“We’ve psychoanalyzed this to death, Paul. If we do what you suggest, in ten years little children will hate and distrust all scientists. There probably won’t be any scientists left, and the earth will be covered by tiny, warring, bickering feudal states again, with no goals and no progress. It will set mankind back centuries. If we do what’s best for the world, we’ll see an advanced society in twenty or thirty years, with colonies on the moon and Mars, with great gains in scientific knowledge. We’ll be on the threshold to the stars. Would you rob the world of that, and destroy the lives of billions? Would you rob Leland of that?”
“I guess I’m not thinking straight,” said Haas. “I suppose I am being self-indulgent, and parading my guilt. I’m over it. I promise. Just tell me, Hector—how do you feel about what Leland did?”
Ortiz stared into the glass of beer he was holding, his forehead gathering in a frown. After a moment, “I don’t know what I feel. Leland meant a lot to me. I can’t go to the innocent dead, and justify to them why it was necessary for them to die. How does one ever justify such a thing, in any war, no matter how noble or righteous the reasons for the war. How do we justify the innocent children at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, or Berlin, or Viet Nam.” He sighed, looking at Eve in a remote, introspective way. “I believe that what Leland did was necessary, in order to achieve all those important objectives I just mentioned. Someone else will have to say whether or not the objectives were worth all the innocent lives. It depends on the future, I guess—what eventually comes from it all. From a personal perspective, I knew the boy—knew his heart. I can’t think of him as a monster, any more than I can believe I’m a monster. Maybe that’s just my own human hypocrisy. It was war.
“I don’t suppose it makes any difference, anyway, at least not now. He believed that he had to do what he did. For him, as horrible as the act was, there was no other way. He could not live with the billions of lives that would endure centuries of suffering if he did not act. He couldn’t permit the loss of centuries of progress. It was a scientist’s choice. You put aside your emotions and prejudices, and face facts. It was those lives, or the end of civilization, maybe forever.”
Ortiz paused a moment, thinking. Finally, “I think he planned to die all along. It was his genius that made the weapons possible, no matter that others helped put them up. I think he knew that the nation couldn’t heal, especially the relatives of those who died at his hands, until someone paid for those lives. I think he also knew that some sort of trial would have divided the country and set old animosities into new channels, and if we refused to try him, we would be viewed as just another bunch of tyrants, with a different set of standards for ourselves than those we forced upon the rest of humanity.
“I think Leland wanted to avoid all of that, and to give the country a fresh start. As excited as he was about the potential for a new, free and peaceful world, and as much as he dearly wanted to be a part of it, he thought that this was the only way. He taped a statement for the press, which will be aired in a few days, explaining everything, taking full responsibility, and passing control to us. Now, people can have a sense of closure.”
“He consolidated the scientific community too,” said Haas, “in a way that I would never have thought possible. That is his real legacy, and unfortunately, its importance will likely be lost on the general population. Thanks to him, we now have an open, international community for the first time ever. Humanity can progress as a whole. Everybody will share in the discoveries. Maybe future generations will have fewer fears and suspicions to divide them.”
“I know it’s self-centered, but I wish I could have played a bigger role,” said Townsend. “I know why it had to be, but I still would like to have been in the thick of it.”
Teller clapped him on the back. “Well, now that we know you’re straight, you can be in on the next one,” he said, laughing. “Seriously, Jimmy, there was just too much at stake. You said it yourself, this was probably the last chance we would get. If they had won, mankind might have been enslaved for centuries. Besides, you did more than you know. You saved the lives of a million people, maybe more, by discovering the plot to destroy L.A., and you crippled their ability by destroying Broderick and his international terrorist links. In that light, you did exactly what you were trained to do. You protected this sovereign nation. You upheld your oath and defended the Constitution. Thanks to you, and to the others who gathered intelligence and fought to save our country, we have another chance.”
Townsend swatted Eve on the bottom, lightly, and smiled. “Another chance,” he said.
She smiled and took his hand. “I love you,” she said, looking dreamily into his eyes.
Teller rolled his eyes. “I gotta get another beer, or I’m gonna cry. Maybe I’ll take a leak while I’m at it,” he said, ambling toward the bathroom.
Ortiz cast a meaningful look at Townsend. “If I were you,” he said, “I’d make him go in the yard.”
Operation Damocles Page 32