Luna Marine(90)

“Negligible. The hot debris would largely be scattered on the solar wind. And we’ll still be intercepting the asteroid outside the Moon’s orbit.”

“Well,” Harrel said, folding his hands. “Two alternatives to put on the president’s desk. That’s two more than we had when this mess began. I will let you know of his decision.”

“Sir,” Warhurst said, “if I might suggest, we can begin implementing both the Marine and Aerospace Force alternatives, at least up to the point where we have to decide on one plan or the other in order to allocate the booster assets. It will save time.”

“Of course, of course. We may well have to rely on both plans, with one serving as backup for the other, as additional HLVs come on-line. You will be informed. Thank you, both of you, for your presentations.”

“Nice job, Monty,” Gray said later, as the crowd began breaking up. “I think we’ve got a good chance.”

Warhurst shot a hard look at the admiral as he folded up his PAD. “CJ, I don’t care who takes the honors with this thing. It’s not a game, and it’s not about next year’s budget. Frankly, her idea might be the better one.”

“Why is that?”

“If nothing else, she can launch sooner than we can, because of the snafu with the LSCPs. The farther away from Earth that we can intercept this thing, the better.”

“Do you really think a couple of missiles launched from near-Earth space can do the job better?”

Warhurst sighed. He felt tired, deflated. “Hell, if I knew that…” He ran a hand through his hair. “Admiral, I know what Marines can do, even against impossible odds. I know what having trained men on the site can mean to an op, as opposed to remotes or robots or surveillance cams. My honest-to-God, gut feeling is that it’s better to handle this with men than with machines. And if you need men, the Marines are ready.”

“I think you’re right, Monty. We’ll just have to see if Markham agrees with you.”


Alexander Residence

Arlington Heights, Illinois

1615 hours CDT

“Someone is coming up the walk.”

Liana looked away from the E-room wall screen, startled. Someone?

The door’s recognition software knew all of her friends, all of the neighbors or Church of the Divine Masters acquaintances who might come to call. Delivery people, postal servers, and police all wore small transponders in their clothing, like military IFF beacons, that identified them to smart doors.

So who was coming up the walkway that she didn’t know?

Rising from the sofa, she walked to the front door. “Display,” she said, placing a hand on the small flatscreen mounted there.

Her!

Liana heard her door asking the visitor to leave her name and a message. She was tempted not to answer, to pretend she was out, even though the car in the port outside gave the lie to that deception.

What was Teri Sullivan doing here? Didn’t she know that David had been arrested?

“Hello,” Teri’s voice said over the door’s messager. “This is Dr. Theresa Sullivan. I work with your husband at the Institute. Ms. Alexander? I need to talk to you.” A moment passed. “Please answer the door!”

Liana waited a moment more, trying to decide. Then, abruptly, she jerked the door open. “Excuse me,” she said, putting all of the ice she could into the words. “I didn’t recognize you with your clothes on.”

The other woman closed her eyes, face reddening, but then she opened them again. “Please. May I come in? I need to talk to you.”

“I can’t imagine about what.”

“About David.”

“The door didn’t recognize you,” Liana said. She felt angry, and hurt. What was this woman doing here? What was she thinking? “I would have thought David would have keyed it for you. Didn’t he bring you here for a fast screw on nights when I was out?”

“No, Ms. Alexander. Never.” She drew a deep breath. “Look…it’s true. I have slept with David. And obviously you’ve seen some of my v-mail to him. I’m…I’m terribly sorry if I’ve offended you.”

“Offended me! You bitch! You were trying to take my husband!”

“Ms. Alexander,” Teri said softly, “I’m afraid you lost him long before I came on the scene.”

Liana trembled on the brink of losing her last shreds of control. She’s right, damn her. Maybe there really isn’t any hope for us. With difficulty, she drew back, took a couple of breaths, and managed to put the ice back in her words. “David is not here. I can’t imagine what you and I could possibly have to talk about. Good-bye.”