Sarah – that was a good thought. I’ll pass it on to the general when he gets back.”
#
When the President of the United States next call ed, the general was in his office, in his chair and connected to the Armed Forces intranet’s south polar uplink.
“I’m glad to hear that was the first thing the geologists thought of, sir. Bright boys,” he said into the mouthpiece. He rolled his eyes at Sarah and Henry.
A moment later he winced. “Well, we – you – may be a bit disappointed, sir.” He squirmed in his seat. “But I’m sending the images anyway. I’m uploading them now, sir. You have to realize that Gibbs, the witness, saw them close-up for only a few seconds, and they were dressed like ev. . .”
The general was apparently interrupted mid- sentence. He nodded at Sarah and Henry. Then he said, “I’ll keep at ’em, sir,” and hung up the phone.
Henry began to get steamed. “I feel like I’m in the goddam principal’s office here. You’ve been acting like I’m a tough customer from the beginning, General, and I’m getting sick of it. I’m doing my best , sir, whether you think so or not!”
He had expected a fight. Instead, Hayes smiled.
“Acting more Navy all the time, Henry. Not bad.”
Hayes reached into a box on his desk and opened it. He pulled out a large cigar and threw it to Henry. “Cuban,” he said with a guilty grin.
Henry caught the stogie and examined it. He raised his eyebrows as though questioning the significance of the general’s gesture. “The President of the USA would appreciate it very much if you and this federal employee would give it another shot,” said Hayes.
“Yes, sir,” said Henry.
“Sir,” echoed Sarah.
#
After the door had closed behind Henry and Sarah, Kai Grimes got up to leave. He opened the outside door, then closed it again and turned back towards the general’s desk.
Hayes, lighting a cigar for himself, looked up in surprise. “Grimes?”
“Gibbs keeps saying he can see – he can remember these bastards who shot him. I’d remember too if they’d shot me . I’m saying that all the sonofabitch saw was three faces – guys in hoods. I mean, say he can nail down even one of these bad guys, but there were at least twenty people in that party, and we don’t have a clue where they went. I say we take him to the carrier, so he’s under our eye. His memory is all we got.”
The general nodded and blew a cloud of smoke into a shaft of light that streamed in through the window.
“Long days down here, Kai,” he said, watching the blue smoke churn and curl in the sunlight. “Damned unearthly place. Leave it to the fuckin’ penguins and the whales, I say. Not my part of the planet.”
Grimes nodded. “Fuck it, sir.”
“If it was up to me, Kai,” said Hayes, “well, yeah, fuck it, as you say. But that’s not the way it is. Some smartass has thought up a way to ransom the ass off the world, and this is the place he chose to do it.” He stood. “The rest of the Navy will be on us like fleas in a few days. The carrier Enterprise is not exactly where I want to be if the big ice goes, but I don’t want to be here when that fucking mountain goes, either.”
Outside the window Mount Erebus coughed thicker clouds of ash into the sky.
#
Henry and Sarah stood at the top of the wooden stairway outside the door of the HQ.
“Got a cigarette?” asked Henry.
“I don’t carry them. You smoke?”
“Not really.” He shrugged. “Been thinking about starting, though.”
She laughed.
The wind was blowing stiffly off the Ross Sea. He knew summer was soon to be upon them, but there was no hint of it in the breeze that bit into his nostrils. Sarah shivered and stood behind him, using his tall frame as a windbreak.
He turned away from the wind to face her. They looked into each other’s eyes for a second and Sarah caught sight of the “yes” that showed as clearly as a message bobbing in the window of a fortune-telling eight
#
When the President of the United States next call ed, the general was in his office, in his chair and connected to the Armed Forces intranet’s south polar uplink.
“I’m glad to hear that was the first thing the geologists thought of, sir. Bright boys,” he said into the mouthpiece. He rolled his eyes at Sarah and Henry.
A moment later he winced. “Well, we – you – may be a bit disappointed, sir.” He squirmed in his seat. “But I’m sending the images anyway. I’m uploading them now, sir. You have to realize that Gibbs, the witness, saw them close-up for only a few seconds, and they were dressed like ev. . .”
The general was apparently interrupted mid- sentence. He nodded at Sarah and Henry. Then he said, “I’ll keep at ’em, sir,” and hung up the phone.
Henry began to get steamed. “I feel like I’m in the goddam principal’s office here. You’ve been acting like I’m a tough customer from the beginning, General, and I’m getting sick of it. I’m doing my best , sir, whether you think so or not!”
He had expected a fight. Instead, Hayes smiled.
“Acting more Navy all the time, Henry. Not bad.”
Hayes reached into a box on his desk and opened it. He pulled out a large cigar and threw it to Henry. “Cuban,” he said with a guilty grin.
Henry caught the stogie and examined it. He raised his eyebrows as though questioning the significance of the general’s gesture. “The President of the USA would appreciate it very much if you and this federal employee would give it another shot,” said Hayes.
“Yes, sir,” said Henry.
“Sir,” echoed Sarah.
#
After the door had closed behind Henry and Sarah, Kai Grimes got up to leave. He opened the outside door, then closed it again and turned back towards the general’s desk.
Hayes, lighting a cigar for himself, looked up in surprise. “Grimes?”
“Gibbs keeps saying he can see – he can remember these bastards who shot him. I’d remember too if they’d shot me . I’m saying that all the sonofabitch saw was three faces – guys in hoods. I mean, say he can nail down even one of these bad guys, but there were at least twenty people in that party, and we don’t have a clue where they went. I say we take him to the carrier, so he’s under our eye. His memory is all we got.”
The general nodded and blew a cloud of smoke into a shaft of light that streamed in through the window.
“Long days down here, Kai,” he said, watching the blue smoke churn and curl in the sunlight. “Damned unearthly place. Leave it to the fuckin’ penguins and the whales, I say. Not my part of the planet.”
Grimes nodded. “Fuck it, sir.”
“If it was up to me, Kai,” said Hayes, “well, yeah, fuck it, as you say. But that’s not the way it is. Some smartass has thought up a way to ransom the ass off the world, and this is the place he chose to do it.” He stood. “The rest of the Navy will be on us like fleas in a few days. The carrier Enterprise is not exactly where I want to be if the big ice goes, but I don’t want to be here when that fucking mountain goes, either.”
Outside the window Mount Erebus coughed thicker clouds of ash into the sky.
#
Henry and Sarah stood at the top of the wooden stairway outside the door of the HQ.
“Got a cigarette?” asked Henry.
“I don’t carry them. You smoke?”
“Not really.” He shrugged. “Been thinking about starting, though.”
She laughed.
The wind was blowing stiffly off the Ross Sea. He knew summer was soon to be upon them, but there was no hint of it in the breeze that bit into his nostrils. Sarah shivered and stood behind him, using his tall frame as a windbreak.
He turned away from the wind to face her. They looked into each other’s eyes for a second and Sarah caught sight of the “yes” that showed as clearly as a message bobbing in the window of a fortune-telling eight
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