Danilo Clementoni - Back To Earth стр 11.

“Cut out the bullshit. Instead, why not try and adapt our secondary communication system to this technology? I want to be as well-prepared as possible when we get there.”

“I understand. I expect I’ll have to spend several hours in that cramped compartment.”

“What about getting something to eat first?” suggested Azakis, anticipating his friend’s next question, which, he imagined, would have followed soon after.

“That’s the first sensible thing I’ve heard you say today,” replied Petri. “All this excitement has given me an appetite.”

“Okay We’ll take a break, but it’s my turn to decide what we have. That Nebir liver you chose yesterday got stuck in my poor stomach so long that it seemed to be taking root.”

Ten minutes later, while the two travelling companions were still busy consuming their meal, a young engineer in the NASA Mission Control room on Earth was picking up a strange alteration in the course of the probe he was monitoring.

“Sir,” he said into the microphone attached to his headset, which hung a few centimetres from his mouth. “I think we may have a problem.”

“What kind of problem?” the engineer in charge of the mission asked anxiously.

“For some unknown reason Juno has suddenly shifted slightly off its set course.

“Shifted?” By how much? Due to what?” Already he was feeling a cold sweat. The cost of this mission was exorbitant. Nothing should be going wrong.

“I’m analysing the data right now. The telemetry is indicating a deviation of 0.01 degrees with no apparent explanation. Everything seems to be functioning normally.”

“It could have run into a rock fragment,” ventured the older engineer. “It's not actually that far from the asteroid belt.”

“Juno is pretty much in Jupiter’s orbit now, and there shouldn’t be any,” said his younger colleague, tentatively.

“So what’s happened then? There must have been some kind of malfunction.” After a few moments of reflection, he said, “I want a couple of checks run on all on-board instruments. I want the results on my computer in five minutes,” he ordered, closing communication.

The young engineer was suddenly aware of how much responsibility he had been given. He noticed his own hands trembling, but chose to ignore them. With the help of a colleague, he carried out a differentiated check-up on the probe, keeping his fingers crossed. The computer began to run the programme controls sequentially, and within a few minutes the results of the analysis appeared on the screen.

Check-up complete. All instruments operational.

“Everything seems fine,” remarked his colleague.

“So what the devil happened? If we don’t find anything in the next two minutes, the chief will have both our asses.” Feverishly he began typing commands into the keyboard in front of him.

Nothing. Everything was working perfectly.

He absolutely had to come up with something and fast. He began to drum on the desk with his fingers. He continued for about ten seconds, then decided to resort to the first unwritten rule of the workplace conduct manual: never contradict the boss.

Switching on the microphone, he said “Chief, you were right. It was a small Trojan asteroid that sent the probe off course. Luckily, it wasn't a direct hit. It just passed close by. Evidently, the asteroid exerted a small gravitational attraction on Juno, making it alter its course slightly. I’m sending you the data now,” he said, holding his breath.

After an interminable length of time, the proud voice of his superior reached his headset. “I was sure of it. My dear boy, you can’t out-do the instincts of an old salt.” Then he added, “Try to activate the engines on the probe and correct its course. I won’t accept any errors.” So saying, he switched off. A moment later, he came back, adding “Nice work, son.”

The young engineer noticed that the blood had begun to flow around his body once again His heart was beating so hard that he could hear his pulse in his ears. After all, this could actually have been the correct explanation. Turning towards his colleague, he gave him the thumbs up. The other relaxed, and winked at him. They were in the clear, at least for the time being.

Nasiriyya – After dinner

The recording system reactivated with a soft beep. The professor’s voice could once again be heard from the small speaker inside the machine. “I think it’s time we were leaving, Jack. I have to be up early in the morning, to continue with the excavations.”

“Okay,” replied the colonel. “I’ll go and thank the chef, then we’ll go.”

“For heaven’s sake!” cried the thinner of the two listeners. “Because of you we’ve missed the most important part.”

“Oh, come on. I didn’t do it on purpose,” said the fat one, defensively. “We could always say that there was a system malfunction and that we didn’t manage to record all of the conversation.”

“I always end up having to cover your ass,” claimed the other.

“You’ll thank me. I already have a plan for getting our hands on that handheld device.” Squeezing his nose between his thumb and forefinger, he said “We’ll go into her room tonight and copy all her data without her even noticing.”

“And what do we do if she wakes up? Sing her a lullaby?”

“Don’t you worry, my friend. I have a few tricks up my sleeve,” he replied, narrowing his eyes.

Meanwhile, Jack and Elisa were preparing to leave the restaurant. The colonel switched on his handheld communicator and spoke to the escort. “We’re on our way out.”

“Everything is quiet outside here, colonel,” a voice responded into the earphone.

Cautiously, the colonel opened the door of the building and scanned the area around him. The soldier who had accompanied Elisa earlier was still standing near the car outside.

“You can go, son,” ordered the colonel. “I’ll take Doctor Hunter back.”

The soldier stood to attention, saluted, and saying something into his communicator, disappeared into the shadows.

“It’s been a marvellous evening, Jack,” said Elisa as they left. She inhaled the fresh night air deeply, adding, “It’s been a long time since I spent an evening like this.” Thank you so much,” she said, with another of her wonderful smiles.

“Come on. We're not too safe standing out in the open here,” and so saying, he opened the door of the car and helped her in.

With the colonel at the wheel, the big dark car pulled away quickly, leaving an appreciable cloud of dust behind it.

“I had a good time as well. I would never have thought that an evening with a ‘presumptuous professor’ could be so much fun.”

“Presumptuous? Is that what people think?” and she turned away, pretending to be offended.

“Presumptuous, yes. But also very understanding, intelligent and definitely sexy.” Seeing that she was facing away, he took the opportunity to stroke the hair at the back of her neck.

The contact sent a series of shivers along her spine. She could not surrender so soon, she thought. But she could not help but feel a growing sense of anticipation. Not wishing to say anything, she allowed herself to enjoy this short, soothing massage. Jack, encouraged by the lack of reaction to this gesture, continued to stroke her hair for a while. Suddenly, he began to slide his hand towards her shoulder, then ran it down her arm until he gently reached her fingertips. Still facing the window, she took his hand and squeezed it firmly. It was a large, strong hand. The contact made her feel safe.