Lucifer's Hammer - Larry Niven [179]
But this was perfect. The scout troop would have to come past the Jellison place.
And Maureen would be there.
Harvey despised himself for thinking of her. Loretta's face swam in front of him, and the vision of a body wrapped in an electric blanket. He slowed to a stop.
"Why are we—" Before Marie could finish there was an explosion behind them, then another.
"What the hell" Harvey started the car again. Remorse was replaced by fear. Explosions? Had they wandered into a range war or something? He drove ahead, while Joanna and Marie craned to look back.
Mark whipped the bike into a U-turn and drove back the way they'd come. He waved as he went past.
"Damn fool curiosity will kill him yet," Joanna said.
Harvey shrugged. He could stand not knowing, but it would be nice to find out. Up ahead, a couple of miles, not far at all, was the turnoff. Then safety, refuge, rest.
He drove slowly, and he'd just reached the Senator's drive when he saw Mark coming up behind him. He pulled to a stop.
"That bridge," Mark said.
"Yeah?"
"The one we came over," Mark said. "Those two dudes just blew it. Dynamite, I think. They dropped it at both ends. Harvey, a half-hour later and we'd be stranded back there."
"Two minutes later," Joanna said, "and we'd have been looking up at a million tons of water. We—Harv, we can't keep lucking out like this."
"It takes luck," Harvey said. "In combat, here, luck's as important as brains. But we won't need any more for awhile. I'm going in there." He waved toward the Senator's drive.
"Why?" Marie demanded, ready for war.
"Road conditions. Information." Harvey drove on to the gate. It was only just coming to him—it had never occurred to him, not for an instant—that a master of television documentaries might not be welcome at a politician's home.
He got out to open the gate.
There was a car parked inside. A young man got out and wearily came to the TravelAll. "Your business?" he inquired. He eyed Joanna and the shotgun, showed his empty hands. "Me, I'm not armed. But my partner's where you can't see him, and he's got a scope-sighted rifle."
"We'll be no trouble," Harvey said. The man had seen the NBS markings on the TravelAll—and he hadn't been impressed. "Can you get a message up to the big house?"
"Depends on the message. Might."
Harvey had thought it through. "Tell Maureen Jellison that Harvey Randall is here with three dependents."
The man looked thoughtful. "Well, you got the names right. She expecting you?"
Harvey laughed. It struck him as insanely funny. He leaned against the fender and chortled, he put a hand on the man's arm and got control of his voice and said, "From Los Angeles?" and lost it again.
The man withdrew a little. His large red face blanked out. There were things he didn't want to know. But—the Senator had told the meeting he'd like to talk to someone who'd seen what happened to L.A. And this city man did know the Senator's name, and Maureen's as well.
As suddenly as it had been funny, suddenly it wasn't. Harvey stopped laughing. "Maureen must think I'm dead. She'll be glad to know different." Or will she? Shazam! "I know she'll want to talk to me. Tell her I want to … never mind." He'd been about to say he wanted to talk about galactic empires, and that wasn't the right thing to say at all.
The man looked thoughtful. Finally he nodded. "Okay, I guess I can do that. But you wait right here. I mean right here, understand? And don't get gay with that shotgun."
"We don't want to shoot anybody. I just want to talk to Maureen."
"Okay. Right there. I'll be a while." He went to the car, locked it and walked up the driveway.
Walked. Saving gasoline already. Yes, the Senator had his place organized. Harvey went back to the TravelAll. Marie tried to say something; he cut through her voice with practiced ease. "Spread the map."
She thought it over, then did it. Harvey let his forefinger do the talking. "The scouts