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noon she met a middle-aged woman on a bicycle who taught at a nearby high
school and who told her about the books by mail program run by the Las Cruces
Public Library. Once Darcy convinced Grandma Méndez to register with them
(in the interest of her lodger s education), she could look forward to resuming her
research into early history and culture. There was no hurry. She had plenty of
time.
That was her biggest unknown, really: time. What was she going to do with
the rest of her life? She had little idea how long her life might be, given the
strange road she d taken to get where she was. Was she going to always live in a
little adobe house in the corner of a family compound in southern New Mexico?
She would never reveal her true identity, not when it was so clear all the havoc
that would cause. Her one experience with that had been more than enough. But
that didn t mean that she had to lie low and do basically nothing at all.
There was still so much to get used to and to learn about. She decided she d
worry about the future later. She spent four evenings assembling and learning to
use her stereo, television, and computer. After arranging for internet service, she
spent another evening online, bookmarking websites and dialing up the email
account she had opened in Barbados.
She drafted a message to Hleo in code but did not send it, instead saving it to
a folder she created. The following evening there was an answer from him in the
same folder. Perfect! She actually felt some affection for the old fellow. To her
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186
surprise, he also seemed to have missed her company. He told her he had set
things up so she could proceed with the test he had planned earlier, so the next
morning she activated the little microphone on the computer and dialed the
office of Hartley Braithwaite.
Hello. Is Mr. Braithwaite there, please? Please tell him Ana is calling. Thank
you.
It looked like it was going to work! Hleo would be delighted& unless he was
already listening.
All right. All right, gentlemen, please sit down and we ll get started. This
shouldn t take much over an hour if you ll just come to order, please.
Special Agent Aldridge was happy to be seated in a back corner. Meetings like
this, under the new Homeland Security Department, were probably going to be
more common, but for now he was happy to just watch. There were people there
he d never seen before and never heard of. There must have been thirty all told,
from the CIA, the DIA, the FBI, Customs, and six or seven other agencies. It was
a veritable smorgasbord of functionaries. The highest ranking one, someone he
had not only heard of, but knew to be wary of, was Horace Macchia, one of the
President s main political advisors, sitting next to the man standing at the
podium.
Aldridge was content to be seated in the back. He was very nearly a senior
official by now, and might have merited a chair at the head of the room. For
sure, he was one of the better informed people present, on this particular case.
Still, until he knew the lay of the land better, it made sense to keep a low profile.
Presiding was some guy named Chastain, August Chastain, an undersecretary
to the Secretary of Homeland Security. Aldridge had heard him called Augie.
Augie began with a briefing that was totally unnecessary as far as Aldridge was
concerned, summarizing the brief career of the extraterrestrial Ana Darcy, from
her first detection over Texas by radar to her disappearance from the Olympic
games. Aldridge zoned out, doodling floor plans for a shop he was going to add
behind his house, until finally Augie said something that interested him.
The department does not know the current whereabouts of Ms. Darcy. A
number of national assets continue to look for her. One of them has had the law
firm representing her, Benning, Bynum, Caxton, Braithwaite, based in Miami,
under observation for the last two months. Yesterday, a telephone call was inter-
cepted over the internet. It was a communication between Ms. Darcy and her
lawyer, Harvey Braithwaite, a Barbadian citizen and partner in the law firm. I will
play part of it for you now.
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187
Aldridge stopped doodling. He wasn t a lawyer, but he thought this kind of
thing was illegal without a court order. If there had been a court order, Augie
didn t mention it, but maybe that was how Homeland Security was doing things
these days. In any case, he would be happy to listen to the recording.
When the audio started, a rich, Caribbean-accented baritone was saying
& quite satisfactory, in fact, well beyond our expectations. Dick Caxton has
invested it for you as per your request, and it will remain at interest until you
decide what if anything you wish to do with it.
A female voice with pleasant alto overtones replied Thank you, sir. I appreci-
ate your attention to this matter. What I m really calling about, however, what I
most want to know, is if any action has been taken with respect to those meteor-
oids. Can you tell me anything about that?
Yes, I can, Ms. Darcy. I don t know if you have access to the media where
you are, but I can tell you that following any number of meetings of experts
around the world, the data you supplied has been substantially confirmed. At the
present time, the United States and the European Union have each agreed to
launch a space probe, and another rocket may be launched by a consortium com-
posed of the nations of Japan, Australia, China, and several others. I believe, if I
understand what I have read and seen, that all concerned are now plotting orbital
data and assembling the required vehicles for launch. It looks to me as if the
threat has been taken seriously and that the plans to counter it should more than
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