Anomaly Read Online Free PDF Page B

message through his earpiece. He looked at Teller without any emotion and beckoned him with a nod of his head. Teller didn't need prompting. He ducked under the barricade. Cathy followed his lead, ducking under as well.
    Finch remained behind the barricade. He held his camera by his side, casually recording the whole thing.
    “Susan,” said Teller on reaching her. “You can't wander off like that.”
    “It's my fault,” said the man standing with her. He held out his hand. “James Mason, Director of National Security.”
    Teller shook his hand, a little confused as Cathy came up beside them.
    “Susan's my niece. Her mother and I grew up just ten minutes south of here.”
    “Oh,” said Teller, surprised.
    “She's been telling me all about you,” he continued with a warm smile.
    Teller hadn't taken in where they were standing. They were in front of a white trailer with the NASA logo proudly displayed on the side. Several monitors and computer screens were set up outside the trailer. Scientists milled around, talking with each other. Several of them were standing with Mason.
    “Tell him,” said Susan. “Tell him about the gyroscope, just like you told me.”
    Teller blushed.
    Mason looked down at the toy in Teller's hand.
    Mason was a burly man. In his teens, he'd played college football. His muscular physique seemed to burst out of his suit. His physical prowess and his crew-cut hair made him look business-like. An alpha-male, Mason had gained a doctorate in aeronautics, with the intention of becoming an astronaut before being lured into business. By the time he was twenty-eight, he'd become chief executive of Arden Oil. From there, he moved into politics, working as chief of staff for the governor of New York, before moving on to Washington and gaining the attention of the then presidential nominee, Robert Laver.
    Teller felt intimidated even though Mason was at pains to make him feel relaxed.
    “I was trying to tell him,” said Susan, looking up at Teller. “I was trying to explain to him that the anomaly is not moving, it's pointing, but now you can tell him.”
    Mason smiled. He clearly wasn't expecting much. Susan was animated, and he seemed happy to entertain her enthusiasm. Teller, however, felt like a fool. It was one thing to entertain the imagination of his kids with his thoughts on the anomaly, talking with the Director of National Security, though, was entirely different.
    “I gotta tell you,” said Mason. “This thing has stirred up a whole lot of fear and uncertainty, but, so far, we have no idea what it is. We've got scientists coming in from all around the country to examine it, but, as you've seen on television, there's not much to it. It just keeps turning over and over again, with no reason as to why.”
    “Staying still,” said Susan, pulling on the leg of his trousers as she corrected him. “It's not moving. We are. It's standing still and pointing into space.”
    Mason rubbed her head fondly.
    “So what's it pointing at?” asked Mason. Teller was surprised by his patience, assuming someone at this level of government service would be an all-American action man, firing from the hip and hitting bandits at a hundred yards, but Mason was calm, content to consider the moving/not-moving concept. A couple of the scientists were also listening, a little curious as to who the director was talking to.
    “It's pointing at home,” said Susan proudly. Teller shrunk just a little. He felt like a fish out of water, especially with the NASA scientists milling around in their navy blue polo shirts. They looked focused, determined. He imagined the scoffing and ridicule he was about to face with his petty theory.
    “Home?” queried Mason, looking at Teller. “So you think you know why this thing is moving?”
    “Well, technically,” Teller began, feeling as though he were tiptoeing through a minefield, “everything's in motion in one way or another. We look at the anomaly as though it's moving