Infinity Beach - Jack McDevitt [100]
Whatever ambiance might have existed in its luxury days had later been sacrificed to the gods of utility. Despite the new paint and the new carpets, Hammersmith felt like a small hotel that had been let go and was now being refurbished for a new buyer. There was something essentially threadbare about it that no amount of restoration could hide.
The hull was crowded with antennas, sensor dishes, and a host of other devices of whose use Kim had no idea. Its name and designator were imprinted forward, and SEA-BRIGHT INSTITUTE, in large black letters, ran the length of the ship.
Solly told her to choose any compartment she liked. There were eight dedicated to passengers, each designed for two people. The middle units on either side of the hall comprised the pilot’s room and a mission control center. A conference room occupied the rear of the top floor.
She said hello to a man installing stained panels, and saw several others working in the rec room. She picked her quarters, just aft of the pilot’s room, and stowed her gear.
Solly was in the hallway, munching toast. “How are we doing?” she asked.
He held out his hands in a helpless gesture. “Ready to go, as soon as Worldwide gets off.”
“When’s that going to happen?”
“Hard to tell. They don’t seem to be sure themselves.”
“Can’t we ask them to leave?”
“Not without raising some eyebrows.”
She punched in a request for cheese and coffee. “How many are there, Solly? Workers?”
“Four Worldwide people, plus one technician from Marlin.” He looked at the time. “They’ll probably all shut down in a little while for lunch. If they do that, we’ll clear out.”
She looked doubtfully at the food dispenser. “What happens if this thing breaks down?”
Solly went into mission control and opened a panel in the back wall, exposing the automated kitchen. “We can do it manually if we have to.” He smiled at her. “How about some toast to go with your cheese?”
“No, thanks,” she said.
“We can make twenty pieces at a time,” he observed.
“We have enough food for four months or so?”
“Have no fear. We’ll eat well. Ham is stocked for seventeen people for a half-year.” His expression turned serious. “But there is something we should talk about.”
“Yes?”
“I know we’re assuming your idea’s going to work, and that coming back here with big news is going to get us off the hook for stealing this little buggy.”
“It’ll happen, Solly.” She picked up her coffee and cheese.
“Maybe. But my experience is that nothing ever goes according to plan. Especially something like this.” They crossed the corridor and looked into the pilot’s room. Three chairs, some consoles, an overhead screen, two auxiliaries each left and right. Two big screens which would act as windows in the left-hand wall. “To be honest, I’m not optimistic. I suspect we’re not seeing something clearly, and I just can’t believe we’re going to go out there and accomplish what you think we will.”
“Okay.” Kim would have liked to have his confidence, but she’d known all along that he was skeptical. No surprise there. Still, hearing it like this: Had he come simply because she needed him? “It’ll be there,” she insisted.
“Okay. Maybe it will. I hope so. But in the meantime we’d be smart to develop an alternative plan.”
“For what happens if we come back with nothing?”
“For what happens if we discover it would be a good idea not to come back.” He took a deep breath. “Look, Kim, neither of us is going to want to face a court.”
“Solly,” she said, “you can still back out if you want.”
“If I did, what would you do?”
She stared silently at her coffee cup.
“Right,” he said. “So I’ll do it—”
“Thanks.”
“No. Not for you. I’m not that crazy. But there’s enough of a chance that you’re right to make it worthwhile. I wouldn’t want to spend the rest of my life wondering. So I’m willing to gamble. But if it doesn’t work, Kim, I have friends on Tigris.”
“Okay.”
“I’ve made arrangements with them. Just in case.”
She nodded.
“If things don’t go the way we want, we’ll retire to a mountaintop