Finally, he managed to get his greeting out, "Hi Col, brought you a little gift." He held out the bottle of Copper Moon he had been holding behind his back. "If you have time later, I have some news to share—only if you're not going out." He was fishing.
"Oh no, I'll be here—I'm cooking a little something for Kenny. He's always hungry after a movie! Perhaps you can join us...unless you have something more important on the go?" It looked as though she was also on a fishing expedition.
"What could be more important than spending time with the two most important people in my life?" he said with all the sincerity he could muster.
Colleen flushed slightly and smiled, showing her beautiful white teeth. "Well, we'll do that then." She said softly. "I believe the movie will be over by 9:00 p.m. That's a bit late but I'll have dinner ready by 9:15!"
The movie was a fast moving, action thriller with Jack Reacher efficiently eliminating the opposition to world peace. Jake and Kenny watched enthralled as the hero solved the world's most dangerous problems and at the end of the saga they felt that they had seen enough violence for one day. At 9:00 p.m. father and son left the theatre for home, their bags of popcorn depleted and testosterone elevated.
The commute back was not without its excitement. Shortly before the St. John's Lane turn-off, they stopped at a traffic light and waited for the light to turn green. At that moment a car, entering the intersection from their right, turned onto their road travelling in the opposite direction and then suddenly veered toward the opposite sidewalk. The car's auto-drive, trying to compensate for the sudden change of direction, had slammed on the brakes, forcing the car into a slide. The vehicle came to an abrupt stop on the opposite pedestrian walkway, with the right side fender close to the brick wall of a private residence.
Jake backed up to the side of the road and told Kenny to stay where he was. He jumped out to see if he could be of any assistance to the driver, a woman of about fifty years of age. She remained seated behind the wheel, seemingly shaken by the incident but did not appear to be injured. The car, thanks to the safety innovations of the auto-drive, had not sustained any damage. Jake inspected the front tires and found that the right front was running at an extremely low pressure. It appeared that the tire had buckled under the weight and force created by the change of direction as the car entered the intersection, affecting the auto-drive's steering ability.
Jake opened the driver's door and helped the woman out of the car.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes, thank you...I'm just fine. It could have been a lot worse!" she answered with a slight tremble.
Jake explained that her right front tire was far too soft to be driving on. "I can change that for you. The car does not appear to be damaged—the fender came close but didn't touch the wall."
"I would be most grateful if you could do that. I saw a warning light start to blink on the dash but didn't know what it meant—now I know," she answered with relief.
Jake went to work, opening the trunk to remove the spare. Kenny, who had by this time realized that there was no danger, climbed out of the Mercedes and began to assist with the wheel change. After the wheel nuts were firmly tightened Jake turned off the auto-drive and manually backed the car up, leaving the engine running.
"I don't know how to thank you," she said.
Jake, forever the gentleman, told her that it was really nothing and people should always be available to help others in distress. "I'm just glad that you're okay and that the car isn't damaged. Don't forget to turn your auto-drive on again."
The lady, neatly dressed in a business-type suit, held out her hand and Jake shook it. "My name is Lucy," she offered. "If there's anything I can do to repay your kindness please don't hesitate to contact me." She reached into her purse lying on the front seat and handed him a business card.
Jake once again told her that it was not necessary for her to reciprocate but thanked her all the same. He took the business card and dropped it into his shirt pocket.
Lucy smiled, spoke a command to the car's computer and drove off. Jake and Kenny got back into the Mercedes and continued on to the family home. It was 10:00 p.m. when they pulled into the driveway. Colleen was waiting on the porch.
"You're a bit later than I thought you would be!" she stated a little curtly.
Jake apologetically answered, "Sorry, Col, we had to help a stranger in distress down at the traffic lights just before the turn-off.
Kenny continued enthusiastically, "Mom, you should have seen this crazy old lady! Her car swerved right in front of us and nearly took out a brick wall....!"
With some embellishment Kenny told Colleen the whole story.
"Okay," she said, her attitude less severe, "I'm glad she wasn't hurt, but I'll have to warm the food up a little."
After the food had been rewarmed and served, they sat down at the dining room table to eat.
So, who was this woman?" Colleen inquired with raised eyebrows.
Jake pulled the business card out of his shirt pocket and eyed it with growing interest. After a moment he exclaimed, "Her name is Lucy Montrose and she works at the White House!"
Colleen and Kenny both raised their eyebrows and smiled. Colleen looked thoughtfully at Jake, then reached over and grabbed the business card. "She might be a useful person to know," she said giving the card back to Jake.
With dinner over Kenny gathered up the dishes and cutlery, ferrying them to the dishwasher in the kitchen. Jake turned to Colleen and indicated that he wanted to talk, and they moved to the living room while Kenny finished up in the kitchen.
Jake told Colleen all that had transpired that day. She was intrigued by his theory of a possible assassination attempt, the disruption of the Helium-3 mining project on the moon and the possibility of pay-offs to the GICC but she was not totally receptive to all that he told her. She felt a little overwhelmed and wanted to think more about the situation.
Colleen was not convinced but offered to do her own research on past news events and also Valkyrie. He left the house at 11:30 p.m.
∞∞
Chapter Fifteen
Strengthening the Powers of Investigation
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
1200 hours
Commander Miller welcomed Lui Wong and waved her to a chair on the opposite side of the desk. She gave a short bow, appearing a little nervous, constantly glancing around her at the four office walls, making minimal contact with Miller's eyes. It was late in the shift and he did not want to detain her for too long.
Lui had studied Industrial Engineering at the National Taiwan University in Taipei before taking a degree in Computer and Information Technology. She had come highly recommended to the Helium-3 project, having distinguished herself as a problem solver always on the cusp of the latest computer technology.
Miller smiled attempting to put her at ease, but she remained pensive. Lui was a petit girl with a pleasing figure, short dark hair, and beautiful facial features even by Western standards. She never smiled and appeared a little sullen at times, keeping mostly to herself.
Jet appeared at the door and waited to catch the Commander's eye.
Looking up the Commander responded, "Come in, Jet, and take a seat."
He then turned to Lui and said, "I have asked you to meet with me, Lui, and with Dr. Goodman here because we need your help."
Lui Wong looked startled. She peered at the Commander suspiciously, then at Jet and appeared uncomfortable in their presence. Her English was of a reasonable standard. "Have I done something wrong?"
John Miller laughed. "No, not at all, but we believe that with your skills you will be able to help us. We need your help!"
"Oh," said Lui, still a little confused but beginning to understand. "You want me to help you with your computers?"
"Yes, but not exactly our personal computers. We have experienced a little problem and we are not sure which computer is the cause of this problem."
Lui's eyes widened slightly
. "Someone is using one of the computers to create a problem?"
"Again, yes! However, we must be very discreet. Whoever this person is must not know that we are searching for this problem. I am going to ask you to hack into all the staff computers and look for anything that could resemble a specific command, to send a signal for triggering an explosive device."
Lui looked a little distraught when Miller mentioned the word, "hack."
"No, no! It is against the law for me to hack anybody's computer. I could lose my job!"
"As the Commander of this Base I can assure you that everything will be all right, Lui. You see...someone is trying to commit an act of sabotage by sending and receiving signals to and from the dig site."
"Sabotage!" Lui's eyes opened wider.
The Commander nodded, "Yes. Dr. Goodman was nearly killed by an explosive set in the solar arrays. He found evidence of a receiver for an explosive device at the site and also a small camera on the roof of Processor One."
"Oh, my God," exclaimed Lui, placing her hand over her mouth. "We have a murderer here on the Base?"
Miller knew that he needed the right words to pacify her, and he hesitated for a second before answering. At that moment, Jet who had been waiting and silently consenting to the discussion, jumped in.
"We can't be sure that this person was actually out to murder me, but had perhaps wanted to damage valuable equipment by creating an impression that a meteorite had hit the moon's surface."
"You think this person wants to disrupt the mining process? This is very bad!"
"Yes, it is very bad," Jet reiterated. "The frequencies of the receiver and camera are different to the circuit of excavator cameras and the control of the equipment. You would be able to separate it from the normal signal frequencies we are using. We can sure use your help in trying to expose the perpetrator."
Lui looked at Jet for a moment, as if trying to overcome her fear of being involved.
"I will help you, sir," she said finally to Miller and then looked at Jet. "I am so glad that you were not harmed, Dr. Goodman."
John Miller breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Lui. It means a lot to both of us. Please do not talk to anyone else about it. Only Dr. Goodman, myself, Dr. Eaton, Chen and Timmy Rose, know about this problem."
Jet smiled at her, grateful for the sentiment. Lui, nodded, stood and, with a short bow, left the office.
Miller shot Jet a quick look of relief. "I think she will try her best. I hope I haven't frightened her."
Jet responded with enthusiasm, "I believe she will find what we are looking for."
"In the case that it may be a personal computer I will have to take it upon myself to do a search of each person's sleeping quarters and belongings. Even then, we may not find it."
"We can only do our best," commented Jet.
After the shift had ended, Jet made his way to the gym for his daily workout. There were two of the excavator operators, busy with their exercise regimes, and Lui Wong. The gym did not provide a great amount of space or equipment. Three people could workout at the same time but a fourth would have to wait a turn for the treadmill. There was a Bow-flex machine in one corner that provided muscle toning, all equipment having hookups to a central computer that monitored breathing rates and heartbeats.
Jet waited for a turn on one of the specially adapted treadmills and after five minutes one of the excavator operators opted for the Bow-flex machine. Jet attached the stabilizer to his body and jumped onto the treadmill, next to Lui.
After hooking himself up to the computer, he set the machine to his normal jogging pace. Looking over at her, he caught her eye and for the first time he could remember, she smiled at him. He had never seen her smile before, and it was as though her face lit up like an early morning sunrise. He realized how beautiful she really was and couldn't think why this had never come to his notice before. He felt his pulse quicken slightly, and it wasn't because of the jogging.
It suddenly struck Jet that Lui was really very attractive and he would love to see that smile again. He remembered that it was Tuesday, according to earth's weekly calendar, meaning that Happy Hour drinks would be served in the conference room. Jet had a sudden impulse to ask her if she would like to join him there after the workout.
Ten minutes later Lui's treadmill began to slow, signaling that her regime was coming to an end. Jet quickly brought his own treadmill to a stop, cutting his regime short as Lui was reaching for her towel.
"Hey, Lui, you feel like a drink in the conference room?"
She looked up at him a little startled, then that lovely smile adorned her features again. "Yes, Dr. Goodman. I remember now. It's Tuesday evening, earth time... Yes, I think I would like that."
"Please call me, Jet," he responded amicably.
"Yes, thank you, Dr. Jet. It has been a day of surprises for me."
"No need to refer to my title—just call me Jet," he said, smiling broadly.
They toweled themselves off and Lui said, "I go and shower first, then meet you at conference room?"
"See you there," he answered jovially.
After twenty minutes Jet had showered, changed, and made his way to the conference room. As he entered, Beth was sitting at the bar with a drink in hand, so he joined her and asked what she was drinking.
"A little vodka and coke, just to calm the nerves," she replied.
"I didn't know you were the nervous type," he answered jokingly as he reached for a bottle of bourbon on a shelf, immediately above the counter.
"Who wouldn't be nervous after what happened to you," she said softly, looking around the room.
Jet saw Colonel Evgeni Chekov sitting in the one corner of the room with a drink in his hand, eyeing them, his eyes like two small, obsidian spheres, sheltered by large bushy eyebrows. Chekov was the other Operations Manager, Timmy Rose's cross-over. The fact that he was in the conference room and drinking, meant he could be off duty; two days off on the regular work cycle.
Jet felt a cold shiver go down his spine. Chekov was a member of the Russian Federation military and rarely spoke to anyone, usually only speaking when spoken to. He was a big man with huge hands, the glass of vodka seemed dwarfed in his grasp and he wore a scowl on his face that would stop a charging buffalo. Short, thick black hair, cut in a military style, and a slightly graying moustache, projected a fierce Stalin-like image.
First impressions often generate strong emotions, and Jet had strongly disliked Chekov from their first meeting. The Russian was pompous and self-serving. It was his way or the highway and he never listened to advice. If he didn't get his way, he would throw up his arms in exasperation and walk away. Jet wondered how Chekov had ever been chosen as part of the mining team as he was certainly not a team player.
Lui walked in as Jet was pouring himself a bourbon and soda. He grabbed another glass and asked her what she would like to drink.
"Just a pop with some ice," she said. "I don't drink any alcohol."
Jet complied and poured the pop, dumping two cubes of ice into the glass. John Miller finally joined them and they chatted about various work related issues, laughing out loud at the Commander's jokes. Jet watched Chekov out of the corner of his eye and noticed that the Russian had taken a notebook out of his pocket and had begun to jot something down.
"Interesting," Jet thought to himself.
**
Lonely and Bored
Tuesday, July 14,2026
4:00 p.m.
Francisco Juventus, aka Malcolm Ensley, had to admit that he was getting a little bored with this life. It had been almost two weeks since his arrival in Mare del Plata, Argentina, and all he had done was laze in the sun on the beach, visit historical sites, and watch movies with sub-titles. His skin supported a light tan and, apart from his very rudimentary Spanish, no one even gave him a second glance; he was one of them. He had stopped dining out and had started cooking meals at home. He had even done some gardening in the front yard and spied-out the pretty girl who li
ved down the road.
Ensley, lived in Calle 164, close to the center of the city and his only contact with the outside world, apart from television , was limited to his new e-mail address and the cell phone Sammy Binks had provided, neither of which he had used. He was not surprised though, when he received an e-mail headed by a phrase:
Hope you are doing well. The time has come for you to spread your wings. 5:00 p.m. tomorrow at the Sheraton Bar.
Ensley was almost overcome with excitement. He was sure it would not be long before he was free to move to a better place, once he had fulfilled the requirements for the rest of his money. He had visions of moving to Australia.
At precisely 4:45 p.m. the next day, Ensley walked into the Sheraton Hotel and headed for the bar. He was nervous, not knowing what to expect, but it didn't matter! He was nearing the end of his probation and soon he would be rich and free.
Much to his disappointment, except for the bartender, the bar was empty. He sat on a barstool near the end of the counter so that he could see anybody who entered from the lounge or from outside. The woman asked in Spanish what he would like to drink, and he confidently answered, "Una cerveza por favor." It was one of the few Spanish phrases he knew well. She poured Ensley a draft beer which he sipped slowly until the glass was almost empty, his impatience growing by the minute. After ten more minutes a car drew up and parked directly opposite the hotel. A man dressed in a short-sleeved shirt and jeans stepped out of the vehicle onto the sidewalk, carrying a thick aluminum case. He made his way across the road toward the hotel. As the man entered through the pub door, Ensley recognized him immediately. It was Sammy Binks.
"Hello, old friend!" Sammy greeted him warmly and the two men briefly embraced.
"It's so good to see you again," remarked Ensley. "I've started to go out of my skull with boredom this last week."
Binks beckoned the bartender and ordered a beer. "Don't worry, Malcolm. The time has come for you to fulfill the final requirement of your obligation to us."
The Helium-3 Conspiracy Page 11