Dalla walked into the smoky bar at Constellation House, looking for Tortha Karf's comforting presence. She was still exhausted out from her visit with her brother, Tharn. She paused to take out a cigarette and three different men approached her to light it. She smiled graciously and used her own lighter. Verkan would have been proud.
"Over here, Dalla." She heard Tortha's familiar and comforting gravely voice.
She sat down at the booth and asked the robot bartender for a bourbon and cola. Unlike most First Level citizens, Dalla preferred the unobtrusive mechanical servants to the status enhancing proles that many of her contemporaries preferred. Possibly, it was because her adopted Sister, Zinganna, was a former prole, but she liked to think it was that she had more respect for outtime people than to use them as personal servants, no matter what the cachet.
Tortha was wearing breeches and a well-filled civilian tunic; his hair was streaked with gray and thinning in front. He was too practical and too much a stick-in-the-mud to have a hair treatment. He reminded Dalla of a big old cross bear, with a soft heart. She offered him a cigarette and was surprised to note that instead of a lighter he used one of the peculiar Kalvan time-line flint tinderboxes to light it. She wondered if it was significant, he probably missed palling around with Verkan and the other boys.
"Thanks, Tortha, for coming to see me on such short notice. I know you just arrived from Fifth Level, but Verkan's so busy and I really need-"
"It's all right, Dalla. You can stop blathering. I take it you've just come back from another visit with your lovely younger brother."
"How did you know?"
"Hadron Tharn is the only person I know, besides your husband, who can break through your impenetrable good humor. And, since I've stopped my meddling, you and Verkan have been happier than I can ever remember."
"That wasn't all your fault, Tortha. I could have turned down some of those assignments. In those days I was younger and didn't realize how rare it is to meet a man of Verkan's caliber. I do now and I don't ever intend to forget it, or chance losing him again."
"Good. I don't have to tell you that I agree with you wholeheartedly. Now, tell me, what's the problem with Honorable Hadron Tharn?"
"I don't know he's nastier than ever. I've overlooked his tantrums and mean behavior for years. He was always jealous of Verkan, you know. Before Verkan, he was such a sweet boy."
"Whoa. Now, wait a minute, Dalla. Is this the same Hadron Tharn, I knew? The one who burned your house down? And that was years before you met Vail."
"Yeah, well, maybe I exaggerated a bit. But, his personality took a real nose dive after Verkan came into the picture."
"Dalla, that might be because Verkan was the first man you really fell in love with."
"True," Dalla said, trying not to blush.
"I think Tharn's problems are deeper than mere sibling jealousy. Yes, I know you both were left to fend for yourselves, after your mother went outtime. Your father was always too busy to spend any time at home. He bedeviled the Department as Chief of the Opposition Party. It may sound horrible, but I was neither surprised or disappointed when the Bureau of Psych-Hygiene decided to put him in 'protective' custody."
Dalla felt her eyes begin to well again.
"Sorry, Dalla, damn this tongue of mine. I didn't mean to stick a soft spot."
"It's not father I'm feeling bad about; it's Tharn. Today, I finally saw him for the spoiled, mean, horrible little man that he's become. He's not a boy anymore, flirting with danger and oddball cults. He's a devious and-sadly-unprincipled grown-up, who I really don't know at all. If anything, I think he's…"
"You don't have to say it. I know all about your family."
"I know," Dalla said sadly, "Insanity runs through our family."
"Yes, and no."Tortha replied.
"What do you mean?"
"It always begins in the early thirties after the first longevity treatments. The longevity serum may well be the trigger."
"How do you know?"
Tortha looked very uncomfortable. "After your first compionate marriage with Verkan went sour, I decided to do a deep background check when I learned you two were getting back together. I also learned that the Psych-Hygiene people told this very thing to your brother and he disregarded it. It happened while he was at the University just before he got involved with those awful Axis people and got expelled for going outtime without a proper Paratime Permit. He knew that subsector was proscribed-"
"You don't have to defend yourself to me, Tortha. It was Tharn's decision to spend time with those terrible Nazis people. It wasn't your fault he got caught! He still looks up to them, you know; that's one of the reasons I believe he's insane himself. There, I've finally said it-admitted it to myself. He's as mad as grandfather and it scares me."
"That's not all that scares you, is it?"
"Tortha, you can see right through me! This is a secret I've never shared with anyone, not even Vail. Promise you won't ever tell."
"I promise, Dalla, you have my word."
"Good. There's no better bond. I'm worried about my own children becoming like Tharn or my father or his grandfather, well-you get the picture. I love children, but I'm afraid to have any of my own. Look at the horrible choice I have to offer: be sane and die soon, or live long and go crazy!"
Tortha shook his head. "That's not what I was expecting. I thought you might be worried about yourself."
"No. The family curse only strikes the males in our family; probably one reason why they marry so badly."
"That I didn't know. You could always adopt, and there are ways to guarantee birth sex."
"Sure, and give my daughters the same terrible choice I'm having to make! I won't do it."
"You could adopt, or get a surrogate mother, or clones of you and Verkan. Today on Home Time-Line there are lots of choices."
"Yes, I know. But I want children from me-like Rylla and Kalvan are having. Still, the clone idea isn't bad. It would be nice to have a little Verkan around, one I could actually house train."
Tortha laughed. "Good luck. You can see how successful I was with the original."
Dalla laughed, too, feeling as though a terrible weight had moved from her shoulders. It was almost like having a father, talking with Tortha. "If you've made a study of the Hadron family, I guess you know the family secret too."
Tortha nodded, not saying a word.
"Does Verkan?"
Tortha shrugged. "I've never brought it up. I always believed if anyone should tell it, it would have to be you."
"Thank you, you old bear!"
Tortha actually blushed when she reached over and kissed him on the cheek.
"Should I tell him, Tortha?"
"That's for you to decide. It won't change his feelings for you that I know. Or I'm a complete romantic idiot."
Dalla laughed. "I will, I promise. But not now; poor Verkan, already has more problems than any three people I know; well, except for Kalvan and Rylla-and poor Ptosphes, of course. He still blames himself for the defeat at Tenabra."
"Not his fault; he was up against Styphon's heavy troops; and he's no Kalvan. But, my advice to you, young lady, is, don't wait too long. Secrets are burdens and no one understands that better than myself."
Dalla nodded. Tortha had spent almost half of his life protecting the Paratime Secret, and many times from the very people he was trying to protect. Now, her Verkan held the same untenable position.
To change the subject, she asked, "What are you doing here so far away from your farm?"
Tortha shook his big head. "It was getting boring, maybe I'm not cut out to be a farmer. And those rabbits!"
Dalla smiled mischievously, "That's not what I heard from Verkan. He told me about your nieces and their swimming lessons!"
Tortha blushed right down to his hair follicles. "Dralm damn-it! That blabber mouth!"
"Don't blame Verkan, I weaseled it out of him. Why did you really come?"
"Oh, you want the real reason as opposed to the fit for broadcast story. The truth is Dalla; I'm bored out of my skull. I'm tired of trapping rabbits and gophers. I'm tired of grapes and silly young girls. I'm tired of myself, I don't wear well; just ask any of my six former wives! I've spent the last three hundred years of my life doing important work and I'm still too young for the scrap heap. I came back here to help Verkan, if I can, or just help myself, if I can't."
"I understand. And, really, Tortha, Verkan needs all the help he can get. I've never seen him so 'involved' with an outtimer as he is with Kalvan-not that I blame him, I adore Kalvan and Rylla is already my best friend. Now he's fretting because he's stuck dealing with this Europo-American shutdown project of his! I've been going to all these meetings and I can tell you it's going nowhere. Can you pump him some sunlight on the issue, Chief?"
"Ex-Chief-really Dalla," Tortha said, trying to hide a big grin.
"Sure, but you'll always be Chief to me. Anyway, Europo-American has become the public 'Sector;' it's been that way since they brought back jazz and flappers. You know how these outtime fads run; everyone was Indo-Turanian crazy when I was a girl. I still remember practicing yoga, wearing a turban and those tantric exercises, although those still come in handy with Vail."
Tortha turned pink again.
She smacked him on the shoulder, playfully. "You've been with those nieces of yours for too long, Tortha. Anyway, it's gotten worse ever since rock and racket became popular. Remember when every nightclub had to have their own 'Elvis?"
"What a headache for the Paracops! They were hi-jacking them from every subsector where that crazy noise was still undiscovered. For a while we had to guard that dumb hillbilly truck driver on a thousand time-lines. I'm still surprised we never designated an Elvis Subsector!"
"Verkan's really never paid it any attention, because he doesn't hear or see what he doesn't like. I can't get through to my husband, because he's a snob-and I mean that lovingly-he just doesn't realize that everyone on Home Time-Line doesn't have his class or taste. Well, it's worse here now, since the Beatles. Not the insects, it's another noisy Europo-American singing combo. They're even noisier and louder than Elvis, if that's possible. And then there are the flat screen films and film stars-Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart, and now James Dean-and art deco and all sorts of nonsense. Europo-American is-to paraphrase one of their aphorisms-the "cat's pajamas" and if Verkan doesn't quit this silly crusade of his he's going to derail his job and possibly the Paratime Police along with him."
"Wow!" Tortha replied. "Dalla, you've just given me a needler shot of reality. Maybe we have the wrong Chief! I'm even worse than Verkan, when it comes to these crazes. And I never had any children, except you two-by proxy, of course-to teach me any different. I'll try to talk Verkan into holding off on this shutdown for a few decades until all this Europo-American sheep-dip becomes old hat. It will; I've seen half a dozen of these crazes just since I've been Chief. Meanwhile, you stay on top of these committees and study groups."
"Good. I need something to keep me occupied while Verkan's glued to his Chief's chair. But what about you? What are you going to do?"
"Dalla, I don't know. Hang around the office, I guess, until Vail throws me out."
"Well, I know some other people who need some help. And you would definitely be an asset to them."
"Really. Who?"
"Rylla and Kalvan."
"I'm an ex-Paratimer. I can't deal in contamination-"
"Oh, stop being so huffy, Tortha. Hear me out. Sometimes you remind me so much of Verkan. The two of you! Anyway, you could give them moral support and be a Dutch uncle. I'm sure Verkan could come up with a suitable disguise. And don't tell me you're not interested-I see that smile."
"Dalla, that might be a very good idea. I'm curious about Kalvan and his lady, Rylla, that I've heard so much about. I would like to meet them. And, with this Styphon's House Crusade, it sure won't be boring!"
"Tortha, you've just said a mouthful!" They both laughed.