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"Da?" Cade asked

"I ao up to the front door of the palace and knock on it for all the good this waiting around is doing us"

"That would be one approach," Cade said, "but I don’t think it would acco her ar"

Cade raised his eyebrows and looked like he had a suggestion, then clamped his mouth shut Instead, he rose and strode over to her He wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back "Let’s see what news Luke brings back"

She was too wound up to feel coht I just hope he returns soon"

A couple hours passed, and just as their supper was being delivered to their doorstep, Luke grabbed the tray from the startled servant, stepped inside, and booted the door shut behind hi room, he lifted the lid off the pot of the main course and an offensive odor wafted out "Oh, roaned

"Hoas the city?" Cade asked

Luke straightened "Very interesting as a matter of fact I have soan and Cade glanced at one another

"Well?" Cade asked

"From what I was able to pick up," Luke replied, "the emperor has awakened early"

A WAKING DREAM

"The ehast "Early?"

Luke nodded and began to dish hi around Or itready"

The professor had told Karigan that the emperor--Amberhill--slept at intervals of ten years He had not known the reasons for such extraordinary sleep periods, but he’d told her that the emperor’s wakeful periods were to be feared Even so, she was just as glad Trying to get answers out of a sleeping Amberhill would not have yielded much satisfaction

"But rumors," Cade said