Goodbye California - Alistair [81]
‘People are advised not to approach within five miles of the site. If they do, I shall not be responsible for their lives. If they don’t, but are still foolish enough not to wear specially darkened lenses I shall not be responsible for their sight.
‘The chosen site is in Nevada, about twelve miles northwest of Skull Peak, where Yucca Flat adjoins Frenchman’s Flat.
‘This device is in the kiloton range, of the approximate destructive power of those which destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki.’
Delage switched off. After about thirty seconds’ silence, Dunne said thoughtfully: ‘Well, that’s a nice touch, I must say. Going to use the United States’ official testing ground for his purposes. As you ask, what the devil is the man up to? Does anyone here believe what we’ve just heard?’
‘I do,’ Ryder said. ‘I believe it absolutely. I believe it’s in position, I believe it will be detonated at the time he says it will, and I believe there is nothing we can do to stop him. I believe all you can do is to prevent as many rubber-neckers as possible from going there and having themselves incinerated or radiated or whatever. A traffic problem of sorts.’
Jeff said: ‘For a traffic problem you require roads. No major roads there. Dirt-tracks, that’s all.’
‘Not a job for us,’ Dunne said. ‘Army, National Guard, tanks, armoured cars, jeeps, a couple of Phantoms to discourage air-borne snoopers – there should be no problems in cordoning the area off. For all I know everybody might be more interested in running in the other direction. All that concerns me is why, why, why? Blackmail and threats, of course, but again, what, what, what? A man feels so damned helpless. Nothing you can do, nothing you can go on.’
‘I know what I’m going to do,’ Ryder said. I’m going to bed.’
The Sikorsky cargo helicopter landed in the courtyard of the Adlerheim but none of those seated in the refectory paid it any attention: the helicopter, which ferried in nearly all the supplies for the Adlerheim, was constantly coming and going, and one just learned to live with its deafening clatter. That apart, the few guards, the hostages, Morro and Dubois were considerably more interested in what was taking place on the big TV screen before them. The announcer, arms folded in a form of noble resignation and his features arranged with a gravity appropriate to the occasion, had just finished the playing of the tape-recordings of the four physicists and had embarked upon Morro’s postscript. The pilot of the helicopter, clad in a red plaid mackinaw, entered and approached Morro but was waved to a seat: Morro was not concerned with listening to his own voice but appeared to derive interest and amusement from listening to the comments and watching the expressions of the others.
When Morro had finished his postscript, Burnett turned to Schmidt and said loudly: ‘Well, what did I tell you, Schmidt? Man’s a raving lunatic’
The remark seemed to cause Morro no offence: nothing ever seemed to. ‘If you are referring to me, Professor Burnett, and I assume you are, that’s a most uncharitable conclusion. How do you arrive at it?’
‘In the first place you don’t have an atom bomb –’
‘And even worse, that’s a stupid conclusion. I never claimed it was an atom bomb. It’s an atomic device. Same effect, though. And eighteen kilo-tons is not to be regarded lightly.’
Bramwell said: ‘There is just your word –’
‘At one minute past ten tomorrow morning you and Burnett will doubtless have the courtesy to apologize to me.’
Bramwell was no longer so certain. ‘Even