He chuckled. "I did sort of go up in flames, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did." Smiling, she grazed his cleft chin. "I liked it."

He smiled back. "I did, too." He kissed her very sweetly.

Unfortunately, because of their bathroom romp, they had to have an abbreviated version of dinner, which upset the innkeeper, who had a very talented, very touchy chef. His feelings were somewhat mollified when they explained to him that they had an engagement to attend-it was not a reflection on the wine-poached shrimp and peach brandy tart.

After driving for half an hour in the dark through wooded country back roads, they finally found the turn-off to LaLeche's so-called retreat. Once again, Tyber had been correct: the retreat was nothing more than a tumble-down shack in the middle of the wilderness.

Since they were late in arriving, several cars were already parked haphazardly in the clearing. Tyber laughed when he noted one BMW sinking into four inches of Vermont mud.

"All part of the experience, my dear." He imitated Xavier's affected speech perfectly.

Zanita knocked on the crude wooden door to the cabin. Several voices rang out, bidding them enter. She tentatively opened the door.

Eight people were huddled around a huge fireplace. An old, scarred wooden table rested against the right wall. It was generously overflowing with refreshments, presumably brought by the guests.

And that was it.

Nothing else in the room. No furniture. No appliances.

Zanita quickly scanned the one-room cabin. No amenities.

Several blankets and sleeping bags lined the walls. In one corner, a tape player was issuing forth New Age meditation music-lots of Celtic harps and chimes.

"Dr. Evans! Zanita!" LaLeche stood up to greet them. "I was beginning to think you couldn't make it this weekend."

You mean you were getting concerned that a good mark was getting away from you. Tyber looked him directly in the eye, saying, "We got a little sidetracked, but we're here now."

Zanita threw him a killing look.

LaLeche smirked knowingly, his slimy gaze falling on Zanita. "Yes, well, that does happen. Glad you could make it." He gestured to the sideboard. "Would you like some refreshment before we start, perhaps something to drink?"

"Ah, sure." LaLeche wandered away while they approached the table. Zanita was already filling a cup with punch when Tyber stayed her hand.

"What are you doing? And did you have to make that crack about being sidetracked? It was embarrassing; he knew exactly what you were implying," she fumed.

"Yes, I did. We don't want him getting suspicious about us. He's less likely to do that if he thinks we can't keep our hands off each other." He grinned rather slowly at her. "And it's true, isn't it?"

Zanita flushed. "Never mind that. I want some punch; I'm thirsty from the shrimp."

"Here, try this cola." He opened up a bottle, pouring her some. She looked at him quizzically. "Just a precaution. I don't think we should eat or drink anything here that isn't in its original packaging or factory-sealed."

She almost choked on her Coke. "You think he might drug us?"

"Not really; but it doesn't hurt to be cautious."

LaLeche's voice interrupted their low conversation. "Why don't we all sit in a circle in front of the fire? Dr. Evans, you sit here." He pointed to a spot two spaces away from him. "And Zanita can sit between us, here."

They took their spots on the floor, Tyber not seeming very happy that Zanita was sitting next to LaLeche.

"John, can you lower those kerosene lamps? Good. Now let's all join hands. First, why don't we introduce ourselves by going around the circle? Xavier."

"Kim," the next woman supplied. Zanita noticed that she had yet to take her eyes off Tyber. Zanita surreptitiously glanced his way again, noting the sensual, masculine planes of his profile outlined in the flickering light. He had tied back his hair before they left their room, reminding her of the first time she had met him and the effect he had on her then. Still had on her. Probably would always have on her. She grudgingly admitted that he was gorgeous even in firelight. Especially in the firelight.

"John," the young man next to Kirn said. He was staring avidly at Zanita.

"Elizabeth." A wan-looking elderly woman with gray hair was next.

"Marcie." This woman seemed totally belligerent. Zanita wondered why she had bothered to come.

"Eric." He spoke in a low voice, seeming very shy and withdrawn.

"Stacy."

"Ralph."

"Bob."

"Tyberius Augustus."

"You're kidding!" Kim giggled.

Tyber grinned back at her, shaking his head. The grip on his Zanita side threatened to break every bone in his hand.

"Zanita," she mumbled through her teeth. Why was Tyber smiling at Kim like that? "Weren't you at the seminar last Friday?" John asked her, breaking into her thoughts.

"Yes. You remember me? I can't believe it!" Tyber just shook his head.

"Now that we all know each other, let's try to break some of the psychic walls around us by going around the circle again; only this time I want each of you to address someone in the circle that you either know or have just met, and tell them something about them that you noticed or intuitively felt about them. For instance, I feet a certain hostility coming from Marcie. Am I right, dear?"

"Yes. I guess I'm still agitated about my job. I had a fight with my boss before I left. She's such a jerk. I haven't been able to let it go. It's amazing you picked that up, Xavier." Everyone concurred, marveling over LaLeche's gift.

Tyber's finger discreetly tickled the underside of Zanita's hand. She tried not to smile.

"You must let it go, Marcie. After all, one of the reasons you are here this weekend is to release your anxieties. To free the astral body, you must be at peace-balanced. Kim, let's continue with you."

Kim didn't waste any time. She looked directly at Tyber and said, "You're a very handsome man. I was wondering if you're as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside."

For some reason, Zanita hated this woman. Intensely.

Tyber looked at Kim without blinking an eye. "Thank you; I don't know what to say. I'm not used to that kind of flattery." A snort of disbelief came from his left side.

"That was honest, Kim." LaLeche seemed pleased. "John?"

"Yeah, I, ah, I like Zanita's eyes-they have a compassionate look about them. Real pretty. Violet eyes. Makes me think I can open up to her."

Zanita felt suddenly uncomfortable. Was this guy serious? Tyber tugged on her hand, prompting her. "That's... uh, nice of you, John."

And so it went around the circle. Zanita realized LaLeche was trying to get them to feel at ease with themselves and him. The sooner the barriers broke down, the sooner everyone would have good feelings toward their leader. LaLeche undoubtedly hoped those wonderful feelings would translate into hefty donations. Both the cars in the drive and the apparel of these people indicated to her that they were well chosen for that purpose.

The cycle came around to Tyber.

"I would like to tell Zanita that her-"he paused, smiling boyishly-"her shirt is mis-buttoned."

Zanita's head snapped toward him, her eyes widening, before she looked down. Sure enough, her third and fourth buttons were out of line.

"How did you do that, baby?"

Zanita closed her eyes in acute embarrassment. He knew very well how-he had buttoned her back up!

She started to release LaLeche's hand to fix it when he said, "Oh, no! Don't do that-you can't break the circle now. It's not important; you can fix it later. Who knows? In a couple of hours, it may be of no importance to you whatsoever."

Tyber leaned forward and threw LaLeche a chilling glance. Fortunately, he missed it.

Kim smiled seductively at Tyber. "Maybe we'll all take off our shirts, so we don't have to worry about buttons."

"Great idea." John winked at her.

Zanita swallowed. Tyber had been right. These people were looking to release all inhibitions. "Tyber?" Her voice squeaked in an aside to him.

He bent over her, as if he were affectionately nuzzling her nape. "Don't worry, baby. They won't start getting frisky for a couple of hours yet. I'll have you safely out of here by then," he whispered against her.

It wasn't long after that that Tyber went out to the truck, coming back with a blanket. He scooted Zanita in front of him, between his thighs, and draped the blanket around them. "It's getting chilly, and you did just get over that flu. No sense taking any chances." Zanita thought he was incredibly sweet.

LaLeche took them through several more exercises involving deep breathing and meditation techniques before he brought them back once again to the subject of healing.

"We must align our energy fields. I'm sure our friend, Dr. Evans, agrees with this, at least in principle."

Tyber surprised Zanita by saying, "I do. In principle, anyway." He adjusted his arms around her under the blanket. Only Zanita's head poked through the top opening, under his chin. She was feeling nice and toasty from his body heat.

"I have always believed there must be order within the body as there is in the universe," LaLeche addressed the group at large, though his comments were directed to Tyber, "in order for there to be a smooth and constant flow of energy."

"Mmm, yes... but the universe is not as ordered as you might think."

"How so, Tyber? I always thought the universe is an increasingly structured place," John said.

"You're forgetting about a little thing called entropy." He rested his chin on top of Zanita's head.

"Entropy? What's that-a new type of meditation?" Kim asked.

Zanita could feel Tyber smile against her hair. "No, Kim. Entropy is the measurement, or as we physicists say, the property, of disorder. I'm afraid, contrary to your beliefs, John, disorder is the natural order of things in the universe."

Marcie scoffed. "I don't believe that!"

Tyber shrugged. "Second Law of Thermodynamics."

"Wait just a second-isn't energy always, like, the same? I mean, you can't create more energy, only change it from one form to another."

"You're talking about conservation of energy. Yes, energy is always conserved; in other words, you can't get more out of a system than you put into it. Entropy is something else. With entropy, you get more than you started with. We all know there are many more ways to screw up something than to get it right. Disorder continually increases, for there is so much more opportunity for disorder to occur rather than order. Zanita is a perfect example of this principle."

She hunched her shoulders. "What?"

Everyone laughed.

Except Zanita, who pinched his thigh under the blanket. He captured her wayward hand, clasping it by the wrist.

Tyber gazed down at Zanita affectionately. "Like going into the wrong class instead of the right one. What's more, the process is not reversible. I'm afraid the trip to disorder is, alas, a one-way, non-refundable ticket." Several people chuckled, but Zanita fumed at him, squirming ineffectively under the blanket.

"But then energy is not conserved." Marcie gloated over the brilliance of her statement.

"Yes, it is." Tyber valiantly subdued Zanita's thrashing as he continued, "Usable energy is not. Feynman, a great physicist, liked to say that energy is never lost, but opportunity is. For example, once a cannon has been fired, its usable or potential energy is lost."

"Like in sex," Kim purred.

Tyber cleared his throat. "Yeah."

"So, you're saying the universe isn't increasingly ordered?" John came back to his original statement. "Then how do you explain the emergence of galaxies, stars, and planets out of the initial Big Bang? That seems like an increase in order to me, rather than disorder."

"It appears to be something of a paradox, doesn't it?" Tyber grinned. "The answer is that you have to pay for order, or structure, with energy."

"How do you do that?" Eric shyly asked.

"You do the civilized thing." Tyber chuckled. "You borrow it."

"Like a credit card?" Kim asked.

"In a sense. Except you borrow it from a different part of the universe."

John scratched his head. "But eventually you couldn't borrow anymore, and I should know-I've maxed out more credit cards than I care to remember."

"Not really," Tyber said, "this is a bottomless pit of borrowing since increase in entropy simply dissipates in the infinity of space. The debt is spreading out forever through the vastness of space."

"Sounds like the rationale for government spending to me," Zanita grumbled into the blanket. Tyber heard her, though, because he leaned forward to nip the nape of her neck.

"Too weird." Kim winked at John.

Zanita had been paying close attention to LaLeche during the discussion; she noted that he seemed very interested in the way the group was responding to Tyber's words. She was sure Tyber had noticed it as well.

LaLeche sipped his punch, watching Tyber over the rim of his paper cup. "So, Dr. Evans, how would you relate this to energy fields in the body? Are we doomed to fall apart in disorder? Or, in your view, is there hope for healing methods?"

"We are ultimately doomed to disorder, or death; but there's no sense in being morbid. Your question is very interesting, Xavier, as the obvious exception to entropy is life. Life is the ultimate order. Purpose is the essence of being. In fact, life is in a constant struggle with the Second Law of Thermodynamics. And life often wins out. Curious, isn't it?"

"Not to a mystic," LaLeche responded shrewdly. "Energy is the essence of life."

"Yes, and it takes a profound amount of energy to create a new life." He gazed down at the top of Zanita's head. "I suppose that's what makes the existence of life so very precious." Zanita turned to look up at him and their eyes met in a moment of pure understanding.

"So healing has a place in all this?" LaLeche smiled.