Peggy Sue (The T'aafhal Inheritance) Read Online Free PDF Page B

gently took the phone from her hand and told Yuki “Thank you, I think she believes us now my friend. See you soon.”
    Hanging up the phone he looked back at the stunned woman sitting across from him. “Elena? Are you all right?” Focus slowly returned to her gaze, she looked at the diminutive physicist and asked “what happens next?”
    “Next, you can enjoy one last day at the conference and then meet me at the train station in the morning. We are booked on the Overland to Adelaide departing at 7:35AM.”
    “The station across the river?” Across the river, on the north bank of the Yarra, was a beautiful old Victorian train station that she passed under walking to and from the conference center.
    “No, that’s Flinders Street station. The train to Adelaide departs from Southern Cross Station on Spencer Street. Don’t worry, just tell the desk at the hotel you need to catch the Overland to Adelaide in the morning and they will arrange a shuttle bus. Pack enough clothes for a couple of days, we will overnight in Adelaide before continuing on by plane the following morning. I have a few more errands to run and will meet you at the station.”
    “Si, I will be there,” she affirmed, again staring down at the pictures of the alien planet in front of her. She had hoped a trip to Australia would bring a bit of adventure with it, but this was taking things to an extreme. She looked up and Rajiv was gone, the only proof that they had talked was an empty coffee cup and the glossy photographs she held in her hand.
     
    Parker Ranch, West Texas
    The shuttle dropped silently from the dark night sky, after a careful stealthy approach. Bobby Danner, one of the Peggy Sue’s helmsmen, was at the controls with Lt. Curtis acting as copilot—an experienced helo pilot, she had not yet found time to be checked out as pilot in command on the new shuttles.
    Their reentry had been over the Pacific, well out of sight of land. For a few brief minutes the shuttle was enveloped in a fiery shell of plasma as atmospheric friction slowed the craft from orbital velocity. Outraged atoms shed their electrons, which joined their naked nuclei to form a charged particle soup, blanking out communication and painting a glowing streak across the night sky.
    Gretchen had set the entire cabin ceiling to transparent, giving the Marines a spectacular show. Still 50 kilometers high and traveling Mach 15 when they crossed the west coast of Baja, Mexico, the shuttle made a shallower descent than the old American space shuttles. Below, off the left side of the craft, the coast of California was outlined by lights, like a spray of jewels on black velvet.
    Then, dropping quickly through commercial airspace, the shuttle went subsonic crossing over the Texas-New Mexico border. The few lights below reflected the sparse population of West Texas. Now flying at less than 500 meters, Bobby circled TK Parker’s ranch once to ensure that no one was around to witness the shuttle’s landing, though the thought of purposefully creating a UFO sighting was tempting.
    Almost without sound, save for a low thrumming caused by its repulsors, the shuttle came to a hover above the parched West Texas scrub. Landing struts deployed and the craft settled softly to the ground behind the old dirigible hangar. There were no signs of life from the huge dilapidated building, originally built during World War II to house Navy airships. It was inside that hangar that the Peggy Sue was built and it was her hasty, overly energetic departure that wrecked the building.
    Gretchen unfastened her shoulder and lap belts, worn as a precaution even though the deck gravity eliminated all sense of motion. Before opening the door to the passenger cabin she turned to Bobby and said, “I don’t expect any trouble deplaning our guests, but if I shout get us into the air fast.”
    “Aye aye, Ma’am,” the slightly chubby helmsman replied. Bobby was a couch potato, addicted to science fiction movies