her voice is just as I remember it. Soft, pleasant, and sweet. My voice catches. Should I propose? Would she marry me now, when she’ll have to run for her life to be with me? The Sapphiri will kill me if they ever find me, so it’s not like that’s stopping me anymore.

  Maybe Pearl would be up for a drive to Vegas. After she finds whatever it is she’s looking for in Pittsburgh. She could look while I spend time with Cassi.

  “It’s Bob,” I finally manage to get out.

  It’s not quite a proposal, but sometimes women like men to do those things in person. Or so I’ve heard. Us Sapphiri don’t propose, not even when we’re matched to breed. It’s just, You’re assigned to have three children with Agent X. Be there by Thursday. Not as romantic as someone like Cassi probably wants.

  “Oh. Hi Bob. You’re at my house?” It’s so good to hear her voice. I really should have done this running away thing a long time ago. Years lost that I could have spent with her.

  “Yeah. It’s a long story.” A story that I still need to make up. “Where are you?”

  “I’m at my father’s.”

  “In Texas?” We just passed through Amarillo yesterday! We even bought a car there. Wow. I wish I had known we were so close to Cassi.

  “Yeah.”

  I’ve spent all day looking forward to seeing Cassi, and she’s thousands of miles away. I’m still giddy from the thrill of hearing her voice, but disappointment seeps into me and my heart finally slows down enough for my head to start to clear.

  “Hey, I need a place to stay for a few weeks. I’d love to spend some time with you. When are you going to be back?”

  “What are you talking about Bob? You left. You told me you couldn’t stay, and then you abandoned me. How can you show up now and expect anything different?”

  “My birthday is still your key combination code.”

  Silence.

  “Things are different now, Cassi. I’m different.” I take a deep breath. “I want to be with you.”

  “I can be back tomorrow. Make yourself at home. Nothing’s changed.”

  “That’s what I love about you, Cassi.”

  “You’re sure things have changed?”

  Boy, have they ever. “Yes.”

  Silence. “It’s been a long time, Bob. More than a year.”

  “I know.”

  More silence. My hands are sweaty and my breathing is fast.

  “Stay where you are. Bye!” And with that she hangs up.

  I hang up and swear. Tomorrow feels like a century away. Hopefully Pearl doesn’t mind us hanging out until Cassi gets here.

  * * *

  Pearl’s face is so close to mine that I can smell the chips we’ve been snacking on in the car when she talks. “Bob, we’re all going to sleep in the front room.”

  After talking to Cassi, I thought I might be getting some of my talking-to-women mojo back. Pea
rl has shut down those thoughts big time.

  I take a step back. “She has beds, Pearl. And three bedrooms, in addition to the master bedroom. We can make ourselves comfortable.”

  “No.” Pearl looks exasperated. And angry.

  “No? Who put you in charge?”

  “I did. At the lake?”

  Yeah, I remember back at the lake. She was all decked out in that gorgeous swimsuit, and then she tied me up and nearly blew my head off. It wasn’t my greatest moment.

  “We’re not splitting up. We’ll sleep here on the floor. I don’t trust this woman you won’t tell us anything about. I thought Sapphiri weren’t supposed to have girlfriends.”

  “I do.”

  “You do what?”

  “I do both. I trust her, and she’s my girlfriend.”

  Pearl looks around the room uncertainly. “You’re so strange, Bob. Something is definitely off about this place. She just said we could stay here? Just like that? How long were you together?”

  “Are you serious? I lived here for years.”

  Pearl has searched every nook and cranny. Her eyes have explored ten times more of this house than mine ever have.

  Pearl shakes her head, and she doesn’t laugh. “Yeah. Why would a woman put a video game player in her front room and never play it?”

  I shrug. “For the guy she liked. We loved each other.”

  Pearl smirks and shakes her head. “No way. This house is immaculate. No woman in her right mind would go to all the trouble to decorate a house and then contaminate the front room with a gaming system. She wanted something from you. When you were together, did she ask you a lot of questions?”

  “She was my girlfriend, of course she asked me a lot of questions.”

  Pearl swears. “We’ll all sleep in here. Brit, you get the couch.”

  No one argues about that. Brit deserves any pampering she can get. She’s been through a lot. I watch as she limps to the couch and lies down, putting her head on a pillow.

  And to think that I gave the order to kill this girl. She’s not dangerous. I’m glad she survived the virus. Even though I had to abandon my life and run all the way across the country and start taking orders from a woman who wants me to sleep on the floor in front of the door in a house that’s practically my own. I’m still glad. Brit isn’t dead, and I’m going to see Cassi tomorrow.

  Things are different.

  Pearl settles on the floor next to Brit and rolls out her sleeping bag. She positions her gun next to her pillow.

  “Really? You’re going to sleep with your gun?” This girl is crazy. “I thought girls were supposed to sleep with teddy bears.”

  “And you’ve found yet another reason for me not to trust this woman.” She glares at me and lies down. Nosy girl. She’s uncovered every one of Cassi’s secrets. Not that Cassi has secrets, but Pearl’s found them.

  I bought that teddy bear for Cassi. She slept with it every night after that. I’m surprised she didn’t take it with her to visit her father. She used to take it on every trip she went on.

  I shut out the light and lie on the floor. It’s hard and cold and this is ridiculous. I wait until I finally hear everyone breathing deeply. I crawl across the floor and into the bed in the master bedroom. Pearl can sleep on the floor if she wants to, but that doesn’t mean I will.

  I have a terrible time falling asleep, though. Even though the bed is familiar, it smells dusty. The dusty smell doesn’t make sense—Cassi never visits her father for very long. Still, I toss and turn with memories and worries. What if something happened to her? What does it mean if she’s been gone for a while?

  Finally, I force myself to calm down and think about driving. That gets me drowsy.

  Right before I doze off, I hear a squeak. I know that squeak. It’s the screen door at the front of the house.

  Someone is outside.

  A click, and the front door opens. It isn’t as loud, but it does squeak. Cassi never did get the squeak fixed. I even bought WD40 for her, but she wouldn’t let me do it—she had something against me and housework.

  Who could be here?

  Cassi? My heart gets a little fast. She said she wouldn’t be here until tomorrow, but I wouldn’t complain if her timing wasn’t quite right.

  I get out of bed and tiptoe to the hallway. A silhouette fills the doorway. It’s not Cassi. It’s a man, and he’s too big to be Cassi. What is he doing in Cassi’s house? Why didn’t Cassi tell me she might have visitors? She wanted me to meet him myself?

  I wait in the hallway and watch, wishing I, too, had left my gun next to my pillow. I look longingly at my bag sitting next to the door. Next to the guy who just walked into the house. Like he lives here.

  The man takes out a small light and shines it around the room. When he looks down the hall, I slip back into the shadows and avoid the light.

  Should I shout? Make a fuss?

  The man pulls out a gun.

  No shouting.

  The man maneuvers around the squeaky board and into the house.

  Rotten luck. It has to be rotten luck—how could he have known about the squeaky board?

  He’s left himself completely exposed with his back to me now. I tiptoe down the hall. He takes a few steps towards Pearl and Brit. His gun is trained on them.

  One wrong move, and I’ll be dead. I could run away, but that would result in the death of all my companions.

  The man is standing over Pearl now. He’s reaching for her gun.

  I’m out of the kitchen and into the doorway of the entry room.

  He’s aiming at her as he slowly bends over to get her gun.

  Even though I’m still three strides away from the man, I yell. He spins, and I rush forward. With just a few strides, I’ll tackle him before he can figure out where I am. But, my plan doesn’t work. At the sound of my voice, Ler jumps up, and my foot hits his head. The trip sends me into a face-first fall onto the floor. A bullet whizzes over my head, and a window shatters behind me.

  I grab the man’s foot. He swears and kicks me in the forehead with his other foot. A bullet buries itself in the floor next to my head.

  Another shot.

  But this time, the man slumps to the ground.

  Pearl.

  I push the thin man off me and manage to stand up. Pearl turns the lights on. The man she killed is lying on the floor in a pool of blood. Dead. He looks the part of a League agent. Blond hair. I pop a contact out of his eye.

  Blue.

  For a moment, as I ponder the man’s blue eye, I’m filled with grief. Was this my brother? Is he someone I would have known in another life? In another world?

  But there are other questions to consider, too. Like, for example, how did he know we were here?

  Pearl is already pulling me out of the house. I guess we’re leaving now. That’s probably a good thing, but it also means I won’t get to see Cassi. Disappointment thicker than maple syrup starts through my veins.

  Ler runs down the stairs behind me, cradling Brit in his arms. Seconds later, Pearl slams the car into drive and we rocket out of the neighborhood.

  “How did he find us?” I say as Pearl races down the hill and banks hard onto Long Drive.

  “You made a phone call to Cassi.”

  “No way that’s it. Why would they have her phone bugged?”

  Pearl reaches into her pocket and hands me a crumpled paper. “I searched through her whole house and didn’t find anything amiss. Except dust. I don’t think she’s been there for months. Years, maybe. But, I did find that paper at the bottom of the recycle bin.”

  I look at the paper. It’s stained red, probably from spaghetti cans. Cassi always loved spaghetti. Lights flash by as we get on the freeway and head away from the city—enough to read by. The paper has an address on it and some scribbles at the bottom. Trevor’s recruit for First Base main research.

  The text is surprisingly like a Sapphiri code. First Base, especially. First Base is supposed to be in Pittsburgh. Is
it possible that this note was for Cassi? I don’t recognize the address, but maybe this note was meant for me.

  But why was it at the bottom of the recycle bin? Why does it look so old?

  “Who was Cassi?” Pearl asks.

  I stare out at the dark forests and the bright green signs as they flash by. A raccoon scurries along the side of the road. I think of Cassi, her blonde hair and cute smile. The way she depended on me for everything. The way tears dripped down her face when I left her.

  Could she have gotten caught up in this?

  “She never told me about her past,” I say. “Her dad lives in Texas, and her mom’s in France. We just hung out together and ignored the world around us.”

  Pearl swears and keeps driving.

  15 Abhor

  Lydia

  I’m sick of being in this castle. All. The. Time.

  Karl’s probably right that it’s dangerous out there. I get it. Ever since I saw the look in Vinnie’s father’s eyes when I told him I was an Azurean. People don’t like me. They don’t trust me. I’m doing some good, but I don’t know how much. The reports I get are limited, and I’m not even sure what to ask in order to get a real answer.

  I need some real live data. I need to get out of this castle. I need a breath of fresh air.

  Karl would say no, and so would Quint. Neither of them have left the castle since we got here, either. Quint hasn’t seen Vinnie for over a month now.

  That leaves me one person I can ask. Somrusee. She still goes out every day to teach, assess the city, and distribute information to people who can read. It’s time we skipped a lesson on how to be queenly and try to find some of those ladies in waiting that Karl promised he would find for me. Or at least figure out what is going on in the city.

  I step out of my luxurious bath, which is the size of the room Vinnie’s entire family lives in, and shake my head. I’m an aristocrat. I’m holed up in a castle, and I live in luxury. Maybe this is what power is supposed to be, but maybe it’s not. I wasn’t in college very long, but I was there long enough to learn about the French Revolution.

  People don’t always like powerful people. Most of the time, they don’t like them at all.