EOTU by D. R. SMITH (summer books .txt) 📕

Everyone jumped when the door flew open and Dr Patel strode through it apologizing for his tardiness. Once the strain of the moment passed and all the greetings were out of the way, Nick called the meeting to order.

“As you all know this meeting is to report the current status of the project to our investors. Anyone who has contributed to the research and development of the EHM or any part of the Horizon Mission Project is welcome to attend. Kurt Michael Lehman has been the only investor to regularly join us and we welcome him again this afternoon”, Nick concluded looking in Lehman's direction. “I have not been made aware of any other attendees so I think we'll begin by uh...hearing from... let's see.. Dr Angie Hemmer?” he said questioningly giving her an 'are you ready to report' look that included raised brows.

“Sure Nick”, she said enthusiastically. “Trajectory coordinates, fuel and life support projections, and potential celestial event interference calculations are all verified and locked in. We have a possible issue with the cargo weight calculation but I am continuing to work on it”

Everyone in the room who had been made aware of the mysteriously completed cargo weight/propulsion equation tried to contain their obfuscation and to look at her as inconspicuously as possible so as not to alert Mr Lehman of any strange goings on. But all were trying to figure out why her report indicated a backslide. Dr Patel displayed a sort of 'half smile' as he instantly concluded that she too suspected Kurt Lehman of having hired someone to resolve the issue and was simply baiting Lehman to see if he would respond with some degree of surprise to this falsified statement. Sanjay couldn't resist looking back at Kurt in an attempt to read his facial expression for some sign of bewilderment. But he truly saw nothing. In fact, Lehman was taking notes on his tablet and didn't appear to flinch in the least bit.

After several seconds of silence, during which all of the team members shared momentary eye contact with each other, Dr Walker proceeded with a deep breath. Before the next words could pass from his mouth, Lehman interrupted.

“If I might quickly ask before moving on...” he said looking up from his note taking and leaning back in his chair. “Will this 'cargo weight issue' thing be completed in time to meet the launch date?” This question coming from Kurt Lehman had everyone in the room shifting in their seats. He definitely appeared to be concerned and had stated in a way that reflected a lack of knowledge on this particular subject. Nick looked at Angie raising a brow as if to say, it's in your lap now Ang.

“Absolutely.” she replied confidently. “I'm very close to a solution and should have it done by....hmm... I'd say next weekend.”

“OK.” Lehman said as if to just brush it off. He looked back to Walker and said “Sorry. Just wanted to clarify that. Continue.”

“No problem. Alright then... “ Nick said on an exhale “...thank you Dr Hemmer. We'll anxiously await your success on those final computations.” He turned his attention in the direction of Habib Tafik. “Habib... if you will”

“Sure Doc” Habib said through his still confused state. “All areas of programming have been checked and rechecked. Any bugs have been worked out and I would say that if we launched tomorrow... it would be flawless! BUT... I'd like to get a clarification of something from Dr Hemmer” he said twisting his chair a half turn to face Angie. “I thought...”

“Sorry Habib...” Walker said cutting off Tafik's comment  “...we don't have time for that right now. Ask her after the meeting if you would please.” Habib displayed a “Whatever!?!” look on his face as he rotated back to forward. At that moment, Sanjay began to feel as though Walker and Hemmer were collaborating on this Lehman ‘trip-up’ scheme. He was 100% in on it himself and decided to ignore the obvious ploy taking place before his eyes. Sanjay then reported an “all systems go” in his area of responsibility and the meeting was drawn to a close.

Once outside the room in the hallway, Lehman approached Nick and, with hands in pockets and tablet tucked under his right arm, posed a question.

“I know you're busy Nick but I have to get something straight before I leave here today” His German accent seemed heavier than normal. Nick immediately and excitedly jumped to a conclusion that this was going to be the damning remark that will link Kurt to the mysteriously solved weight issue. “Has there been any conclusive evidence regarding our entering the BH87 in regard to the massive gravitational force that will be exerted upon the hull of the EHM?” He paused a moment. “I guess what I'm getting at is...” he said taking a deep breath “...are we going to travel 64 million light years only to be crushed like a Coke can in a weightlifter's grip?”

Nick hid his disappointment at hearing the 'unexpected' query instead of the 'expected' one and adjusted his frame of mind in order to address Lehman's question with true resolve...and with a smile on his face.

“Kurt... none of us can truly say what will happen. But we do know this.... gravity is relative. It is not a compressing force. It is a force exerted from one body to another. We will undoubtedly be drawn forcefully towards the singularity. After that... who knows.” Once Dr Walker had finished with his answer he found himself staring directly eye to eye with Lehman. Both men had apparently drawn a fatal conclusion to that moment Nick had just described.

“Well....” Lehman said through an exhale. “I guess that's where courage of the unknown has to kick in...right?”

“No one has voluntarily propelled themselves into the vastness of space without wondering if they would live through it” Nick reassured. “But so far... most have survived” He started to step away from Kurt but hesitated and, with his head twisted back toward Kurt said, “Remember, you don't HAVE to go. You can back out of this anytime you want” He didn't wait to hear Kurt's response but did in fact hear him mumble something as they parted.

“Not exactly....”

Dr Walker rounded the corner just ahead of his office door only to see Dr Hemmer leaning against the door frame talking to Sanjay and Habib. As he drew near, the circle of colleagues opened slightly and he was offered a parking place in the conversation. Habib spoke to him with slight irritation.

“I'm telling you what boss, I was about to get real pissed in that meeting” he said “It felt like I was the only one who wasn't in on the...” he flashed an ‘air quotes’ “...'Catch Lehman in a lie' plot. Now I'm finding out from these two...” his head tilting towards the others “... I'm the only one who didn't think of this possibility on my own”  Nick offered a conciliatory smile and jokingly grabbed the back of Habib's neck with a slight shake.

“Trust me Tafik, we're all confused about the situation and looking for an answer” Nick assured the group. “I say at this point... we consider it a favor from above and move on. We're trying too hard to find a who and why when we should just say... who cares”

“Well I'm sorry, but I'm not going to just totally toss this out” Angie almost cautiously announced. “It was my area of responsibility and I know I'm not going nuts.... I didn't do it and I have to know who did”

“I have to admit...I'd feel the same” Dr Patel threw out.

“Just don't let it get in the way of your assigned tasks Ang” Nick said finishing up the conversation. “Now if you'll excuse me... I have things to do!” The group parted to let him pass and then scattered towards their individual offices in silence.

As she walked away, Dr Angie Hemmer made up her mind to stick around this evening long enough to have a talk with the janitor.

Mia Tilona was sitting at the far end of the bar with her usual Long Island Iced Tea. She was deep in thought about the events of the past week. She was also starting to realize the finality of her life due to her involvement in the Horizon Mission Team. She was literally less than a month away from possibly never standing on the surface of the Earth again. All she had worked towards in her life would culminate in that liftoff and then… become instantly useless. Her degree in jet propulsion and physics had earned her a place at MARCH. But never in a million years had she imagined she’d be asked to make the trip.

She turned her head slightly and scanned the entire room. All of these people will be long gone when and if I make it back, she thought. She returned to facing forward and stared at her reflection in the mirror between the rows of bottles behind the bar. Why am I doing this, she pondered. Her mind went momentarily blank just before she was interrupted.

“Hey... you OK?” the masculine voice of the person now occupying the seat next to her asked. She shook her head to bring her thoughts back into focus.

“Oh...yeah... just daydreaming”, she responded. She then broke into a huge smile and leaned over close to him and gave him a slow lingering kiss on the lips. “Hi” she said softly with her mouth still only millimeters from his and then lightly kissed him again.

“Well... I don't know what you were daydreaming about, but you need to think about it more frequently” Eric Mikos whispered back to her with an intentional sexy tone in his voice. They moved apart a few inches and smiled at each other. Eric loved the way her dark eyes and nearly pitch black hair accentuated her Italian olive complexion. Additionally, she was a workout freak. Her well toned muscles, tiny waist and overall perfect figure made Eric the envy of nearly all the men in the joint.

Her hand slipped up next to his temple and in a sensually slow manner started drawing small circles on the side of his head. Eric definitely felt aroused. He gently raised his hand up behind her head and drew her into another kiss... after which he suddenly backed off..

“Uh... ok...this is not what I need right before I go to work Mia” he reminded her with a chuckle and a cautious smile.

“I know” she replied apologetically. “But I just can't resist you every time I see you” They both realized the bartender was standing and watching part of this romantic interlude.

“Uhhh…can I get you something sir?” she asked.

“Just a Coke for me, thank you” Eric responded exercising restraint and responsibility... something that had finally been drilled into his unbridled mind via experience. Non-alcoholic drinks in bars was not a norm for him. But going to work with an elevated blood-alcohol content wasn’t either. He looked back at Mia and smiled again.

“Can we get together when you get off work? Even if it's just for an hour or so...” Mia pleaded. Eric's eyes wandered around her face for a moment and then drifted down to her hands. He took her left hand in his and began petting it.

“Sure. Why not.” he said reassuringly. “Your place...say.... around 6?”

“No. Now come on.”, she nearly scolded. “I think it's about time I get to see your place. We've been...” Eric cut her off.

“Mia! No. I told you my roommate made me commit to not bringing women over.” Eric reminded her. “He's afraid I'll bring someone who'll end up breaking in or something. It's his house. I have to abide by the rules. Sorry” She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“I think he sounds paranoid”, she commented.

“Regardless. It's his house.”, Eric re-emphasized. He reached for the frosty glass of Coke that had now appeared