“You know, I’ve been thinking the same thing. I saw Dool on the television, with that study of hers. That was your idea?”
“Yes, sir, but it didn’t work.”
“I knew it wouldn’t. If there’s anything stupider than athletes, it’s the trash who bet on them. Okay, take a break, but keep an eye on the odds. You still have to show up for the games, of course, so you can lose in public, but if you want to cut a few training sessions, feel free.”
“Thank you sir. I appreciate that. I need a rest.”
“You’re welcome. Have you heard anything about Kodo?”
“No sir. I’ve asked a few discreet questions about him, when I could work it into a conversation, but Kodo seems to have left the planet.”
“I doubt it. Even the Sky Pilots wouldn’t take that pile of burning trash. Dismissed.”
* * *
Kren left the athletic center early, thinking about a good meal and a long sleep. Dol and Bronki were not home when he got there, so he phoned Bronki’s store to order up a child to eat.
“Yes, sir! And what size did you want?” a pleasant voice on the phone answered back.
This was actually Kren’s first contact with the store. Normally, Dol handled this sort of thing for him.
“Well, what sizes do you have?”
“The standard size is our ‘Perfect Party Snack’ series, which run from five dozen to seven dozen pounds. They go for two pounds per Ke. If you have a larger group, or are really, really hungry, the ‘Belly Busters’ go up to a gross pounds or even more at three pounds per Ke. Or for a more intimate party, you can buy a ‘Munchkin’ as small as two dozen pounds, at a pound and a half per Ke,” the cheerful voice said. “There is also our ‘Special Selection’ series, but you have to come down here personally and make your selection. They run as high as a pound per Ke.”
“That’s interesting. I think I’ll come down there.”
“I’ll be waiting for you!”
Since the outlet was directly below him, he was in the store in a few minutes. He was the only customer there, and with only a single shop girl in attendance.
“It’s rather quiet here,” Kren said.
“Well, this is early on a Tuesday afternoon, sir. Come here on a Friday night, and you’ll find a long line of customers and two dozen shop girls worn to a frazzle! Oh my! You’re Kren, aren’t you! The famous athlete!”
“I’m guilty of that, yes. It’s a rough job, but somebody has to do it.” Kren found his fans to be annoying, and tried to avoid them. “You were going to show me this ‘Special Selection’ thing?”
“Yes, sir. You know, I always bet on you!”
“Yes, and you lose money doing it, just like everybody else.”
“Yes, I suppose that I do. But it’s so much fun, cheering you on, that I can’t help myself. There’s a gang of us who get together every Saturday, at the arenas or around a television set, on the away games. And sometimes I win.”
“You can have no idea how depressing it is to cost my supporters money. But so many of you are betting so much on me that it drives the odds down!”
“Yes, I read something about that in a magazine. But you shouldn’t let it bother you. It’s our money, after all.”
“It bothers me anyway, and I wish you’d all stop doing it. Now, show me these ‘Specials.’ ”
The shop girl led Kren into a large room with about two dozen youngsters on display. About half were in attractive cages, some were clamped down on party tables, and the rest were held vertically, standing with their feet fastened on top of short pedestals, and with their arms clamped to the wall.
All sizes were represented, and these particularly attractive children had all been carefully washed and then coated with a light layer of oil, which made them glisten nicely. The spotlights on them glowed warmly.
A smaller one caught his eye. She was a lovely little thing, looking eagerly at him as she stood on her pedestal with her back to the wall.
He ran his hand gently down her side, and checked the flesh on her buttocks. She actually smiled at him.
“How much is this one?” Kren asked.
“She weighs five dozen and three pounds, and goes for a pound and a half per Ke. That’s three dozen and six Ke, sir.”
“I’ll take her.”
“Very good, sir. Did you want a box to put her in?”
“Does that cost extra?”
“No, but there’s an eight Ke deposit on the box. You will get that back when you return it.”
That was twice what they were paying for the things new, and Kren thought that to be proper.
The Mitchegai, with their long-term outlook on things, do not go in for disposable packaging, as a rule. Everything is carefully recycled.
“Well, I live just upstairs from here, and this one seems pretty gentle, so I’ll forego the box.” Kren gave her his credit card.
“Oh! You live at Bronki’s address! I’d better check something.” She checked quickly at a list behind the counter. “Yes, you are listed as a ‘Friend of Bronki’s.’ ”
“How much extra do I have to pay for that privilege?”
“Nothing, silly! Excuse me. I mean, sir. No, you get a dozen per gross discount,” she said.
She deducted the proper amount from his card and returned it, along with a receipt. “Before you go, could I have your autograph?”
“Are you going to stop betting on me?”
“No, sir.”
“Then you won’t get an autograph. Unlock the child I just bought,” Kren said.
As she did so, he petted his purchase to make sure that she was calm. He lifted her off the pedestal and put his hand gently around her neck, his claws almost touching, to be certain that the naked little child wouldn’t try to run away. She walked obediently with him back up to Bronki’s apartment, sometimes looking up at him and smiling. She even waited trustingly while he let go of her to get his card out to unlock the door.
Once inside, he let her take a long drink of water from the fountain, and once again, she smiled at him.
A fine, gentle child, Kren thought.
A human might have considered keeping her as a pet, but Kren, of course, wasn’t human.
A few hours later, he expanded his earlier thought to, A fine, gentle, and delicious child!
And she had screamed so nicely when he ate her alive. When alone, Kren preferred to dispense with the civilized niceties like knives and branding irons, and to just chew his meat right off the bone, the way he did when he was a slave in the mines.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
FROM CAPTURED HISTORY TAPES,
FILE 1846583A ca. 1832 a.d.
BUT CONCERNING EVENTS OF UP TO
2000 YEARS EARLIER
Tunneling to War
Losing a match didn’t bother Kren, since he got no joy from winning one. If anything, it was a bonus, since he didn’t have to show up at the awards ceremonies, and thus he had his Sundays free.
After five weeks of relaxing, and paying more attention to the business than to his academic and athletic duties, the odds on Kren’s winning an event had gone up to between five and seven to one.
The posted odds were always just rough approximations. The actual payoffs were computed to six duodecimal places.
Kren told the director that he would win at the accuracy event.
He also planned to win at the distance event immediately afterward, but kept this a secret, except for telling Bronki and Dol. The close spacing between the events meant that very few betters would be able to wager on the second event, based on Kren’s performance in the first. The odds were not likely to go down much.
He made special arrangements with his bookie to have his winnings on accuracy to be bet automatically on distance, and since he was a very good customer, who had made the bookie a considerable fortune, this was readily agreed to.
The bookies did not care whether their customers won or lost. All bookies were tied into a planet-wide, computerized syndicate that shared out the wins and losses. The bookies took a nine per gross cut of all bets, wired the rest to the syndicate, which kept three per gross, and then distributed the pot, which was automatically wired back to the winners. The central syndicate didn’t know who bet what, but of course, the bookies did, and they all placed side bets of their own. However, they didn’t normally pass tips out for fear of reducing their own winnings.
Kren’s bookie had learned that it was wise to bet the way Kren was betting.
By delaying payment on his debts to the construction contractors, Kren was also able to bet over four billion of the corporation’s money on the double win.