What began as a simple handshake escalated into hugs, pats on the back, and long goodbyes for the couple departing the cabin..Soon the town of Blythe was behind them replaced by intermittent views of the Colorado River on their right and dry bed arroyos that ran horizontal to the 95 highway in a series of swells causing roller coaster effects in the pits of the travelers stomachs.

In the little town of Needles they fueled the bikes then merged with Arizona by way of interstate 40 east to Kingman where historic Route 66 offers an eastern trek through the mountain towns of Hackberry and Yampai..Nick and Michelle bear north via the 93 highway and as the road transferred the top of Hoover Dam they ping pong time zones for the second time today.

The semicircular seven hundred twenty six foot tall Seventh Wonder of the World wedged like a gigantic U between two mountains of semi-porous volcanic rock blocking the native waters of Colorado River forming Lake Mead. Four art deco designed intake towers embedded in the lake drain water that subsequently returns to the Colorado River bed through a series of ever narrowing penstocks forcing the flow to eighty miles per hour by the time it reaches the hydroelectric generating turbines below. The resulting electric energy produced is nearly two million megawatts..

The historic town of Boulder City was initially created to house construction workers during the Hoover Dam building project. Today it maintains itself as a tourist destination, ATV hot spot, and gateway to Lake Mead water sport recreation..

Michelle and Nick entered the township to long traffic lines of funeral progression. The area had been hit especially hard Thursday when a previously downloaded yet still un confiscated version of King of the World had been mistakenly loud blasted through a pick-up truck stereo by a group of teenagers on the outskirts of town...The sad mixture of mourning locals and indifferent Saturday afternoon tourist caused Nick and Michelle to push through the town and without stopping as previously planned..They followed the highway until it junction with interstate 15 north through Las Vegas making the Nevada-Utah border town of Mesquite their final destination for the day.

Herman Gilespie spent Saturday afternoon target practicing in a remote canyon fifty miles above Cedar City in southern Utah. On waking, his previous indifference toward the music business had morph into a festering resentment that grew inside him like a malignant brain tumor. He need only reflect momentarily on what now seemed a former life experience to acknowledge an uncontrollable discharge of rage grip the fiber of his being..For hours he fired shell after shell at inanimate objects honing his skill at the one hundred meter range intermittently resting the heated barrel of the rifle. In his mind's eye the pulse less quarries actually range from dancing fans to major record label executives, and with each shot escalate a ranting hatred that poured from his lips in an ancient dead tongue previously unknown to him. The power released through the weapon only succeeded to aggrandize his frenzy as opposed to what one in a more lucid state of psychology might discover a vent, unleashing pent up hostility through the action of a therapy. So intense was his communion with the malicious his physical form hitched and jerked in unnatural fashion as if an eruption of his soul sought a means of escape by punching through it's mortal inhabitation.

He had felt somewhat elated even after staring morosely for some time at his now fully exposed left foot when the Zoot Suit Man suddenly appeared beside him paying a visit. Herman cautiously considered he had somehow risen in the ranks of the Zoot Suit Man's expectation as it's demeanor expressed a near chummy friendliness..It stayed for a time giving a word or two of instruction for which Herman was eternally grateful. Over the course of the last twenty four hours Little Birdie's excessive chatting had all but ceased giving him the indication Little Birdie had been released of it's obligation leaving the Zoot Suit Man solely in charge.

At some point in the stay the Zoot Suit Man took in the visage of Herman and remark shaking it's fedora crowned head that the spell of invisibility was wearing down..

Not wishing to risk direct confrontation Herman had kept silent considering his current situation and was relieved when the being under the felt hat had finally taken notice. Over the last day's time, parts of his general anatomy and clothing previously cloaked were now exposed including his right hand and forearm, left foot, entire forehead and right eye, left cheek bone, and the seat of his pants.

Almost as an afterthought the Zoot Suit Man confided that the invisibility spell was finite in nature and could only be used once during the course of this mission..

Herman did not wish to make an issue of the matter but never the less made a mental note that a partially invisible person might be even more distractive to the general eye than a fully visible one..He decided his future travels should be carried out with that fact in mind.

Confirming once again in Herman's mind the Zoot Suit Man was in particularly good spirits, he listened intently as the dark shadow of face under the fedora spoke again breaking a sly smile..

"I came here today on a double fold purpose...Soon two of a species such as yours will pass this way mounted on motorcycles."

Herman knew better than to interrupt the Zoot Suit Man when speaking, however he bit against his lip a rising anticipation as the tan fedora bobbed in mimic response to the sound of the creatures voice.

"The male of the kind may perhaps represent a threat to my plans." It turned it's face to Herman's ear and the jaws dropped forming an elongated rim of black mouth from which it's next words reached deep into the soul of the man causing a convulsion of spastic reaction..

"They both are musicians."

Herman's voice took to itself a deep baritone that shook against the surrounding limestone cliffs as the guttural ancient language spilled from his vocal cords like a rushing tempest..

The Zoot Suit Man grinned in reaction to the human's response nodding satisfaction. (If one might take such liberty as to discern the mind of such a entity.)..The eyes widened, their vacant reflection now posed some acknowledgment of Herman writhing against the claron rock floor of the canyon as if expressing affinity with a beloved son..

Up to this point the Zoot Suit Man had not confided Herman's specific design of purpose pertaining to the mission's overall success..However once recovered Herman found himself in a state of pitiful whining as if to a deity begging it's consideration..With a white knuckle grip he held the stock and barrel housing of the rifle close to his chest while standing on his knees daring request a favor.

Staring back into Herman's eyes the Zoot Suit Man reflected that once perhaps in a time before time it had also been a reincarnate of some considerable emotion..Not in the recent era of mankind of course, but perhaps even here on this plane long ago before the age of dinosaurs it may have found itself slithering on an empty belly seeking some form of satisfaction...In that brief moment of phylogenic relation it found itself nodding a response to the pair of hungry eyes belonging to it's subject...Then, even before it's response fully registered in Herman's heart the Zoot Suit Man considered it's action to be the makings of a mistake..It's finger rose sharp into the air cutting the man's swollen hope..

Upon reflection The Zoot Suit Man thought...The two on the motorcycles are of no immediate concern....At this stage of the mission, the premature use of the weapons of man may bring with it's scent of evidence wagered dogs upon it's benefactor's path...Besides, to date the mission had gone expectantly well and the Zoot Suit Man's mood had taken a fancy to play..The smile returned as it spoke as much to itself as it's broken hearted sidekick standing nearby. "This one I am going to take care of myself."

Hal and Samantha arrived at the FBI headquarters in downtown Los Angeles at 2:30 PM..A scattered congregation of reporters and television crews already converging in a separate room designed for live news updates scheduled to take place immediately following the meeting. The conference room itself was large with sufficient seating for over one hundred people and when they entered many of the support personnel involved with the case had already arrived mingling amongst themselves..Many of these individuals made up the teams assigned to track down and confiscate individual copies of King of the World music that had been purchased through MP3 downloads or transferred to hard cd formats including subsequent copies distributed on a personal basis. Delegates from as far away as Australia were represented here today.

The two lead investigators introduced themselves doing their best to field questions regarding the progress of the case. They're own support team consisting of Mallory and Denason arrived at 2:55 with Chief Dodd entering to address the podium at precisely three o'clock.

Jarold Dodd proved himself a excellent speaker and accomplished diplomat mixing hard facts, heartfelt accommodations, and an uncanny ability to quiet discord when approached with over expectation.

"Let's all try to keep in mind, this case is barely four days old." He sternly advised.

To date three hundred and seventeen deaths around the world had been associated with the Mad Muse Case..Wounded and otherwise non fatal victims including those suffered by direct contact with the King of the World music had reached over sixteen thousand. Thanks to a quick and successful response by the medical industry the rate of non-fatal recoveries had reached over ninety percent in just a few short days with forty percent of the afflicted populations returning to somewhat adjusted normal daily lives. The latter figures expected to rise considerably with the passage of time, as many of the victims appeared anguished by post traumatic stress.

As lead investigator Hal was summoned to the podium to give those present a summary of progress including any possible leads presently working toward the apprehension of Herman Gilespie..Here, the cloak of invisibility aspect of the case was rolled out to the general public for the first time..The incident in Las Vegas was summarized as well, and what Hal described as several new leads currently being followed in pursuit of Mister Gilespie.

What ever information was given at the meeting could no longer be considered secure. In light of this fact, Hal deemed the vague nature of his statements regarding current working leads left the participants of the opinion they were purposely being left out of the loop..Especially in the eyes of representatives from the L.A. city mayor's office and state governor's office..This meeting however was not a press conference nor a forum for questions and answers..What was revealed here would no doubt go public and he was not about to fall victim to a news story tipping Gilespie of his intention to follow up on the Denver Battle of the Bands lead...He allowed himself to rest momentarily on the eyes of his partner and found therein a reflection of immeasurable support that gifted him the strength to embolden his resolve. Once finishing his summary and while returning to his seat next to Samantha, he also noted a discernable nod emitted from Chief Dodd.

The meeting concluded at 4:15 with a speech writer and spokesperson compiling information in preparation for the 4:30 news release. At Dodd's earlier request the investigative team were to meet with him in his office at that same time.

Formal handshakes and introductions were exchanged this being the first time the investigative team directly under Dodd's command had actually all grouped..The atmosphere was cordial and somewhat relaxed. Denason even complimenting Hal for his composure while on the podium to which the Chief strongly agreed.

At Dodd's request Mallory and Denason began by summarizing the information and evidence obtained through their investigation of the Brawley incident..Both men concluding that the event, however puzzling in it's aspects, provided no evidence of a link between itself and Herman Gilespie.

Hal and Samantha followed with updates including the positive match of Gilespie's fingerprints returned from the forensics lab in Las Vegas.

Dodd commented, "So we know for a fact Gilespie is traveling east and is under the guise of this cloak of invisibility....What else do we have?"

Samantha replied, "We don't yet have any positive evidence to support our theory however, we believe Gilespie may be heading north at this time toward a possible Denver Colorado destination."..She filled in the team of their interview with Michelle and Nick advising that the woman's previous relationship with the band Menace had no current bearing on the case."

"We did however luck into what we feel was a discovery when we interviewed her friend Nick Flannery." She commented.

As she continued speaking Hal walked to a metal housing suspended from the ceiling at one side of the office and pulled down a series of enlarged maps of California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado to use as reference points.

"We now believe the incident in Brawley was instigated by a second party involved with Herman Gilespie directly targeting Mister Flannery."

Chief Dodd's eyebrows raised, Denason kept quiet allowing Mallory's voice to do the talking.."Who the hell is this guy Flannery?" The agent asked.

"He's nobody." Hal answered.."He has no affiliation with Gilespie or the band Menace.".."The only connection here is the fact they are both musicians...It's also the avenue in which he and the Mc Allister woman met..On Wednesday they contacted one another by phone and agreed to meet here."...He said pointing to Blythe..

Samantha then advised.."She came from Long Beach, and Mister Flannery out of San Diego."

"Mister Flannery's route progressed the town of Brawley." Hal added.

"And the second party?" It was Denason's voice asking the question.

As he did Chief Dodd stood up from his desk and turned facing the outer windows and the city of Los Angeles below them. A slight eastern breeze made itself apparent in stirrings of palm trees along Wilshire Boulevard indicating a warming trend would follow the aftermath of the recent storm.

Samantha continued fielding the question. "We only have Mister Flannery's eyewitness account of the man to go on...Sounds like a real eccentric though..The guy was apparently dressed in a 1950's era tan colored zoot suit complete with a fedora hat...According to Mister Flannery he was doing some kind of weird dancing behavior in the parking lot of a liquor store at the head of highway 78 there in Brawley."

"Might be a good idea for you two to check the liquor store for any witnesses." Dodd interjected directing his attention to Denason and Mallory."

"Right," Denason agreed, "that's only about a mile from the dairy incident."

Hal spoke choosing his words carefully.."We have reason to believe this second party may have a great deal to do with the case...Possibly even the instigator of all that's happened to date."

"Reason to believe?" Denason questioned.

"Just a second." Dodd interrupted holding up his hands..When he continued he directed his attention to Denason and Mallory.."From this point on whatever is said in this room stays in this room..Is that understood?"

After both men nodded a faint reply Dodd continued.."I told you initially Agent Denason my reasons for seeking help outside the department were do to certain aspects involving this particular case....Aspects unusual to common investigative police work gentlemen..You are about to be made know of some of these,..conditions...It will not be easy for you to accept...It's not easy for any of us to accept."..Dodd sat down in his chair and wiped his hands through his balding scalp then turned to Hal with a look that communicated his frustration on how to proceed..

Hal picked up the cue and proceeded for him.."There are some unexplainable phenomena at work in associated with the Mad Muse Case..For instance, how can you explain the fact a hundred stampeding dairy cows all died of burst cardiac organs when setting foot on a roadway?

Samantha added.."Or that those cattle were not merely stampeding in fear, but with the intent to kill Nick Flannery."

Hal nodded.."According to Mister Flannery that was exactly their intent."

A faint chuckle escaped Denason's lips.."Well that is a purely subjective interpretation."

Hal continued ignoring Denason's remark. "Or the cloak of invisibility...Call it a new technology if you want...The subliminal suggestion contained in Gilespie's music. A huge technological leap forward in mass hypnosis?..I don't care how you wish to label it..At this time, these phenomena are for a sense of purpose,...unexplained.

"There's something else too."..All heads turned to the sound of Mallory's voice. He turned addressing Samantha.."You remember when I flew you out to Desert Center?"

"Yes,..go on." She said.

Mallory then turned to Hal.."I stayed there awhile..You asked me to check the perimeter of the property for any signs of evidence."

"Right," Hal responded.."I asked you to assist the sheriff department."

Mallory's head escalated it's nodding as he spoke. "I remember..I remember the guy now!..He turned again addressing Samantha.."It all came back when you mentioned the weirdo in the tan zoot suit!..."I saw the guy!...I friggin' saw the guy right there in Desert Center!"

"Alright just calm down, son." Chief Dodd said..."Just calm down and tell us what you saw."

Mallory stood up massaging the back of his neck while pacing the floor.."I was getting ready to leave, you know?...To fly back here to L.A....But I walked across the street to this little market to get a soda and a bag of chips."

Hal snapped his fingers trying to remember the name.."Right,..right the Country Corners Market."

"Yeah, that's it." Samantha confirmed.

Mallory continued speaking while replaying the day in his mind.."I was just about to open the door to the place when something caught my eye down the block..There was this guy there leaning against the side of a building..I didn't get a look at his face because his head was kind of tipped down covered by the brim of his hat..I looked twice at the guy though thinking it was damn early for Halloween..He was standing there in the rain soaked to the skin,..wearing this tan zoot suit...When I came back out of the store I looked over that way,...where I saw him before,..but he'd vanished."

"How far from the guy were you?" Dodd asked.

Mallory answered, "Maybe thirty yards, Chief."

"And your sure it was a zoot suit?" Samantha questioned.

Mallory nodded.."And a wide brim fedora hat..It was tan too, same color as the suit."

Dodd spoke up surmising the situation.."It seems your hunch about a second party just got confirmed."

"I got a hunch this Flannery guy knows more than he's letting on." Denason said.

"Why do you say that?" Samantha interjected sounding a bit defensive.

Denason shrugged then continued as if he needed to enlighten her.."Well it's all just a little too neat...Innocent boy riding along minding his own business and this accomplice in the Mad Muse Case just happens to try to kill him?...And the girl he's hooking up with,...just happens to be a former member of Gilespie's band?"

Samantha's eyes narrowed as she replied. "I already told you we interview them and their clean..Maybe your forgetting Agent, if it wasn't for Nick Flannery we wouldn't have a clue about the guy in the suit."

"Hunch or no hunch Agent Denason,"...Dodd said, "these two agents are handling that corner of the case."

Denason leaned back in his chain raising his hands in feign surrender.

Dodd returned the agents dramatics with an even stare then abruptly changed the subject.."Agent Pigg and De La Cruz, you two take the day off tomorrow and be ready to fly out to Denver Monday on this music event thing."..He added as an afterthought, "enjoy it while you can, it will probably be your last one for a while."

Samantha and Hall nodded in agreement as the Chief continued.."Mallory, tomorrow I want you to check out the liquor store in Brawley then meet Agent Denason back here at the office...I'll have a chopper standing by all day. Denason, your here putting out APB's through out Utah and Colorado advising contact us in the event of any strange occurrences such as what went down in Vegas.."If nothing turns up I've got you Agent Denason and you Mallory penciled in for Monday off."..He raised his eyebrows at Hal and Samantha.."Of course you realize if something breaks the deal is off."

"Absolutely." Samantha returned with a smile.

"Of course." Her partner echoed.

"Well then," Dodd continued, "let's all get the hell out of here before some loose cannon news reporter catches up to us."