Perchance to Dream by Peter Lukes

Author:Peter Lukes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Musa Publishing
Published: 2012-04-27T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

HER HANDGUN POISED TOWARD the open doorway, Margarite waited as the two sets of footsteps approached. She flinched the gun upward, aiming directly at the man turning the corner into Manuel’s study.

They faced each other for a brief moment of surprise, followed by recognition, followed by embarrassment.

“Margarite?” the man asked, as a uniformed officer bumped into him from the side. The officer hadn’t expected such an abrupt halt by his suited superior.

“Lieutenant,” she acknowledged, lowering and then quickly holstering her firearm.

“What’s going on?” he asked. “We’ve been looking for you.”

“I…I was just getting some of Manuel’s things. He…I…We—”

“Never mind,” the lieutenant said as he approached her. “I need you to know something. Your father. He’s in the hospital. I’m sorry, but you should hear it from me before you see it on the news. He had some sort of heart attack in his sleep, and they took him to the hospital a couple of hours ago.”

Margarite leaned against the desk as her eyes glazed over. “What?” she whispered.

The lieutenant pulled a Uni-Comm from his holster and slid it open, tapping a few buttons as he handed it to Margarite. The screen came to life, and the talking head of a journalist finished a traffic report before announcing the breaking news. “Senator Mark Vinsdale was rushed to Beth Israel Hospital this morning after suffering a seizure of some kind while sleeping at his Washington, D.C. townhouse. Official details have not been released, but he is reportedly unresponsive and listed in critical condition. Senator Vinsdale is best known for his work on the Senate Defense Committee and his commitment to national security issues.”

Margarite shut the Uni-Comm as the announcer continued with general material about her father’s career.

“I’m sorry, Margarite. We’ve been trying to reach you. You weren’t at your apartment when we rang. Why don’t you come with us?” the lieutenant suggested.

She turned, handed him his Uni-Comm, and slowly walked past him into the outer hall. Mentally, she had already left. First Manuel, and now her father. The emptiness inside was growing like a tumor. It was her duty to leave for Washington immediately and be by her father’s side, but that would leave Manuel alone at a time when he seemed most vulnerable to something that she was still in the midst of understanding.

Her deliberations ended abruptly when the sizzling sting of electricity pierced her neck. The current surged through the rest of her body and formed a tourniquet around her spine. Every fiber of every muscle seized and contracted. White fire enveloped her vision. She fell to the floor, limp as a ragdoll.

The uniformed officer gathered the wires that led from his stun gun to Margarite’s neck. He felt for a pulse and then handcuffed her wilted arms together behind her.

“Perhaps I wasn’t clear,” the lieutenant said, speaking down to the back of her prone body. “We insist that you come with us.”

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