There Must Be A Mistake Ch. 27

"What I have to say now has nothing to do with last night. Rebecca and I talked it over, and we would be giving up much too much to go into space with you. We spoke with Doctor Luck, and he warned us about going. He said if we were not into science and math, we were going two be very lonely little girls. There are no children our age going on this trip. Several were older, but most were younger. He told us not to go with our parents wishes. He said, "Adults can handle themselves better than children." So we are going to stay here. We are not going to go. We realize how much we are hurting both of you, and we wish there was some way to make that hurt go away."

Joseph said, "Girls go to your room and begin packing. Leave one outfit out for today, and another for traveling tomorrow. I will help your mother pack and then arrange the limousines on the jet to take you home. I wish you both all the best things life on this planet has to offer.

After I finish helping your mother pack, and arrange your transportation, I will leave, and never see either of you again. I think it is best that way."

Deborah and Rebecca ran crying to their room. As soon as they were out of sight Sandy broke down.

"This is my fault Joseph. I should never have left you in the first place. I should never have let my parent's money get in the way of my common sense. I was so afraid of my sister trying to kill our kids. It was all I could think about at the time. I have ruined both our lives."

As he held her in his arms Joe said, "You still have your options. I know which one I want you to choose, because I want you and the girls to be free. You can get the manifest for those of us who are on 'The Best Luck', and you will be able to get a divorce within two weeks of our departure. I don't know what they're going to do about the life insurance policies. I believe they can hold off paying on them for between 7 and 10 years.

I want you to find someone who makes you happy. I don't want you to sit around the house and think about me. As of the night of December 25th, I am dead. I will never return to this planet. Millions of people lose a loved one, and have wonderful second marriages. I want that to happen for you."

"Joseph, can we make love?"

"No, I still don't have a condom."

"I don't care."

"I do."

"We better go pack before I rape you."

"I could get arrested."

"Why would you be arrested if I raped you?"

"All the evidence would be on you: seminal fluid, pubic hairs, skin underneath your fingernails, and the girls hearing you screaming. It all amounts to rape, but I am the rapist, and not the person who was raped."

"So what you're saying is that it's a win-win for me."

"Yes you could look at it that way."

"Would it keep you here on earth long enough for you to miss the flight?"

"Yes it would."

"Get on the floor; I am going to fuck you to death."

"You only have one problem Sandy."

"What's that?"

"I want to go into space, and you are not going to stop me. I love you with all my heart, but you broke it 18 months ago. These people gave me a new life, and I owe it to them to follow through on my promise. They gave me $10 million to go on board this ship as their Doctor, and I'm going. I'm giving you the money because I love you. If things had been different, I would have followed you anywhere. However, you chose your parents money over me. These people are my friends. They never turned their back on me, as you did. They lifted me up out of the pits of depression, and returned me to a useful life. I will not turn my back on them."

"I'm so sorry Joseph, I was such a fool."

"There's nothing we can do about it now. Finished packing, I have to make a few phone calls."

35 minutes later, the front door closed, and the car drove off. Sandra ran out into the street yelling for him. It was no use he was already too far away. She walked back into the kitchen, and found a note.

"Sandy, there was no sense in both of us crying. It would not have helped either of us. Your instructions for tomorrow are described below. Here are the two checkbooks with instructions on how to make the transfers to your accounts. The $10 million transfer is easy. The $1 billion transfer is harder. You know the rules. My love and best wishes go with you, Rebecca, and Deborah. I will keep you all forever close to my heart. Joseph"

***********************

One month after her father's passing Gretchen Croft received a box in the mail with no return address. Curious, she opened it and found a note on top.

Dear Ms. Croft, It was my saddest duty to be assigned to put your father's personal effects into one small box. He was a giant of a man, and he deserves much better. In his desk, I found a letter addressed to you. I did not open it, but I ask you to remember your nondisclosure agreement. If your father mentioned anything of a secret nature, please burn this letter after you read it. It must not fall into enemy hands at all costs. Jack was my dearest friend and a teacher I will never forget. I can only hope God has a bridge he needs fixed or a tunnel he needs built, because a better engineer he will never find."

It was signed, "A very dear friend."

She knew immediately who sent her the box with her father's effects in it. She could not wait to she what her father had written to her. She used a knife to slice open the top of the envelope and removed the single page letter.

"Hi Gretchen, they have finally allowed me to write you a letter. This place is guarded better than Fort Knox. You can't walk 10 feet without seeing someone with a gun.

You have never seen a mess like this in your life. Whoever wanted to destroy that building used something I have never seen before. The base of the communications command structure was eight feet thick of 14,000 pound per square inch, steel reinforced concrete. It blew a hole through it like it was a graham cracker. This assignment is going to be very dangerous for our entire crew.

I can't tell you his name, but I met a very dear friend up here. It will be great working with him again. If I can depend on anyone doing this job right it is him. I am leading a great team. Most of my guys have 20 years or more engineering or bomb disposal experience. We are using the most high tech equipment you have ever seen, and we had been training very hard every day, to make sure everything goes as planned.

One of the amazing things about this new material is that it did not set off any of any of the underground tremblor alarms the Air Force has within 20 miles of the base. I don't know if it's an acid-based compound or not. Tomorrow we will follow the tunnel north in full bomb suit protective gear. It won't be hot, because the weather up here is quite cool. It will make it very easy for us to crawl through any tight spaces.

Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me if this tunnel goes all the way to Canada. If it does, our northern flank defenses are in trouble.

It's training time again baby. I can't wait to get home to play with my grandkids again, and to kiss my loving daughter.

Dad

Gretchen read the letter over and over again. She didn't want to destroy it, because they were the last words her loving father would ever say to her. Then again, she had a duty to her country, and her father always lived up to that Creed: Duty, Honor, and Country. She read the letter one last time, went into the kitchen, and turned on one burner of the gas stove. She waited, until the paper was engulfed in flames. She threw it into the sink, and watched it burn, until it was nothing but ash.

She looked until every bit of paper was black, and turned on the water to wash it all down the drain she said, "Thank you daddy, I love you."

She loved her daddy even more, when she received a check for $250,000, 3 days later.

****************

132. Balancing The Load

It was a quiet Saturday morning at the Thyme household. Newton was across the street working on Spacecraft 2 with his cousins, Delicious was on the floor sleeping with her head on Gray's belly. Gray was reading the latest addition of Scientific America, and Teddy was playing with one of her new toys, from Playskool. It consisted of a small workbench. On the workbench, there was a large yellow screw that matched the large yellow flat screwdriver, a green Philips head screw that matched a large Philip head screwdriver, and a large blue nail, that matched a large blue claw hammer.

Gray should have known better than to buy her this toy. The box said one through three years old, and Teddy was approaching 25, even though she was 17 months old.

Teddy picked up her hammer, walked behind her father, sat down, and started using his forehead as a drum.

That was the end of a quiet Saturday morning at the Thyme household.

Gray shouted, "Teddy stop that right now."

Delicious woke up with a start, and yelled, "What's wrong?"

"Teddy's beating me over the head with the hammer."

"I warned you, but you wouldn't listen to me."

"Why did you hit daddy over the head Teddy?"

"Trouble with egg mommy."

"You didn't have eggs this morning baby."

"Nest egg mommy. Big trouble, fall down."

Now she had their attention.

Gray asked, "Why is the egg going to fall?"

Teddy stood up then shifted her weight to one leg and fell.

"The ship is unbalanced Teddy?"

"Yes, unbul... Too heavy one side, too light other side."

Gray raced for the phone and called the nest.

"Jeff this is Gray, get everyone out and away from the egg. It's unbalanced and it may fall. This is not a drill, get everyone out and away from the egg, we will be right over."

"Delicious pack Teddy's bag while I make some calls. We are going over there."

"Even, Teddy says the egg is going to fall. We are on our way there now."

"General Morgan, this is Grayson Thyme, we need you to get a hold of Jack Daniels. We need him at the nest now. The egg is unbalanced, and we have to find out what to do about it."

"I will find him and get them there as soon as possible."

"Thank you general."

"We are ready to go Gray."

"Let's go baby, you two Delicious."

"And you were doing so well today Gray."

"I was just testing to see if you were still in there."

"Mommy always in there."

"You tell him Teddy."

"Did that."

"Thank you Teddy."

"Welcome mommy."

***************

I saw it as soon as I turned the corner in the SUV. My ship was listing about eight degrees towards us, and there was no way we were going to save it except one.

I yelled, "Flight crews to your stations flight crew to your stations immediately."

I saw Gordon take off like a rabbit, and Gray was pulling Delicious by the arm. I said, "Holy Shit she's carrying Teddy. There's nothing I can do about it now."

"Gray, Delicious get to your flight stations now."

I yelled to Jeff, "I need 30 strong men on board now."

He didn't need to ask for volunteers, every agent was begging him to go inside the ship.

Another SUV came screaming around the corner of the hangar with its horn blaring. Jack Daniels and Lucius Canyon jumped out.

Jack looked at me and said, "We are too late, she's going to tip over any minute."

"Get inside and I'll prove you wrong."

"I'm not going in that thing it's a death trap."

"Lucius, he's your friend get him in my ship."

"Are you going to be in their Doctor?"

"In about one minute I'll be on the flight deck."

"Everyone else clear out, if this doesn't work is going to be a mess around here."

I ran for the closest elevator, got in and waited for it to get to the second floor. I said to hell with the flight suit, and ran up to the flight deck and began issuing orders.

"Nuclear engine to five percent."

Gordon replied, "Nuclear engine to five percent dad."

"Delicious lift us off the ground slow and easy, as soon as you have the power to do so, and make your out to 1000 feet."

"Magnetic grid passing 905 megawatts. She is beginning to lift off the ground. We are 10 feet above the ground, level, and rising. Grid is now passing 1000 kilowatts"

We all heard the pressure coming off the left rear strut as it groaned in relief.

James, call and traffic control, and see if they can give us 3000 and below, within 25 miles of Temple. Tell them it's a test for a new piece of equipment.

"Magnetic grid at 1250 and holding."

"Very good."

"Do you want me to leave the nuclear engine at five percent dad? We have much more power than we need."

"Reduce the nuclear engine power to three percent."

"Reducing power to three percent."

"May I ask the captain why we went to five percent in the first place?"

"I wanted to get power quickly to the Antigravity Magnetic Drives. I had to get them to take off power as soon as possible. As you heard Delicious say, she started lifting us off the ground at 905 megawatts, instead of 987Mw. If we had only had the power on the nuclear engine at two percent her magnetic drives with only registered in the low 600s at that time."

"You stood a chance of burning out her engines."

"I stood a chance of losing the entire ship, so I took a calculated risk, and this time I won. It doesn't mean I will win every time, but this time I won."

There was applause from the left side of the flight deck, and I turned to see who it was.

"That was a very smart move Doctor Luck. By my calculations, the ship was listing at 14 degrees, when you lifted off the ground. At 17 degrees, it's all over."

"Even shaped as a bowling ball Colonel Daniels?"

"You have to find out why she listed in the first place. Apparently, someone doesn't know how to load a ship properly. Do you know who was in charge?"

"I have no idea. My job was done. I built this thing, and now it was up to the others to fit it out and stock it for the future."

"Get your working shoes back on Doctor; someone's trying to kill your pride and joy."

"Captain, and traffic control says we have 5000 and below within 25 miles of Temple."

"Thank you James, Gray you have the bridge. If that Gulfstream comes nosing around, you have my permission to play with it."

"Thank you Captain, but I refuse to play with the Gulfstream."

"Someone wants to go with you Dad."

"Absolutely, come to me Teddy, Newton is going to be so angry with you tonight."

"Give banilla ice cream, chocolate syrup. He happy."

"Somehow little angel, I don't think so."

"Big kiss."

"I don't think that will work either. Let's go see why this ship was unbalanced."

"New word. Unbul...!"

"Teddy, bal like bal-loon. Un-bal-loon un-bal-ance."

"Banilla ice cream chocolate syrup, cream cherries."

"You little monster are going to look like a bowling ball. Do you know where we are to heavy?"

"Medicine."

"It can't be Teddy; the medical suite is in the center of the ship."

"Banilla ice cream, two scoops?"

"Oh no you don't, your mother would kill me, and then she would begin to hurt me very bad."

"My mommy nice mommy."

"Your mommy is my daughter. I've known her longer than you have. Let's take a look and see what's going on."

"Jeff are you back there anywhere?"

"I'm over here Doctor Luck."

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"We found his one weakness Doctor, he doesn't like to fly."

"Why didn't you say so? You could have stayed on the ground."

"You needed me so here I am."

"Do you like the way she flies?"

"I must admit, it smoother than any aircraft I've ever been in."

"That's because it doesn't have wings or a tale. There's nothing for the wind to grab hold of and make it bounce around. Unless there is severe turbulence around us, you will not feel a bump in the road."

"It's a magnificent machine Doctor, what do you need us to do?"

"Teddy said it had something to do with medicine, but the medical suite is in the center of the ship."

"The medical suite may be in the center of the ship Doctor but all of the equipment for it is back here. The MRI, CAT scans, the X-ray, and Ultra-sound machines are all the way back against the bulkhead. The examination tables medical supplies and everything else you can think of is back there too. I believe there are slabs of lead shielding for those machines back there, but I can't read the entire label from here."

"We nearly lost $350 billion dollars in investment, because someone didn't know how to load a ship properly. Would you please find out who the load master is and bring him to my office tomorrow."

"Where would you like his head Doctor?"

"On his shoulders when he gets in my office. If I find out it's an act of industrial sabotage, I will call William, and we will have a meeting as to his future."

"I will pass along your request."

"Grandpa, no man, puter wrong."

"The computer is giving the wrong information?"

"Yes, wrong coats."

"You mean wrong codes. The computer is giving the wrong codes."

"Said that."

"Yes you did."

"Okay, we now know that the computer is giving out the wrong codes according to my little sweetheart here. The fix should be relatively easy once we find the source of the problem."

"Jack our engines will last forever, but we won't. If you would take a look at the schematic for the medical suite and tell our men where you want everything to be, even if it's only temporary, to balance the ship so we can land, and do the real work, while were on the ground."

"I can do that for you Doctor Luck. It should take us two to three hours to manhandle all this equipment into its proper place. Considering how delicate this equipment is, it may take even longer."

"Longer is not a problem Jack."

Gentleman, Colonel Daniels has advised me that we could be here, moving this equipment around, for more than three hours. The one thing I don't want is for anyone to get hurt. If we are up in the air for six hours, I don't care. What I do care about is your safety. I want each of you to be able to walk off this ship as healthy as you walked on to it. Some of this equipment is extremely heavy; some of it is extremely fragile. When you're tired, take a break. The engines will be able to provide potable water for you. Each of you is now collecting quadruple overtime for your service while you are here. Money will mean nothing to you if you are in the hospital, in severe pain. Please be careful. Now stop goofing off, and get to work."

The agents laughed, and turned to Colonel Daniels for instructions.

"I think it's time we go for a real ride Teddy, what do you think?"

"Can fly me?"

"We are already flying. Do you want to sit with me as we fly around the country?"

"Can fly me?"

"Oh, you want to fly the spacecraft, is that what you mean?"

"Please."

"When we fly West and leave Texas, what state will we be in?"

"Christmas?"

"You were close, it's New Mexico. We leave on Christmas day so you won't have to worry about naming all the states and their capitals. I will fly; you can sit on my lap. Okay?"

"Not fair.

"I will wait until you go to sleep to fly."

"You mean."

"You grandbaby, me grandpa, grandpa spank grandbaby for being bad."

"Sit on lap, not happy, not fair."

"Banilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, cherries, and sprinkles."

"Cheater, but okay, sit on lap, be happy."

"I am honored that you're happy."

******************

"Captain is on the bridge."

"Thank you Gray. James pull up the Jeppesen maps and tell the computer we want to fly from here to Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Boston, Miami, and back to Temple staying 60 miles away from any heavily populated area. Altitude 60,000 feet speed 4000 knots."

"Gray pressurize the ship make sure all life-support systems are functioning normally, internal temperature a balmy 76 degrees. Is that okay with you gorgeous?"