"That's close enough." I was checking the safeties on the weapon. Everything came up green. Good.
"Wait a minute-" she said. "Just wait a minute-" She held up her hands in front of me. "Have you considered all your options here?"
"Yes-and I am not a free lunch. That leaves only this." I hefted the pipe meaningfully. I stopped and looked at her. "Maybe I'll be lucky. Maybe the worm has already gone away." And then I added, "But I'll bet it hasn't. Here, hold this again."
She took it and said, "I could order you not to do this, you know-"
I was already climbing past her and pulling myself up into the bubble turret. "Go ahead-but court-martials are very time consuming." I opened the shutter.
She called up to me. "We don't court-martial lieutenants for insubordination any more."
"Oh-?"
"No, we just shoot them on the spot. It's cheaper."
I dropped down out of the bubble and jerked my thumb up at it. "Well, before you shoot, you better have a look yourself." She handed me back the rocket launcher and climbed up into the turret. As she brushed past me I couldn't help but notice that she smelled ... interesting. Had this woman really promised me a lobster dinner in Oakland?
"Oh!" she said; and then, after a horrified pause, "But what's it doing?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's considering all its options."
"It's just sitting there-staring at the hatch. . . ."
"Uh huh. And it can probably hear every word we say." Lizard dropped back down out of the turret and stared at me.
"Will this kill it?" she whispered.
"There's only one way to find out, isn't there?"
"Wait a minute. I have to think this out. Just wait a minute-"
"I can. It won't-" The radio beeped. We both looked forward.
Lizard looked at me. "It's waited this long, you can wait toothat's an order." She scrambled down to the front of the ship to answer the call. "This is ELDAVO." I let out a loud breath and followed sourly.
"ELDAVO, this is the Paul Bunyan-" came a male voice, "-on loan from Oregon Air-Lumber. Captain Peter Price at your service. You called for a tow?"
Lizard smiled grimly. "We'll be happy with just a lift. Of any kind. The sooner the better."
"Well, lift is what it's all about, ma'am. The Paul Bunyan has eighty tons of lift. How much of it do you think you'll need?" Lizard glanced at me, then back at Duke, did a quick mental calculation, and said, "Oh, two hundred and twenty-five kilos ought to cover it." I shouldered the bazooka and dropped impatiently into the copilot's seat. How long was this going to take?
"Puttin' on a little weight there, ain'tcha, gal?" came a new voice. A deep male voice.
Lizard yelped, "Danny! What are you doing there?"
"Came along for the ride. How's my favorite redhead?"
"I can't tell you on an open circuit," she said with a laugh. I wondered who this Danny was and what his relationship was with Lizard. I wondered if I should be jealous. His voice boomed like a foghorn. He was too friendly.
Lizard glanced over at me, saw my eyes, and turned back to the radio. "Listen, Danny-what's your ETA?"
The man's tone shifted then, became more businesslike. "Well ... your beam is loud and clear. We should be overhead sometime in the next two hours. How's your patient?"
"Not good."
"He can't ride in a harness?"
"No, we're going to need a basket."
I leaned forward then. "Ask him if they've got a zip line."
"Who's that?" boomed Danny. "Hey, hon-you got a boyfriend?"
"Don't be silly," Lizard said. "He's only a lieutenant." I felt myself reddening in reaction.
"Cradle-robbing again, I see," Danny laughed heartily. I decided I didn't like him or this conversation.
I leaned forward and spoke to the radio. "Can you rig a zip line?"
"Sure, we've got one, Lieutenant... uh-?"
"McCarthy, James Edward."
"Right," said Danny crisply. "McCarthy."
"And have you got a crab?"
"Excuse me," Captain Price interrupted, "Are you a blimper?"
"No-"
"Then why don't you let us handle the mission?"
"-but I did seven search and destroy drops off of gasbags in Colorado, so I had to learn this stuff the hard way. We've got some problems here-"
"And we've got some problems up here too."
"Are your problems bright red?" I snapped back. "Do they weigh three tons? And can they rip open a chooper with their teeth?" There was silence for a heartbeat; you could almost hear the two men exchanging a glance. Then Captain Price came back on the radio. "You have worms?"
"We have one sitting right outside the front door." Another quick silence.
"Uh. . . " That was Danny. "Lieutenant-" He was speaking very carefully now. "Whatever you do, don't annoy it."
"Colonel, I have no intention of annoying it," I replied, equally carefully. "I am going to kill it." Before he could argue with me, I added, "That worm is going to do one of two things. Either it's going to peel this ship open or it's going to go get the rest of its family-and they will peel this ship open."
"Lieutenant-" the blimp captain interrupted. "Are you an expert on the worms?" There was skepticism in his voice.
"As good as you're going to find in California," I replied matter-of-factly.
Lizard put in then, "Captain Price, he is. I specifically asked for Lieutenant McCarthy to be assigned to me because of his expertise with the Chtorran ecology. If he says the worms are going to shit soup, you'd better bring your bowl and crackers."
"If you say so, Colonel. My apologies for any offense. None intended. But we've had a few bad experiences with groundhogs today, so you'll understand if we're a little testy."
"No problem," Lizard said. She looked at me. "McCarthy?"
"I'm fine." I said to the radio. "But I've got a worm to kill and you're using up my time. Of course, if you've got a better idea, I'd love to hear it. But I'm still the guy whose ass is on the line-"
"Hold it, Lieutenant," came Danny's voice, very calmly. "Nobody's arguing with you any more. You made your point. It's your call. I just want you to be certain-"
Something went thump at the back of the ship. Lizard and I both glanced back. "I'm certain," I said. Again, a thump-this time louder!
Lizard said to the radio, "Danny-it's knocking on the door."
"Go do your job, Lieutenant. We'll keep this line open if you need to talk-"
I was already scrambling.
"-and Lizard, keep an eye on your patient for me." But she was already following me toward the back.
"Grab that freezer!" I pointed. "And a mask!"
"Here-" She tossed goggles at me.
Something banged loudly against the door. The handle rattled and clanged. Duke yelped in his sleep. I pulled the goggles down over my eyes, fitted the mask over my nose and mouth, then turned to help Lizard with the tank harness. "Who's Danny?" I asked.
"Colonel Danny Anderson. Northwest Liaison." She grunted as she pulled the harness into place. "-and whatever he says, he is not just along for the ride."
"Anderson?" I glanced back at Duke. "Duke's last name is Anderson-"
Lizard nodded. "Danny's his son." She stepped away from me to connect the freezer hose.
Duke was moaning now. He was half-awake, half-delirious. He was breathing very raggedly, and he looked worse than ever. "Oh God-no."
And then the scratching began at the door again-
TWENTY-FIVE
"WHAT'S IT doing-?" Lizard asked.
I wasn't sure. "It sounds like it's chewing."
It was a quiet, steady sound-but it had too much crunch in it. The door protested loudly in its frame. It bulged and squealed. Something black broke through-a mandible? Pink dust floated in the air.
I motioned Lizard to the side. "Give me a clear shot." I braced myself against the opposite wall. "When I give the word, you pop the door-and then freeze it. The whole frame. Ready-?"