The Grasshopper Read online

  Prince Kaella did not even consider the possibility that Miss Babe might not open the door to him if he decided to knock on it even tonight. And she wouldn’t have. Of course she would not allow for him to see her in plain nightgown. At one time, later, when she is safely anchored as Princess. And considering his great desire, if he were to knock right now, which was certainly possible, then she would…

  Babe smiled, creating in her head an entire scenario of what it would be like. Like, she was just ironing out the creases, bent over the bed, when she heard a knock.

  “Who is it?” she would ask, with a seemingly surprised and frightened voice, like one would expect of a girl alone in a hotel room, if a stranger were to knock on her door in the middle of the night.

  “Prince Kaella,” he would whisper.

  “Oh, Mr. Kaella!” she would shout out, in a voice that would lose the tone of fear, but would contain a stronger note of surprise, with a mild, initial note of typical female excitement.

  “You’re not sleeping, Miss Babe?”, Prince would ask.

  “I was just about to, Mr. Kaella”.

  “May I come in?”

  “Come in? What do you mean? I’m not dressed. I always sleep in the nude, Mr. Kaella.”

  Babe giggled out loud, imagining him panting in the hallway, completely shocked by this statement of hers.

  “I understand… well… put something on.”

  “Why, Mr. Kaella? Has something happened? Is your dad feeling unwell?”

  “Hm, no, no… I just wanted…”

  “What? Tell me.”

  “Well… I must see you.”

  “We’ll see each other in the morning, Mr. Kaella.”

  “I know… I know that, but… I can’t wait.”

  “What can’t you wait for, Mr. Kaella?”

  “I… I… long for you so much.”

  “Mr. Kaella! Tomorrow is an important day. Millions of people across the Earth will be watching the interview with you and your father. I have to be focused and I cannot give in to… Go now, please.”

  “What can’t you give in to?”

  At this point she would be silent and with that silence she would show Prince how much she reprimanded herself for foolishly betraying and revealing her immense feelings for him. Of course he would repeat the question.

  “What can’t you give in to? Tell me… please.”

  “Mr. Kaella, this really isn’t the time for such conversations. In any case, someone might hear us and tell your dad. We cannot upset him in any way before the interview. I’m sure you agree with this, right?”

  “Well… yes,” Prince said gloomily.

  “And after the interview, Mr. Kaella…”

  “What after the interview? What? Tell me… tell me…”

  “I mean, if you want to, at all…”

  “If I want to?! If I want to?!”

  “Quite. Quiet, Mr. Kaella.”

  “What after the interview? Tell me already!”

  “Then I will open my door to you and allow you to come in, Mr. Kaella.”

  “It’s a pity that he is so shy and intimidated, and he doesn’t dare knock. Boy, what I would do to him.”

  Chapter 15

  That night the new president of Earth, Erivan, did not sleep either. As soon as he went to bed he lay on his side and tried to go to sleep. But it didn’t work, he was too excited.

  “Finally…” he thought, raising his large body and leaning back on the arched backboard, “…finally… after twenty-five years of being vice president.”

  During that period he had also held the office of President, on several occasions, when Kaella would get angry enough and stopped being surprised that these grown men were taking their function of president seriously, and they would start thinking on their own and making decisions.

  Then under order from Kaella, Erivan would eliminate the incumbent President, making use of media campaigns and court cases, and in line with the Constitution he would take his place pending early elections, and after that he would again retreat to the position of vice president. Into the shadows of the loyal guardian of Humane Capitalism.

  But this time it wasn’t so. And it would never be again. In the past several years Erivan had been under a lot of stress and it took its toll on his health, because Kaella did not take his warnings seriously. From time to time Kaella would not even read his reports on Pascal Alexander’s activities and would tell him that he was exaggerating. Alexander had succeeded in creating a strong Non-Consumer movement. They had taken power in entire cities and on all the continents. They had taken factories, started their own production of goods.

  When he realized Alexander’s strength, Erivan stopped realistically and truthfully reporting to Kaella. It was probably his smartest, one might even say his ingenious decision. He allowed Alexander and the Non-Consumers to produce their own weapons and waited for the right opportunity. He waited for the moment when Kaella would no longer have any choice and when he would have to chose to finally put an end to the Non-Consumers. This sixty-two percent support for Alexander, which Erivan had shown to Kaella only now, on the eve of the elections, had finally sobered up the old and naïve ruler. He accepted the proposal for them to carry out an assassination of Xing, when he goes tomorrow by car to give his election speech, here in Capital City, and to blame the Non-Consumers for it.

  And he had done well to have already killed the Xings. Zodiac, the pilot of the stolen Non-Consumer plane, told him that their rockets were not a hundred percent accurate. If the first projectiles were to miss or only graze the presidential car, one of the Xings might run out and escape. Why should he take such a risk if the family was within his reach the entire time?

  “Now it’s really enough, Mr. President,” Erivan said to himself out lout, smiling because of the “Mr. President”. “Don’t torture yourself with things that are no longer important. Rest. Starting tomorrow numerous statesman and wartime duties await you as President and Supreme Commander of the Inspectorate.

  He got up out of bed and went to the bathroom. He got a box of sleep medication from the cabinet, took one pill, greeted himself in the mirror with a dignified bow, and returned to bed.

  Chapter 16

  “What am I doing?” thought Pascal Alexander, removing his forehead from the window. “I’m watching footage as though I don’t know what I will say tomorrow? After all these years I don’t know what I will tell the people?

  “Well I won’t tell them anything more! Let them kill me tomorrow! I want them to kill me. Please, Kaella, don’t steal the elections, kill me… please. If you won’t, let your son kill me. He won’t give me his Megapolis. Your Erivan will kill me… if you won’t, Kaella. Kill me… anyone… please.”

  “I didn’t do this because of the people. I did this for myself. It was I that couldn’t stand you. I need freedom. Why did you challenge me? Why did you make me into a leader? Why did you bring me to this damn Megapolis? Why did you make me meet her? Why did your Seneca listen to her and place Megapolis before my feet?

  “You are right, Svetlana. About everything you told me tonight. Forgive me, Svetlana, but I’m so in…”

  “Do you see it, Manami… do you see it with you brief look? And why do you look at me at all? Why do you torture me, when you cannot be mine?!”

  Pascal ran out of the room and took the elevator down to the reception.

  “Mr. Alexander, what has happened?” a scared young man and young woman at the desk asked.

  “Nothing, nothing… I’m just a little tense… do you have any alcohol?”

  “Of course, we’ll get some from the bar. What do you want?”

  “Tequila. Get me a tequila. Bring the bottle…”

  “Immediately,” said the girl and ran off towards the bar.

  “And three glasses,” Pascal shouted after her. “You’ll have some too, please,” Pascal told the young man. “I simply can’t be alone tonight.”

  Chapter 17

  “I’ll
go up to my suite to rest,” Mr. Kaella told Prince and Miss Babe, already leaning with both shaky hands on the armrests.

  Prince nodded to the two bodyguards who rushed up to Mr. Kaella, held him under his arms, pulled back his chair and helped him up.

  “See my father to his suite and stay in front of his door,” Prince ordered them.

  “Both of us?” one of the bodyguards asked.

  “Yes. I won’t be needing you, and in any case – there’s a lobby full of inspectors.”

  “As you wish, Mr. Kaella.”

  Prince and Babe remained alone, sitting across from each other at a large oval table set up in the middle of the completely empty hotel dining room. They had barely touched the variety of food served in silver dishes. Prince summoned the waiter without taking his eyes off of Babe.

  “Yes, Mr. Kaella?”

  “Please, take this away…” Prince made a circular motion above the table, “and bring us… Are you for coffee?... or perhaps some juice, Miss Babe?”

  “No, thank you, nothing. I’ve had too much of everything. It’s time for me to go.”

  “Go? Already?” Prince looked at the waiter, who was waiting for his order. “Bring us two coffees.”

  “Immediately, Mr. Kaella.”

  “But, Mr. Kaella…” Babe protested.

  “Miss Babe, I really don’t see any reason for you to rush… unless you feel uncomfortable in my company.”

  “I’m not uncomfortable in your company,” Babe answered seriously, without any coquetry. “However…”

  Babe was silent, while four waiters, under the watchful eye of the maître ‘d, took away the dishes, plates, cups, glasses, silverware and napkins from their table.

  “Please, continue,” said Prince, once the waiters had gone.

  “You know, this breakfast of ours has gotten pretty long. I didn’t expect that.”

  “I know. But you saw yourself.. my father wanted to go through all the questions with you once more. Please understand him.”

  “I understand, I understand… certainly. But I have obligations.”

  Prince waited for them to be served the coffee and then asked:

  “But what obligations? Now everything is being done by the members of your team: technicians, cameramen, the director… Miss Babe, I listened very carefully when you explained to me how your show is produced. All you need to do is get to the studio fifteen minutes before the show time. What are you hiding from me?”

  “I obviously don’t have a choice. I have to tell you, otherwise you won’t allow me to leave, right?”

  “I won’t allow you. You can be certain of that. Now just admit everything.”

  Babe sighed and said:

  “Mr. Kaella, an entire team of people of various profiles have been waiting for me in the adjacent hotel for an hour already.”

  “Why?”

  “Well… to touch me up for the interview.”

  “Really? I thought that you will… that you’re already touched up. Although it seemed a little too, how would I say it… conservative. But I thought that you chose such a style for my elderly father. Although, on the other hand… your viewers are not used to seeing you like this.”

  “Mr. Kaella, I’m leaving this instant,” Babe said, already getting up from the table. “Some procedures, treatments take some time. Forgive me, please, I’m getting nervous…”

  Prince also got up, and looked at her with a smile.

  “With all due respect to your father… and today I don’t really care what my viewers are used to. I’m getting touched up for you, if you really want to know! Now I’ve lost the element of surprise and I’m very angry because of that!”

  Babe abruptly turned spun around and started walking briskly towards the dining room exit. Prince ran after her, got around her and stood in front of her.

  “Miss Babe,” said Prince, eating her up with his eyes.

  “Yes?” Babe asked angrily.

  “I have reserved a superb restaurant, I mean the entire restaurant, just for the two of us, tonight… with candles. Will you…”

  “If you wish so after the interview.”

  “If I wish so?!”

  “Mr. Kaella, you know how to rule the world but you have no idea how much time it takes a woman to prepare for… please, let me pass.”

  Prince watched as her curves strained the fabric of the slim conservative skirt, as she walked away, at almost a running pace.

  Chapter 18

  “Pascal, wake up! Pascal!” shouted Raul Bukowski, the head of Pascal’s electoral staff, while pounding on the door of his room.

  “Here, here… take it easy, Raul,” said Pascal, getting up from his bed, fully dressed and hung over.

  He went to the door and unlocked it. Raul, a small stocky man nearing sixty years of age, stepped into the room.

  “Where’s Svetlana?” he asked.

  “She’s gone,” Pascal responded, while locking the door.

  “Without goodbye?”

  “Don’t be angry at her.”

  “You got drunk because of Svetlana?” Raul questioned him.

  “Yes… everyone is probably talking about it… What time is it?” asked Pascal, passing his hands over his face.

  “Nine.”

  “Nine? Why are you waking me so early? In any case, why are you still here? You haven’t decided to stay in Megapolis, have you? You have no obligations to me anymore.”

  “We have no obligations to you anymore?” said Raul staring furiously at Pascal. “Shame on you! You think that we did all this because of some obligation to you? At any rate, how do you dare say something like that? I don’t allow you to insult such wonderful people from our team.”

  “Forgive me, Raul, forgive me, please… I didn’t mean it like that… you know that I didn’t… my head hurts… Wait here. Let me wash my face… to get… to come to my senses. You burst in like that…” said Pascal in a hoarse voice, while closing the bathroom door behind him.

  After ten minutes, washed and shaven, he came up to Raul, who was standing at the window watching the workers taking down the stage in the square. An echelon of inspectors in helmets and carrying shields prevented angry protesters from approaching the stage, the hotel and the television station.

  “Get away from the window,” Raul said, turning towards him and pushing him deeper into the room. “Sit on the bed. Here, in this blind spot,” he said pointing at the pillow.

  “You’re overreacting, Raul,” said Pascal, who sat on the bed anyway.

  “I’m not overreacting. This window might already be in the sights of one of Erivan’s snipers.”

  “It might…” Pascal whispered.

  Raul sat down next to him and patted him in a friendly manner on the knee.

  “Come on, Pascal. Our entire team is already in the lobby. They’re waiting for me to bring you down. The mayor will send a bus which will take us safely to the airport. And there’s an airplane waiting for us. We can fly away wherever we want. I recommend a smaller city, one that is completely in our hands. An old decrepit one, one that Prince Kaella is not interested in. We can’t provoke him anymore. Hmm? What do you say?”

  “There, there… I agree. That’s wise… go.”

  Raul took a deep sigh, got up off the bed and looked at Pascal.

  “We should go? Without you?”

  “Yes. Why are you torturing me again, Raul? Do you think its easy for me to part with all of you? I told you clearly that I would hold that speech.”

  “How? The stage is being dismantled, people are being driven away. Who will you speak to?”

  “I don’t know. I’ll go out into the square and speak. To the inspectors if need be.”

  “Pascal, in all these years, how many times have we been driven out of some city?

  “Countless times.”

  “And what? Nothing. We continued on. And we returned to those cities a few months later, a year later, when our movement gained strength in them, when our people
took local power. So what’s the difference?”

  “This is Megapolis.”

  “I don’t believe you, Pascal. I don’t believe that you are being stubborn against Prince Kaella because of Megapolis. Those that want power are stubborn. And Pascal Alexander is not like that. I don’t believe you, Pascal. There’s something else going on. Svetlana, right? You’re disappointed and miserable because of her?”

  “Yes, because of her.”

  “Why? What happened? Liam reported to me that his guard in the lobby saw Svetlana leave the hotel, suitcase in hand, at dawn.”

  “She left me.”

  “Left you?” Raul was surprised, and then asked “Did you tell Svetlana what happened at Seneca’s place yesterday?”

  “I did.”

  “And you told her that you were still going to hold the speech?”

  “Yes.”

  “And it didn’t occur to you that she left only in order to make you go with her? To get you out of Megapolis?”

  “That’s not why she left.”

  Pascal stared at the floor the entire time, with his head hung low and speaking softly. He did not look up even once at Raul, who stood in front of him.

  “Pascal, excuse me, but I have to tell you. You too are not as young as you used to be. Svetlana is probably the first woman to leave you?”