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by Christie and Larry deSouza (bluemoon@sentex.net & fresco@sentex.net)
The cabbage and brussel sprouts had begun to boil, the steak and kidney pie was baking in the oven, and the rice pudding and ginger beer were chilling in the fridge. Everything was under control, and Noel began setting the table, making sure the cloth was attached with double-sided tape and did not hang over the edge, the cutlery was safely put away until dinner started, and his best-looking unbreakable plastic plates were at each of the four seats. He checked that the high chair was in good condition, and that the seat strap would be secure. He was just fitting it to a strong wall bracket when the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hi Dad."
"Bill! Haven't you left yet?"
"We're on our way out the door. I was just wondering if you need us to pick up anything."
"Oh I have everything I need. I'm usually well-prepared for these things. ...Is there any other reason you may be calling?"
"Uh... now that you mention it... well, you know Gos is into climbing, don't you?"
Noel chuckled. "Of course! Trust me, I'm prepared. I know how to babyproof. I raised you, didn't I?"
"Dad, you know Gos isn't me!"
"I know," he said affectionately.
"I trust your babyproofing. I'm just worried you won't be Gosalyn-proofed..."
"I am, just relax. She'll be okay!"
"Oh, I'm not worried about her - it's your apartment!"
"Don't worry!" Noel laughed.
Bill sighed. "I have no idea how we'll deal with her when she starts walking," he said wearily.
Noel smiled sympathetically. "You can do it. But now I want you to get moving. J. Gander will be here any minute."
The guest of honour pushed himself away from the table.
"Well Noel, I can see why you've put on weight," J. Gander chuckled. "You are an excellent chef."
Noel laughed. "Thanks. If I hadn't learned to cook when I got married, we'd have starved!"
"I can imagine Gosalyn not being the... shall we say, `homemaker' type."
"She was happiest in the kitchen when she was blowing something up," Noel said sentimentally.
"Hi," said a sweet voice.
"Hi, Gos," everyone said on reflex.
"Why don't we sit down in the living room." Noel looked over to J. Gander. "I want to know how the Director of SHUSH is doing in his new position!"
"I certainly wasn't expecting you to go to all this trouble..."
"Forget it! I couldn't be happier for you!" said Noel, as he stood up to help Bill unfasten Gosalyn from her highchair.
"Hi."
"Hi, Sweetie."
Bill looked at his daughter. "I'll just take a minute to hose her down in the tub, if that's okay with you, Dad."
"Good idea," Noel said as he passed Gos over to Bill, making sure he snuck a kiss on the way by.
J. Gander watched as they went up the narrow staircase. "There certainly is a remarkable resemblance!"
"Isn't there?" Noel beamed proudly as he wiped the pudding from his bill.
They heard the water come on in the tub and a sudden deafening shriek from upstairs.
"My word! Is she all right?"
Wendy and Noel seated themselves comfortably. "Of course," said Wendy, raising her voice over the sound of her daughter's. "Why do you ask?"
"Noooo!!! Noooooo!!!" continued the wailing above them.
J. Gander sat himself down still looking up the stairs, astounded by the volume she generated.
"Really Mr. Hooter, she just doesn't like baths!" Wendy said loudly enough to be heard. "I'm lucky it's Bill's turn!" She smiled, snuggling into the chair and sipping her drink with satisfaction.
"So, J. Gander," Noel shouted , "what's it like to be the Director!?"
"Oh, heavens! The paperwork alone could fill my day!" He casually cleaned his glasses and sighed, still sneaking a glance upwards. "It's a far cry from the old days!"
"But would you really like to go back to the field work at this point in your life?"
J. Gander looked like he chuckled, though they could not hear him. "I suppose not!" he said, unaccustomed to speaking so loudly. "Truly, I am not displeased with this new position. I feel I can do it adequately!" He put his glasses back on and walked to a black and white photograph on the wall. Much younger versions of himself, Noel and Gosalyn smiled back at him through time. "They were great days, though, weren't they?" he said more softly, as if to himself.
"Yes they were, my friend," Noel agreed.
The noise from upstairs subsided, although the sound of water seemed to be coming from everywhere.
"Bill's mom was your partner, wasn't she?" said Wendy.
"The greatest partner anyone could ask for, my dear," J. Gander said, sneaking a final glance at the photo before turning towards them again.
"Dad has been telling us about your adven... uh, assignments together," Wendy said, looking at her father-in-law apologetically at the near-slip.
"Yeah," Noel replied. "They seem to think we lived in a spy movie."
J. Gander laughed as if the idea had never occurred to him. "Even Derek doesn't think of it that way. I think his early retirement was due to those films."
"It's a shame, though," Noel said. "He was a good agent! Not that I saw him much. He gradually stopped coming to me for new equipment. Not his style."
"Well, I still want to hear your stories, whatever you say," said Wendy. "Dad, you've never told me how you and Gosalyn came to fall in love. I'd love a romantic story tonight."
Her husband chose this moment to come downstairs with a freshly-cleaned baby held at arm's-length. He was wet from hair to his knees, his shirt and pants randomly smeared with rice pudding. He placed Gos on the floor and quickly put up the extra-tall baby gate. Oddly, he was smiling with satisfaction and looking at the clock, which began to chime seven. Reluctantly, Wendy raised her hand, and Bill slapped it, palm-to-palm. She stood up and followed Gosalyn into the kitchen area of the condo while Bill heaved a sigh of relief.
"Dad, do you have a change of clothing I could borrow?"
"Sure, Son."
Bill expertly stepped over the gate, got a mop from the broom closet and trudged back upstairs.
"You must be very proud of your family, Noel," J. Gander said with genuine admiration.
"I am," he said, looking at another photo on the wall of himself with his wife and newborn son. "It's been good, J. Gander. I mean that. Really good."
They were lost in thought for a moment.
"Dad!" Wendy's voice came from the kitchen, breaking their silence. "I still want to hear a romantic story! Will you tell us?"
Noel shook himself out of his memories, sighed and shrugged. "I hate to disappoint you, but there is no story about us falling in love. We were close friends for a long time - all three of us. We just gradually realized we were in love."
"I have to correct you, my friend," J. Gander interrupted. "Gosalyn realized long before you."
"Oh, now that's not true. I knew, I just didn't think... well..."
J. Gander laughed. "Noel was... unsure of the situation."
"Completely confused is more like it. It's a good thing Gosalyn told me I loved her..."
Bill came back, still rubbing his hair with a hand towel. "Dad! You knew you loved Mom, didn't you?"
"Of course I knew! I just couldn't define my feelings... They were new to me."
"Well, whatever you call it," said Wendy as she re-entered the room, still following her daughter, "I really want to hear about the time both of you knew you were in love." Aware of her daughter's present course towards the china cabinet, Wendy casually picked her up and sent her off in another direction. "I'd like to listen while little Gos here is behaving herself."
"Don ta! Don ta!" said Gosalyn happily. Noel looked from his granddaughter up to Wendy.
She smiled sheepishly. "It's `don't touch' ...she hears it a lot."
"Not that it stops her," Bill interjected.
"Will you tell us the story, Dad?"
Noel stirred uncomfortably. "Well, as much as I can... It wasn't much of a love story, I'm afraid. We finally admitted our feelings for each other, but that was only after a very difficult assignment. And I can't tell a large part of this story, either. I was out of the picture for a lot of it."
"I'll be happy to assist you, Noel," J. Gander said. "If you are filling them in on your past, this would be quite an important story to tell. ...As a matter of fact, if I am correct, it starts rather like tonight's gathering."
"Yes it does!" Noel realized. "We were celebrating your birthday..."
"Here he is!" Gosalyn cheered as she pushed J. Gander into my lab. "He thought he could hide in the men's locker room again. You'd think he'd learn!"
"My word, Gosalyn," J. Gander interjected, "I `d think you would learn not to go there. You're fortunate Director Wakefield wasn't in there this time. He was most put out by your last unscheduled visit." I smiled. J. Gander could never resist a chance for lighthearted banter with Gosalyn, especially when she wanted to be stubborn.
"Y' could have warned me he was in there!" she said, playing the injured party.
"I certainly didn't think you'd follow me in."
"But it was important!"
"My dear, having new weapons being issued to us certainly does not warrant your unannounced entrance into a private men's area brandishing a flame thrower."
Gosalyn smiled at the memory despite herself. I stifled a laugh. "I think that was game point for J. Gander," I said.
"Well, only because it's his birthday," Gosalyn conceded.
"I think not..." J. Gander smiled slyly. She and I both knew he was baiting her, since Gosalyn could never resist getting in the last word. I figured it was my turn to do that, so I interrupted their `discussion' with my best rendition of "Happy Birthday To You". Knowing her options were limited, Gosalyn decided to join me. We finished with a triumphant vocal flourish that made J. Gander wince visibly.
"I'm truly touched, my dear friends," he said mockingly dabbing at his eyes with his kerchief. "And relieved no one else was present to hear that serenade."
"Don't look now, Gosalyn, but I think he just made a joke!" I said.
"I'm so proud," she replied. "I'm having an influence on him!" J. Gander sighed and looked heavenward seeking strength.
"Presents!" shouted Gosalyn suddenly producing a large gift-wrapped box.
"My word!" said J. Gander, and began the painstaking process of unwrapping. He carefully peeled off all pieces of tape and folded the wrap to set it aside before lifting the cover off the box.
"Jaygeeeee! C'mon! You're supposed to rip it!" said Gosalyn impatiently.
"It's my birthday, Gosalyn. I'll unwrap as I please." I knew J. Gander though. He was enjoying torturing his partner. Carefully he folded back the tissue and held up the loud Hawaiian shirt Gosalyn had picked out for him.
"It's... quite magnificent," he said.
"D'you really like it?" she asked eagerly.
"I can honestly say I've never seen anything like it," he replied straightfaced.
"Try it on! I want to see how it looks on you!"
J. Gander squirmed for a moment, and I quickly came to his rescue. "Not until he's opened my present Gosalyn." J. Gander accepted my small package with the look of a drowning man who's just been handed a lifesaver. Once again he slowly peeled off the tape and decorative paper to reveal the space age pen I had bought him.
"I say! This is splendid!" he enthused.
"It's guaranteed to write on any surface, or even under water or upside down. It uses some sort of specialized ink in a high pressure cartridge."
"Really?" said Gosalyn, snatching it from his hand. "I'll try it out while you try on my shirt!"
J. Gander hid his sigh from her, and headed for my office.
"Doesn't write on glass!" Gosalyn called out from across the lab.
I felt this was a good time to get the cake, and paused for a moment to remember where I had put it.
"Doesn't write on metal either!" she said, holding part of my latest project.
Remembering, I went into the cold storage room and looked around.
"Doesn't write on plastic!" I heard from the lab.
Oddly, it wasn't in the refrigerator. I was sure I had put it there.
"Doesn't write on wax!"
I began poking my nose into the other containers I had opened that morning, and finally found it in the storage compartment which we kept cooled by liquid nitrogen. I remember foolishly hoping that it hadn't affected the cake too badly.
"Doesn't write on asbestos!"
I re-entered the lab, carrying the cake with oven mitts. J. Gander was just coming out of my office, Hawaiian shirt tucked into his trousers, buttoned all the way up and his grey tie over top.
"Doesn't write on carpeting!"
I smiled sheepishly at J. Gander, trying not to stare too hard at his outfit. "I guess I should take the pen back for now to get it repaired."
Gosalyn sat at the lab desk.
"Nonsense, Noel. As long as it writes on..."
"Doesn't write on paper!"
My smile became even more pained. "I'll get it repaired," I said.
"It's probably just clogged," Gosalyn said and began banging the end of the pen on the table. I nearly dropped the cake.
"Don't!" I shouted involuntarily. "Uh.. heh.. that is - it is under pressure. Really... really under pressure. It comes with warnings about non-liability if it explodes due to misuse. The store that sold it to me was pretty firm on that point." I shifted the cake to one hand and took the pen from Gosalyn with the other mitt.
"Neat idea," Gosalyn said admiringly. "An exploding pen... maybe I should get one. Hey!" she said happily noticing J. Gander. "The shirt looks great on you! Do I have good taste or what?" Quickly she got up from the desk went to the door. "But you haven't seen the best part!" She extinguished the lights in the lab. The flower print on J. Gander's shirt began to glow softly, its pattern broken only by the silhouette of his tie.
"Ah...delightful," I heard J. Gander say from the darkness.
"Look! Noel's wearing the tie I bought him last year!" Gosalyn exclaimed. Sure enough, my tie revealed a glow-in-the-dark hula dancer, hidden among the otherwise unremarkable striped print. Abruptly the lights snapped back on.
"Pretty snazzy, huh? I thought the shirt might help you loosen up a bit."
"Yes. I'm certain it will."
"Okay," I said, quickly changing the subject, "this might be a little cold..." The tiny impact of putting the cake on the countertop made the decorative trim shatter. I abandoned my smile and handed a knife to J. Gander so he could make the first slice. The icing split neatly across the entire breadth of the cake and slid off like some kind of plaster mold and splintered on the floor. The cake itself crumbled into a pile of frozen crumbs.
Gosalyn grinned. "I suppose candles would be out of the question?"
"Attention Agents Hooter and McQuillan, please report to the Director's office."
"Rats!" said Gosalyn, her entire demeanor changing suddenly. "Sorry J.G., it looks like the party's over." I always marveled at how quickly Gosalyn was able to assume her professional `persona' on such occasions. J. Gander only had time to grab his jacket before rushing out the door, remembering to thank me on the way.
"Don ta! Don ta! Don ta!" sang a happy little Gosalyn, followed by the most adorable giggles.
Bill looked at his wife, who had just peeked her head out of the kitchen for a moment. "Wendy, who's watching Gos?"
"Aw, I really want to hear this," Wendy pouted, and turned her eyes back to her daughter. She gasped suddenly and cried, "Gosalyn, no! Don't touch!" There was a brief clatter and a sudden enraged howl came from the duckling. Wendy entered the living room carrying Gosalyn tightly under one arm, and a fist full of fondue forks in the other.
Noel jumped to his feet. "Impossible!" he exclaimed over the crying. "Wendy that is totally, completely impossible!! I had those in the cupboard above the fridge!"
"Yep!" Wendy agreed at the top of her lungs. "That's where she was!"
"Dad," Bill shouted, somehow managing a weary grin, "didn't I tell you our Gos was a climber!?"
"She must have climbed the drawers!" Wendy said loudly, as she put her screaming child on the floor.
"No!" Noel insisted. "I put locks on each drawer! She couldn't possibly have opened them!"
"Who said she needed to open them!?" Bill retorted.
"Oh, don't worry about it, Dad!" shouted Wendy. "That trick's a new one on us, too!"
"Yeah!" Bill agreed. "She's never made it past the countertop before!"
Gosalyn let out an especially high-pitched squeal, and J. Gander plugged his ears. "Are you sure she's all right!?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Hooter," Wendy apologized loudly. "She'll stop as soon as she realizes we're not paying attention to her." The irony of that statement brought some laughter.
As if on cue, Gosalyn's cries wore down like a tired air raid siren. Somehow she managed to look indignant as she turned her diapered end to them and crawled off in another direction.
"Is it eight o'clock yet?" Wendy pleaded tiredly as she reluctantly followed. Bill just shook his head, smiling unsympathetically.
"Sorry about that, Dad," said Bill.
"You think Wendy needs a hand, Son?"
"Nah! We've had this arrangement for a while, and you wouldn't believe how much she teases me when it's my turn!" Bill laughed. "Please, continue with the story!"
"If I may interrupt," said J. Gander, "Gosalyn and I had an interesting time on that errand for the Director. May I...?"
"By all means!" Noel invited.
I remember while we were driving to the police station as ordered, Gosalyn was complaining that we had not been assigned to investigate the strange phenomena that had been occurring in St. Canard the past few days. We were listening to a radio broadcast about them in the car on our way there.
"Strange objects continue to fall from the sky. This morning, a grand piano landed in the middle of a busy intersection, causing traffic chaos for several hours, but luckily no injuries. Moments ago, the mayor narrowly escaped certain death when a bowling ball fell only inches from him. Police are still investigating this bizarre threat to our city. They advise people to stay indoors, and if you must go outside... keep under cover, and for gosh sakes, look where you're going, people." Obligingly, a pair of pedestrians, theirs eyes turned upward, collided with each other on the sidewalk.
"No fair," Gosalyn said, looking in the sky. "Stuff is appearing out of nowhere and crashing to the ground, and the police figure they can handle it without SHUSH. What are they thinking?"
"It certainly is a mystery," I agreed.
"You know anything more about this guy we're picking up?"
"Only what Director Wakefield told us. He was part of the new fruit irradiating project that the Ministry of Agriculture was setting up, and had apparently started pilfering the radioactive isotopes and fruits for his own ends."
"It certainly didn't sound like he was stealing enough to warrant a government investigation," Gosalyn complained.
"No, but I assume we were sent because of his insistence that FOWL is after him. The police seem to think there is enough support to his claim to investigate it."
"So why is FOWL after him, then?"
"We'll know soon enough," I replied pulling our sedan into the station parking lot. "The local constabulary insists this is outside of their jurisdiction and is passing the problem to us. After all, the fruit irradiating plant is a government project." Gosalyn sighed in agreement. "Cheer up. Maybe FOWL will be involved. If he is in need of protection, perhaps it will provide you with a good fight." She brightened at the prospect.
Upon entering, Gosalyn flashing her badge at the desk sergeant. "I'm Agent McQuillan and this is Agent Hooter, here to pick up Dr. Alec Tron. We're told he's in your temporary custody."
"You guys sure must be buried in bureaucracy!" he said with a wide grin over his coffee cup. "A couple o' your agents just picked him up!" Gosalyn and I shared a worried glance.
"Did you get the agents' names?" I asked flipping open my notebook.
"Yeah, sure," he said casually flipping through the papers that littered his desk. "Here it is - Agents Egg and Mann. They just left a few minutes ago with the doc."
"Uh huh," I said after noting the fellow's badge number. "And did these agents happen to be wearing large white oval helmets?"
"I think so... and one of them had a fedora on too."
The smack of Gosalyn's hand against her forehead was clearly audible. "Those were eggmen from FOWL!"
"Couldn't be," the sergeant said taking a bite from his doughnut. "Everyone knows them eggmen wear orange suits! Besides, with a partner who wears a shirt like that, I don't think you should be making fashion comments, know what I mean?"
"Never mind Gosalyn, there may still be a chance to catch up with them!"
Hurriedly we exited the building and were about to get into the car when Gosalyn's attention was drawn to a commotion at the rear of the building.
"No - if you put him that way, he'll fall off! You have to anchor him across this way first!"
"This from the goon that lost us our luggage last time we were on vacation!"
"Who are you calling a goon!?"
We rounded the rear corner of the building and there were the two suspect eggmen the desk sergeant had described to us. To the officer's credit one of them was indeed wearing a fedora atop his helmet. Dr. Tron had been thoroughly bound with duck tape and they appeared to be arguing how best to secure him to the luggage rack on the roof of their vehicle.
"Freeze eggmen!" Gosalyn shouted, racing towards them. Before she had a chance to continue they ceased their squabbling over the doctor and began firing off shots towards us. As one, we dodged behind an intervening vehicle. I paled at the thought of unnecessary property damage.
"I would think Strategy 338 would be appropriate," I suggested to her as projectiles flew around us.
"A most excellent thought Agent Hooter," Gosalyn replied. I could never be sure if she wasn't being a little sarcastic. She always enjoyed a firefight, but of course we were obliged not to fire back while Dr. Tron was with them. We pried off the hubcaps from the automobile sheltering us and quickly dashed out from cover to fling them at the eggmen, neatly disarming them. One of the bandits leapt into the driver's seat and sped away, causing Dr. Tron to fall unceremoniously to the pavement, followed by a canvas bag which had been hidden from our view. His compatriot tried to leap through a window back into the building. He slumped against the concrete, unconscious.
"He must've forgotten he was already outside," Gosalyn mused. We left the second eggman in the custody of the officers that had arrived on the scene. I picked up the canvas bag and Gosalyn began to free Dr. Tron from his bindings.
"Are you all right, Dr. Tron?" Gosalyn asked as we peeled the tape off of him. He appeared rather stunned at the time - focusing entirely on her as she spoke.
"You were magnificent!" he said somewhat as if in a daze. "The way you drove off those ruffians! You are a truly skilled fighter... for one so beautiful..." He was a younger drake than I had anticipated, possibly not much older than myself at the time, with a receding hairline that he was ineffectually pushing forward to cover up his bald spot. His clothing was thoroughly rumpled by his ordeal and it seemed as if it had all been bought a size too large for him, like a child who was expected to "grow into" things.
"We should proceed back to SHUSH headquarters with all speed, Dr. Tron. Agents McQuillan and I have been sent to give you safe passage." I held out my credentials to reassure him. For a fleeting moment it seemed that he sneered at me. At the time I put it down to the man's recent experience. After all, he did have reason to doubt my words. When he spotted the bag I had retrieved, he reached out to take it. "I will be happy to keep this safe for you," I said, pulling it away. "Now we must make haste."
"Agent Hooter is correct, sir." He turned back to Gosalyn as she spoke. "Our car is this way." Willingly, he followed her back to the car and got in.
During our ride back to headquarters, Dr. Tron became more self-assured, praising his accomplishments. "I'm the foremost physicist in quacktron particles in the world," he boasted. "I can assure you, you have never been in the presence of someone as brilliant as I, Miss McQuillan."
"I'm sure I haven't," she said with remarkable restraint.
"That's why FOWL was pursuing me," he said matter-of-factly. "I am brilliant."
"So you said."
"I am a tremendously talented inventor. I am a brilliant star amid a darkened field of barely adequate scientists. I am able to apply unbelievably difficult theorems to practical devices. That's why FOWL wanted me so badly."
"Indeed?"
"Of course, I am brilliant. They wanted me to work on inventions for them. They held me in the highest regard. Especially for weapons. Did I mention that I am the world's foremost authority on quacktron particle physics?"
"Aren't you a little young to be the world's foremost authority on anything?"
"Merely more evidence of my brilliance. FOWL knew that age was no requirement for genius."
"A word of advice, Dr. Tron," Gosalyn said through tightly clenched teeth. "You're in SHUSH hands now. You won't make many friends by telling people how much FOWL loved you." The sudden cessation of conversation from our passenger nearly solicited a giggle from Gosalyn, but I could see her satisfied smile from the corner of my eye. After a few miles I heard her sigh rather deeply though.
"Why such a heavy sigh?"
"Oh, J.G.," she began, "Do you think I should ask Noel out on a date?" Although we regularly had conversations of a personal nature, more recently her feelings had lead her to discuss Noel. I sighed sympathetically at the resumption of this subject, never knowing what I could say to Gosalyn to raise her spirits. I was beginning to think that I would have no choice but to speak with Noel on the matter.
Before I could answer her, our sulking passenger had his own opinions on the matter. "Noel?! A beautiful woman like you, interested in someone named Noel?! The only Noel I ever knew was a murderer and a thief !"
"Well I'm sure we move in quite different social circles," she said icily.
"I never knew she was interested in me then!" Noel said, astonished.
"Quite! She was most put out with you over that fact. In her words, I believe she referred to you as `dense'."
Bill laughed outright. Wendy called out from the kitchen "What I miss? What I miss?"
"I'll fill her in Dad, it's almost time for a shift change anyhow." Bill got up and moved into the kitchen, carefully stepping over the growing accumulation of toys on the floor.
"Did she really call me dense?"
"Actually she had a tendency to use quite colourful language about you, once she had told me how she felt. I'm afraid `dense' was her most popular choice, though."
"What else did she say?"
"Well... it doesn't matter, does it, old boy? Her heart was in the right place, after all."
Bill came back into the room with a squirming Gosalyn. Wendy followed carrying a big pillow and a baby blanket.
"Don't tell me you think she'll sleep for you!" Noel said, rising to take the baby from Bill and sitting back down with her.
"Just you wait," Wendy said, putting the pillow on the floor.
"You do get channel five, don't you Grampa?" Bill asked.
"Yes..." Noel said with some difficulty as Gosalyn was getting a toe hold on his chin and working at crawling up the wall to a painting. He pulled her down and aimed her at J. Gander on the other side of the couch. "I don't see how that'll help." Already she had removed his glasses and was wrapping his watch chain around them. Grampa carefully extracted them from her tiny but strong fingers. She wasn't pleased.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"
"Gosalyn!" her mommy said sweetly, and held out a round black object. She suddenly stopped her crying and lunged for it.
"Is that a hockey puck?" a bewildered J. Gander asked.
"Yep," Bill said, and turned on the set. The opening credits of "Hockey Night in Canarda" had just finished, and the game was about to begin. Gosalyn giggled with delight, and allowed her mother to lie her down on the pillow and cover her with the blanket. For the first time that night she was still, hugging her puck tightly and watching the screen.
"That's absolutely amazing!" J. Gander whispered.
"Quite a trick, kids," Noel said as he got up and admired his silent granddaughter. "I'm impressed!"
He watched her eyes begin to droop, as if the cries of the crowd and the swish of the skates were the sweetest of lullabies. As his heart was happily melting at the sight, he made a mental note to volunteer his baby-sitting services on Mondays.
"So, Dad," Bill said, "let's get back to the story. I guess this Dr. Tron was falling for Mom."
"And what's this about stuff falling from the sky out of nowhere?" Wendy interjected.
"We'll get to that. And yes, Bill, he was head-over-heals for your mother. I'm happy to say the feeling was never mutual."
"Well, how could it be? The guy sounds like such an egomaniac!" Wendy said.
"Oddly enough, his bragging wasn't far from the truth," said Noel.
"That is, until he got into the briefing room," J. Gander pointed out.
I positioned myself by the wall and remained quiet. I had my pad out to take notes, and was watching Dr. Tron closely. It was difficult not to take an immediate dislike to him, but there was more than his boastfulness that made me wary. Dr. Tron had his canvas bag returned to him for the meeting with Director Wakefield. Of course Security had searched it, but they only looked puzzled and shrugged at the Director before turning it over.
"I really wouldn't expect them to understand the significance of my invention," Tron said in his most condescending tone. "But perhaps you would like to take a look at it, Miss McQuillan? May I present to you, the... uh..." He paused a second, obviously inventing a suitably impressive name. "...The Q2000!" With a flourish, he pulled out what looked like a toaster strapped to a pie plate.
"FOWL was after a toaster?" Director Wakefield said in disbelief.
"You're only revealing your own ignorance," Tron said scornfully, bringing it closer to Gosalyn. "This machine can make me the most powerful man in the world... and beyond!" He made a large dramatic sweep with his arm before turning back and looking towards Gosalyn. To her credit she did not laugh at him. In fact her face was completely expressionless.
"So this makes you... strong?" she said, a hint of sarcasm escaping.
"Powerful, my dear," he said with a patronizing smile, as if she had dropped to her knees in adoration. "The Q2000 is a delicate instrument, far beyond the comprehension of average people. I can't imagine any of you appreciating its full potential."
Director Wakefield cleared his throat with impatience, but Tron continued.
"That's why FOWL wants to kill me... I know too much. They want my brilliant invention, and they want me dead."
"So it is a weapon," Gosalyn said, still maintaining her professional calm, now with growing difficulty. "Otherwise, I don't see FOWL being all that interested in it."
"Oh, it's more than a weapon," Tron continued as if the two of them were the only ones in the room. "FOWL already has weapons. Their weapons technology has outclassed SHUSH's for a long time now." This comment obviously earned him many suspicious looks from all around.
"You know this from your previous dealings with FOWL, then?" I asked.
Tron looked at me scornfully. "Idiot. If you were in my position, which I know you will never be, you would have to know your competition, now wouldn't you? I have an excellent understating of where SHUSH stands in that area as well." He shrugged. "Didn't I tell you...?"
"...You're brilliant." Gosalyn finished for him flatly, not hiding her disdain at this point.
He suddenly turned to her, an adoring smile filling his face. "I knew it! You do understand!"
"Dr. Tron," Director Wakefield interrupted, "we're very busy people here. Will you please just tell us exactly what this invention of yours does?"
"There is simply no way you would understand this. It is the breaking edge of quacktron physics, and beyond the reach of anyone but the most brilliant of scientists. And, as you know, I am the world's foremost authority on..."
"Fine. Then we'll take you to our authority on quacktron physics, shall we?" Director Wakefield said.
"I have a feeling he'll surprise you, Dr. Tron," Gosalyn said. She was obviously eager to see Noel put this annoying little man in his place.
"That is very kind of you, my dear," he said, putting his hand on her arm. "I doubt it will help, but I will humour you if it makes you happy."
Gosalyn paused only to push his hand away - none too gently - before leading the way to Noel's lab.
"Weren't you a little young to be an authority, Dad?" Bill asked with a smile.
"Not at all son. Don't forget, I completed my Ph.D. under Dr. Ardo. Very few researchers were pursuing quacktron physics at that point. That was why SHUSH hired me in the first place. They had cultivated Dr. Ardo during her tenure at the university, and when she died I was the only one who could replace her."
"I can't believe that guy!" Wendy said. "Was he really all that brilliant?"
"Well, as I said, he was pretty well all he professed to be."
"However," J. Gander interjected, "Noel here was at least as knowledgeable in quacktron physics as he."
"I don't know about that," Noel mused. "His knowledge was very impressive. At best, I'd put myself at about equal to him." J. Gander was about to protest. "No, really. I knew more than him about some things, but he was way ahead of me in others. Even split."
"Sounds like you really got to know him," Wendy remarked.
Noel chuckled. "Funny you should say that..."
I had no idea that I was to be expecting company in my lab that day. I confess to have nearly been caught wool gathering when Gosalyn, J. Gander and the Director brought him in to see me. I had cleaned up all the remains of cake, spent an hour working on my month end reports, and sat down to clear the cobwebs by making a vain attempt at getting J. Gander's pen working. The ink cartridge wasn't clogged, it never had an opening to start with, probably due to an error in the manufacturing. I was about to phone the shop where I got it when Gosalyn showed up in my doorway with J. Gander just a step behind. I was beginning to think we could resume our birthday party when the Director moved in to make introductions to someone whom I thought was a visiting fellow scientist.
"Dr. Waddlemeyer," said Director Wakefield, "allow me to introduce..."
"Leon!" I shouted happily, rising from my desk and moving to greet him.
"You..." snarled the scientist.
"Leon?" gaped Gosalyn. I went to shake his hand, but he pulled himself away a few steps and glared at me. I remember at the time being confused at his reception.
"I know him from back in university!" I continued. "We were in the same year, same program!" I was met with shocked stares and beginning to wonder if I'd just made a big mistake. "This is Dr. Ardo's son, Leon..." I looked at him. "...Aren't you?"
"Noel Waddlemeyer..." he said spitefully. "So you're the big expert on quacktrons here. Well isn't this the height of irony..."
"Uh... "
"So this is your reward? Not an original thought in your head... taking Mother's research and hard work to earn yourself an easy doctorate... and here you are in a comfortable job for the government. It's like... getting away with murder, isn't it, Noel. You know something about that too, don't you?" He looked over towards the other three, who were understandably speechless. "I bet your `colleagues' are in the dark, though, aren't they?" His voice went to a venomous whisper as he walked towards me. "I've been waiting for this day for a long time."
"Mr. Ardo, you had better not take another step," Gosalyn ordered, slowly moving towards him.
His expression suddenly turned to anguish. He spun to face her. "No... Please don't tell me that this is `Noel'." Of course I was baffled by this statement. I find out only now what he meant by it...
"Whatever you have planned for him, you'd better forget about it," Gosalyn said authoritatively, only a few paces away from him now.
"Not even you can stop me, sweet lady. I have waited too long..." With that, in one lightning move, he had what looked like a toaster strapped to his head, and lunged for me. All I can remember as we hit the floor was white light, and the huge crack of an explosion.
"That's when they disappeared," said J. Gander.
"Really? Disappeared?" asked Wendy excitedly. "Where'd you go, Dad?"
"I don't know. I just blacked out. I have no idea why Leon didn't as well. That explosion felt powerful!"
"Maybe he did black out," Bill suggested.
"No, he kept himself busy while I was out of it. When I woke up I was in the trunk of a moving car, my hands tied and my bill gagged."
Wendy shivered. "Whoa, what a wacko!" she said. "Why was he so angry at you? I mean, that whole thing about his mom wasn't true... was it?"
"Wendy!" Bill looked at her accusingly.
Noel laughed. "No, it wasn't true. You have to realize, though, Leon was watching the QPIT experiment from a totally different perspective. And as annoying as he was, he did lose his mother as a result of it."
"Yeah, but why did he let it all out on you?" Bill asked.
"If I may interrupt..." J. Gander said. "Oddly, I knew far more about Leon Ardo than your father."
"It's true!" Noel agreed. "All I knew was that he was a hard-working grad student, kept to himself most of the time, and that he was Dr. Ardo's son. I was too busy at the time to make any effort to get to know him."
"But at the same time," J. Gander said, "SHUSH had thoroughly investigated him as a possible candidate to assist Dr. Ardo in her continuing research on quacktron particle physics, and the QPIT invention. Of course Mr. Ardo had applied to be her assistant..."
"...Which I never knew, by the way," Noel interrupted. "I figured he hadn't applied, otherwise he was a shoe-in."
"...But he had applied," J. Gander continued. "Like all the other applicants, we did a background check on him, and found nothing of concern to SHUSH. He was one of the top three candidates which we presented to Dr. Ardo. Oddly, though, he was the first she discarded."
"Why?"
"She was not comfortable with her son's... attitude towards his research. If Dr. Ardo was adamant about one thing, it was that her invention would never be used to make money, or worse, used as a weapon. She was only interested in benefiting science and society. Her inspiration and drive were purely altruistic." Noel looked saddened by the memory as J. Gander spoke. "However, Leon was not bound by any of his mother's values. He had often tried to convince her that her invention would make her a rich and powerful person. This was something that upset her greatly. In the end, it was your father's values, which closely resembled her own, that earned him that position."
"Ouch," Wendy commented. "That just might explain why he was upset with Dad."
"Well, naturally we did not explain to him or to the other candidate why they were not chosen. After all, they were all equally qualified for the position in every other way. The other candidate was fine with the decision, and eventually she pursued a different course of research, acquired her Ph.D., and stayed at the university to teach. Unfortunately, Mr. Ardo was a very... proud man, and did not take it well." J. Gander shook his head. "He instantly left the university, and never got his doctorate as far as SHUSH Intelligence has been able to ascertain. We asked his mother if there was something for which we could use him so that he would change his mind. I could tell it was tearing her apart, but as much as she loved her son, she had to admit he would be a security risk to the project. After that, SHUSH kept an eye on him, and his own mother had to keep classified secrets from him. I believe it had been gnawing away at him from then on."
"I guess," Noel interjected, "that since her death was related to the QPIT project, Leon figured it must have been my fault. In his eyes, his mother would never have made a fatal mistake, and if he were there, he could have prevented one from happening. I always wondered if he was right."
"Noel, I forbid you to feel in any way guilty about that," J. Gander chastised him. "You would never have been able to stop Dr. Ardo from entering the dimensional tunnel. In fact, knowing his personality, Leon wouldn't have stopped her either. It was all just an unfortunate coincidence that she met the other Ardo who eventually killed her." There was a long silence before J. Gander continued. "SHUSH lost track of Leon Ardo at that point. He moved, and remained in hiding during the few years between the ill-fated QPIT project and what was our current assignment. It was a shame we didn't know what he had been doing, and the effect the emotional trauma had on him. It would have helped us to be better prepared."
As it was, many things happened at once back at the lab. There was a great flash of light, and the force of the explosion pushed us back. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a movement in the window, and looked to see a two-seater chesterfield with paisley print plummet past, and crash into the parking lot below.
"What on earth!?" Wakefield shouted. "Where'd he go? And where's Noel?"
"They're both gone," said Gosalyn, inspecting the floor closely. I searched as well, but it was apparent in very little time that there was no sign as to where they had gone. Director Wakefield immediately called security to make a thorough search of the building. Gosalyn began pacing the floor.
"How could I have been so stupid?!" Gosalyn shouted, slamming the counter top angrily. "How is it I didn't recognize him?!"
"We're all guilty of that, Agent McQuillan," Wakefield said. "He's thinner, more bald, and somehow his face has changed completely - I think it's his expression... I didn't recognize him either."
"Nor I, Gosalyn," I reassured her.
"Well," sighed Wakefield, "I guess that explains what Leon Ardo's been doing since we lost track."
"You don't think he just... killed himself along with Noel?" Gosalyn asked apprehensively.
Wakefield considered. "That wouldn't match the profile SHUSH has on him. He's too full of himself to end it all so suddenly. Besides, there'd be something... left behind."
"D'you think maybe they transported somewhere?"
"Not a chance. If Dr. Ardo was not able to create a working transporter, I'm sure Leon couldn't."
"Then maybe he went through the floor and into the dimensional tunnel," Gosalyn suggested with a visible shudder.
"If that's the case, he has a working QPIT machine," Wakefield mused. "That would not be good..."
The repercussions of such an idea were quite distressing. "He certainly has the intelligence to eventually create one," I said. "However, the breakthrough in the QPIT experiment occurred long after he left the university, and the information was classified. Perhaps he has had the time to figure it out for himself, but considering he did not have access to the materials, the facilities or the support of SHUSH, we can hope he has not invented one."
"That's right," Gosalyn said, brightening a little. "I also remember the QPIT needing a rare element called eludium as a power source! Noel told me they had tried hundreds of others, but they were either not strong enough, or too unstable. There's no way Leon could have gotten his hands on eludium. The only sample we had was used to run Dr. Ardo's machine, and ended up being stored under high security here at SHUSH."
"Hold that thought..." Wakefield strode to the intercom.
It wasn't long before Gosalyn became impatient. "With all this talk, Leon's getting a great head start," she muttered, resuming her pacing.
"If security cannot find Leon in the building, the first order of business would be to call the police and see if they have a home address for him."
Gosalyn shook her head. "He's got Noel. He's not going to go anywhere that we could find him that easily."
"True, but at least we can look for clues."
She stopped and looked at me, letting out a long sigh of frustration. "I don't want clues! I want to nail that creep and..." She cut herself off. Crossing her arms, she leaned on the cabinet, looking at the ceiling.
"I'm worried about Noel too, Gosalyn. But the best route is to follow procedure. That way, we won't let our emotions cause unnecessary oversights or mistakes." I knew she was not comforted by my words.
The Director returned. "So far security hasn't gotten a sign of them." I could see Gosalyn's tension level rising. "The good news is the eludium is still safe and sound in storage. The next step would be to call the police and..."
"We're way ahead of you, sir," Gosalyn interrupted, and went into Noel's office to use the telephone.
Ironically, it wasn't difficult finding Leon's apartment now. He had made his call to the police from a nearby telephone booth, and they had just been called to investigate a break-and-enter in the same neighbourhood. It seemed FOWL had succeeded in searching his residence before us... and they were not known for their discretion. There was little left for Gosalyn and me to find. One thing was evident, however. Leon Ardo must have had an impressive array of scientific equipment there. What FOWL had left behind was still valuable, though admittedly not anything Gosalyn recognized as being specific to a QPIT project. Noel's absence was keenly felt at this point. His area of expertise would have allowed us to know for certain what would be worth looking at among the remaining debris. Not just that, but among all SHUSH agents I knew, he was the most observant. His memory of any scene was etched into his head without effort - a gift he had which we used more and more as the years went by.
We were about to work our way back to the exit when Gosalyn stopped to look at the wall. The paper on it was old and yellowed, peeling from the corners, and torn in several places. At first, I didn't understand why she was so interested in it. Then I realized that some of the tears were actually the edges of clean white paper protruding from the wall. On closer observation, we realized that this different paper seemed to be somehow embedded there.
"What do you make of this, J.G.?" Gosalyn asked. "They seem to be all over the place."
"It appears you're right." I went to an especially large corner protruding from the wall on the far side of the room. "This one looks like it may have writing on it."
Gosalyn looked at me quizzically. "How do you think they got here?"
"I don't know, but it is certainly worth investigating. Perhaps we should get a team of agents over here to remove a part of this wall."
"Right. Wait a minute. What's that?" She moved to a spot on the wall near an overturned desk. "This one doesn't look like paper... it's thicker." She took a key from her pocket and scraped at the wall.
"I'd advise you not to do that," I warned. "You may damage it."
"Uh... okay. Hey, J.G., why don't you go find a phone and get that team over a.s.a.p.?"
I looked at her skeptically. "Procedure..." I reminded her. She just gave me a weak smile and a nod of the head. I left to find a telephone, knowing full well that she would attack that wall as soon as I was out of earshot.
"It's a hardcover book!" she said excitedly when I returned, still digging away with the key. "The whole thing is intact, as if it was put there when the wall was constructed. This has got to be important!"
I laid my hand on hers. "Yes. Important enough not to risk damaging it with a key. We will wait."
"J.G... I can't wait," she turned her pleading eyes towards me. "I just can't sit here waiting for a SHUSH team to arrive with their equipment while Noel is still in the hands of that weirdo."
I sighed and held out my hand. "Give me the key."
"But J.G...."
"I have more effective tools in my trunk."
By the time the other agents arrived, we had extracted the book. It appeared to be Leon's journal - an important find indeed! A fine wafer of paper, plaster and occasionally wood was sandwiched between each page of the book. Gosalyn's speculation that the book had been somehow embedded into the wall was correct. Fortunately, while the book had been mysteriously made to pass through the wall it had not been damaged in the process. Before leaving, we advised the team to carefully remove every part of the wall. If so many papers were still visible on the surface, imagine what could be hidden within.
Reluctantly, Gosalyn drove the car. Someone needed to scan the contents of the journal while we went, and although she wanted to do that, she had to admit to getting ill if she read in a moving vehicle. I made sure to read aloud the most important entries so that she wouldn't miss anything.
...I can't believe it! My own mother doesn't want me working on the quacktron project. I think she may be trying to protect me from the university. She doesn't want them to exploit my genius. I know how proud she is of me - of my brilliance...
I continued flipping through the pages, catching more and more references to Noel. "He certainly had a problem with Noel from the very beginning," I said to Gosalyn. "Here he's calling him a `moronic no-talent test tube cleaner'. He's blaming Noel for holding his mother back in her discoveries. Leon seems to be certain that Dr. Ardo would rather work with her son, but that the university was preventing her." I turned another page. "Here's a good example."
...Mother was very excited today about a breakthrough in the lab. At first I thought she said Noel broke something. I was expecting her to fire him and finally take me on as her assistant. I don't think the university wants us together. The very thought of our combined intelligence must threaten them. That must be why she won't tell me any details about her invention either. They are all so blind - imagine what we could accomplish together! If only they'd get me working with her, there'd be no stopping us! The only thing in our way now is Noel. I hate him.
"Phew!" said Gosalyn. "He really was building up a hatred for Noel, and I'm sure Noel knew nothing about it." She sighed worriedly. "No wonder he was taken so off guard in the lab. I wish we could know where they are."
"I'm sure this will help. Ah, this is where Leon left the university. He seems to blame Noel for that as well. In fact, I quote, `I can no longer stand to be so near to that leech Waddlemeyer.' He uses rather threatening language here - `I'll show them all. They will regret ignoring me,' that sort of thing." I flipped a few more pages. "Here it is - the death of Elizabeth Ardo - I've been looking for this."
...They killed my mother and stole her work! That parasite Noel stole her work, and he will be after me next. He's got government agents working for him - they killed Mother because she knew too much. I must be next... I'm even more brilliant than she. They know I'm a genius. They invented a story about evil dopplegangers, but I am not so foolish as to believe that. They think I am as stupid as they are. I know they killed her. And now I know for certain why she wouldn't let me work with her. She was protecting me. I can't believe she's dead... I have to hide. I have to leave town. Waddlemeyer must have planned it from the start. I swear I will get him for stealing Mother's work...
"What is he talking about?!" Gosalyn asked in disbelief.
I looked ahead in the journal briefly. "From this point on, he seems to have a great deal of difficulty discerning what is reality, and what he perceives things to be," I said, continuing my scan. "He is becoming more obsessive about Noel and paranoid in general as the passages continue." I shook my head. "I pity this poor wretch. His own self-centredness and ego in combination with that traumatic experience trapped him in his own hell... Wait, this is intriguing..."
...It's all a government conspiracy. I know now. They don't want people around who know too much. Once they've used intellectuals like me, they only want to get rid of them. Today there was a stranger waiting for me in the back alley by my apartment. I assumed he was there to kill me, but instead he said he was from an interested party that appreciated my genius. He offered to provide me with my own lab. No government involvement - just the materials I need to pursue my commitment to continue my mother's work in quacktron physics, or at least what she had meant to do before Waddlemeyer interfered....
"And... ah, yes. This one is not unexpected. Here he finally realized that he was working for FOWL."
...I should have suspected. But at least these are honest criminals, not like those government dogs. They are supplying me with all the funding and equipment I want. I'm trying to duplicate mother's work on quacktron particles. FOWL realizes my brilliance and is letting me do it properly this time. We will all be rich once I succeed. I wish mother hadn't been so reluctant to share. I know Noel was forcing her to keep me in the dark. He was always jealous of my genius...
Gosalyn sighed and whispered under hear breath, "He just has no idea, does he?"
"Wait, what is this?" I read it again before reading it aloud to be sure I had it right.
...FOWL has obtained the rough notes of Noel Waddlemeyer's thesis...
"What?!" cried Gosalyn. "Noel's original notes aren't censored at all! The working copy of his thesis has classified information in it that the government wouldn't allow in his published version. The security on that document was just as tight as on the eludium! There's no way they could have it!"
"We'll have to get to headquarters right away and check. If they did get it, the contraption Mr. Ardo straps to his head could well be a working QPIT."
Gosalyn increased her speed once more. I could tell the information was making her more and more apprehensive as it unfolded. She was an expert driver, but when she was really in a hurry, I had quickly learned not to look at the road.
"Keep reading from there," she said.
...How frustrating! FOWL has obtained the rough notes of Noel Waddlemeyer's thesis and they want me to use it to expedite my work. The fool clearly had made no original contributions to my mother's findings. The conclusions he draws are laughable! He is such an idiot! The control of quacktron particles to access a dimensional doorway? What use is that?! My quacktron particle work will allow me to become a force for the world to reckon with! Then at least I won't need FOWL any more - I'll have all the money and power I want. And then I can squash insignificant bugs like Noel Waddlemeyer. Mother would have been proud of me. Noel knew that, and he was jealous. I will have my revenge on him for killing her...
I trailed off, in shock at what I had just read. We both knew without speaking that Noel was in even more danger than we had previously thought. The lunatic had actually convinced himself at this point that Noel was the one who killed his mother. Although Leon had called Noel a murderer back in the lab, the full reality of the implications only struck us at that point.
"J.G...." Gosalyn said quietly, the anxiety evident in her voice.
"I know, Gosalyn. Keep driving. That's all we can do. We have to get to headquarters."
She was silent for a minute, then said, "Keep going."
"Are you sure?"
She nodded in response.
...There is nothing more degrading than using Noel's thesis as my primary resource. My only consolation is that the work is my mother's. It may have his name on it, but I recognize my Mother's genius. The conclusions she draws are inspiring!...
His self-contradiction only enhanced the unsettling tone the journal had taken, and it was clear that Leon would never admit that Noel could be responsible for those conclusions once he saw the genius in them. On top of that, he had obviously reversed his opinion on the usefulness of a dimensional gateway.
...At this rate I will have a working model of a portable QPIT machine in a few days - as soon as I can focus the quacktron field into a single ray. Soon enough I will be able to continue her exploration of other dimensions. What seems to be my only hindrance now is finding a sufficient power source. That moron Waddlemeyer seems to have forgotten to list what elements my mother used. I still can't believe they gave him a doctorate for his trivial part in my mother's grand experiment...
Even more than before, I bypassed the parts in which Leon went on about his hatred of Noel. I was anxious enough; I didn't want to make it any worse for Gosalyn. After a few more pages, I struck upon a report which I had dreaded. Although it did not say that his invention was fully operational, it was still too close for comfort.
...Success! I have been able to open a small dimensional gateway. I need only to solve the puzzle of controlling the position and duration. Often it is so far away that I can barely see it, other times it's quite close, but closes before I can enter. An unfortunate side effect is an explosion when it closes which is focused on me no matter where the portal has materialized. It has not harmed me in any permanent way, so I feel it is a risk worth taking to continue my work. I am getting tantalizing glimpses into the tunnel when the rift opens near me, and occasionally an object even came through the hole from the tunnel - in fact today I got a very nice blender. It reminds me of the one Mother used to have.
Somehow I had already come to the conclusion that Leon was causing the unexplained objects falling from the sky. It was outlandish enough to seem fitting.
"I knew it..." Gosalyn said tightly, as if reading my mind. "He's behind that too."
"I fear there is a chance the tears that he is creating have since gotten bigger. A grand piano fell from one this morning."
"That makes him responsible for the couch that fell on Agent Quilly's car today as well."
"Of course! I saw that fall when he disappeared with Noel."
I continued reading, fascinated in spite of myself.
...I have managed to refine the particle device so that I can continue my experiments in open air where I am less likely to cause injury to myself with the explosions. While I have not been able to maintain an opening to the tunnel, a new side effect of the backlash of quacktron radiation is that I find myself temporarily charged with enough quacktrons to force my way through solid matter. I can simply push my way through anything as the quacktron particles manipulate the molecules of the solid...
"Hang on, J.G. Did he say he charged himself with quacktron particles?"
"Yes, and apparently this allows him to pass through solid matter. This certainly makes him more difficult to apprehend, and a more dangerous adversary."
"More dangerous than you'd think," Gosalyn said. "I may not be a physicist, but when I was working with Noel on the QPIT, I learned that only eludium could create a stable, predictable enough field for us to pass through it without being harmed. Being charged with unstable quacktron particles would very likely damage his brain."
I sighed. "Worse and worse..."
"I bet when they disappeared, he just pushed himself and Noel through the floor into the lab below."
"In fact," I said, "that must be the way he was able to embed his journal into the wall."
"Oh my god..." Gosalyn suddenly paled. "If he could embed anything... into any solid... what if..."
She couldn't finish, but I knew what she was thinking. Noel.