Her mood, her dream, was infectious. His thick forefinger traced her jaw. “If anyone could. Now.” He balled his fist and tapped it against the wall. “Let’s not begin the celebration just yet. We have game to flush. Gamers.”
Wayne was poised at the wall of the next bubble, power saw poised and ready. “How long?”
“Soon,” Angelique said. “Get ready.”
Scotty leaned back against the curve of the dome, staring out and up, barely able to move. “Everything is so bright. So… loud. But…”
Kendra’s voice in his ear. “Don’t look up. Don’t even look at the dome. Just concentrate on the work. Can you do that?”
“Are the others done?” he asked.
“All set and in position. We’re just waiting for you.”
“Then I guess…,” he said, turning over, “I’d better get to work.”
One step at a time. He felt an almost irresistible urge to look up at the sky, as if it were a predator ready to strike. “Kendra?”
“Yes?” her blessed voice.
“Do you remember our honeymoon?”
A pause. “On Vava’u? Vividly.”
“Me, too.” He was struggling to get the lid off, his fingers clumsy.
“How are things going out there?”
“Pretty bad,” Scotty said. “But I’ll get it done. Helps me to talk. Do you remember the surf? Water was warm when we’d go down in the morning.”
She laughed in his ear. A caress. “It was like that when I was a girl. So warm. What I remember is warm sand between my toes.”
“I feel a little cold right now,” he said. “I don’t think my suit heater is working right. Tell me about how warm it was.”
“Back when I was a girl?”
“No, when we were on our honeymoon.”
Was that a touch of embarrassment now, on her side? “Scotty… I’m not sure this is the time.”
“I can’t think of a better one.”
“It was warm at midnight, Scotty. Remember? I remember taking you to the cove where I used to go as a girl. I wanted so much to share my special places with you.” She spun a string of musical Tongan polysyllables. My sweetheart. My dearest love.
“I remember the stars there, at night.”
A sharp intake of breath on her part. “Scotty. Are you sure you should be discussing stars?”
“Maybe,” he said. “Maybe this is the time, Kendra.”
A pause. “Maybe it is, at that.”
His fingers seemed to be thawing. “After this is all over. Do you think that maybe we could go back there? Sometimes I think I left the best part of myself there. And here, with you. What do you think, Kendra? Is it possible for people to go back, make things right, start over?”
“I hope so, Scotty. If we can’t make up for the things we did… or said… I’m not sure there’s any hope for any of us.”
“Hah! It’s open!” His fingers stung. He stared at the input plate. Would wonders never cease! “I think I have it. Give me the numbers.”
“Security override XX5489223.”
“Got it. Asako?”
“I’ve got that. And… entering it. My pod is shaking hands now… and… it’s done.”
Scotty exhaled hard enough to fog his faceplate, and rolled over. “The stars…”
“Scotty?” Are you all right?”
“It’s… all right. They don’t blink, or look away. They see me. I think maybe that’s all right.”
The alarm began to sound.
Inside the dome, Shotz’ head whipped around as the alarm began to howl.
“What in the hell…?”
Celeste was on the edge of panic. “I’m not getting the message. We overrode the computer, and it’s taking me a minute to route the connection back to our board-”
The alarm grew louder.
“Here it is… it says ‘emergency flush sequence.’ What in the hell-”
Shotz’ eyes narrowed. “Get the men back into the bubbles! Get them out of the gaps in this damned dome-”
“That’s it! Drill!” Angelique screamed.
Wayne started up his power tool, an ear-shattering whine as it began to cut through the bubble’s wall. The stench of burnt plastic choked them, and smoke filled the air as if they were in a hookah bar. The gamers retreated from the action, watching with wide, hopeful eyes.
Around the dome, the men of Neutral Moresnot were hustling themselves into the bubbles, slamming the doors behind them. Carlyle strained. “What’s that sound?”
“The alarm, idiot!” Fujita replied. “Someone breached the dome.”
“Not that. Another sound-”
“More! More!” The drill was loud enough to deafen them, and then suddenly Wayne was through the wall, into the interstitial space. Wayne continued cutting, the saw’s burning blade whining as it sliced.
Then the chunk of wall fell away. Wayne stepped through onto the walkway. The second door opened easily. “We’re in!” he screamed back.
“Hurry!” Angelique yelled. “Move. We’ve got to go, go, go!”
Scrambling, the gamers hustled through into the next bubble.
“Cut the damned power on the alarm!” Shotz howled.
“But-”
“Cut it, Celeste! This is a strategem. There is no breach.”
“But I hear the alarm!”
“Do you feel the air move? No. If there was a massive breach, there would be a drop in air pressure. Nothing. It’s a fraud!”
Celeste spent a few moments on her computer, and the alarm died.
Scotty watched the alarm as it faded from the monitor. “All right,” Darla said. “The bad guys killed it. Let’s just hope our folks were able to get shed of that bubble. Let’s hook up at door five. We’ll be able to meet them. Is everything all right?”
“Good to go,” Scotty said.
“Good. Let’s get down. We have to move. Asako…?”
A pause. No reply. “Asako?”
When Asako spoke, her voice was very controlled and steady… but Scotty knew fear when he heard it. “I’m afraid that I have bad news. It looks as if my pod’s specifications may have been overly optimistic.”
“What in the hell does that mean?”
“It means,” she said, “that I am so very grateful for this opportunity to play with all of you. But I think this is as far as I go.”
“What? ”
