Three Read Online Free PDF Page B

staring at the words, sipping
periodically at his beer.  Finally, he sat the unfinished bottle on the side of
the desk, shut down the computer, and walked to his bedroom.  There he unpacked
his small carry–on bag and got ready for bed.  His sleep, through the early
morning hours, was troubled by thoughts of these words, along with his loneliness
and loss.  He slept little before dawn began to cast a few rays of dim light
and stir a gentle breeze through his bedroom window.

2
The Three
     
    For many things lead me to have a suspicion that all
phenomenon
    may depend on certain forces by which the particles of
bodies,
    by causes not yet known, either are impelled toward
one another,
    and cohere in regular figures, or repelled from one
another and recede.
                           
    - Isaac Newton
     
    After rising that morning and
having a breakfast of bacon, eggs, and coffee, followed by a warm shower,
Oliver called the Fermilab office of Peter’s team.
    Kahlil answered, and
recognizing Oliver’s number, said, “Dr. Saxon, I’ve been expecting your call;
we’re all still in shock and are here in the office trying to determine what we
should do.” 
    “I’d like to come out to the
lab and see you, David, and Elizabeth.” 
    “That would be fine.  I’ll
let security know you’re coming.”
    “Has Elizabeth finished her
work attempting to restore Peter’s laptop?”
    “She’s still working on it
but says she should know something by tomorrow.”
    “I’d still like to talk with
the three of you about the work you each have been doing with Peter.  I’ll be
there in about an hour,” Oliver responded as he walked to his car.
    Oliver drove from the
University of Chicago campus, north through the city and then west out Interstate
88, toward Fermilab.  As he drove, he could not help visualizing the exuberant
Peter Newbury, encouraging his team of three researchers, as together they
worked to unravel the secrets of the universe.  What impact will Peter’s
death have on this important research?  How will his team members be affected? 
 If his death was not from natural causes, who could possibly expect to profit
from such a hateful act?   These thoughts did little to soothe Oliver, or
brighten his dark mood as he drove west toward the lab.  His thoughts were
finally interrupted by the exit signs for Fermilab.  Exiting Interstate 88 he
drove north along Kirk Road into the National Accelerator complex, a 6,800-acre
tract of land just south of Batavia.
    In his discussions with
Peter, Oliver had learned that Fermilab employed over 1,500 scientists and
engineers, and was a world leader in sub-atomic physics and particle
accelerator design.  Oliver recalled Peter’s enthusiastic words: “Here at
Fermilab, particles like electrons or protons are accelerated to high energies,
held in a storage ring, and made to collide.  Over the years, these controlled
collisions have yielded a lot of information about the structure of matter.  We
are close to finding out how all matter is formed!”
      As Oliver turned east onto
the main entrance road to Fermilab, approaching Wilson Hall, he was again
struck by the unusual architecture of this main administrative building. The concave,
inward-sloping east and west wings, looming more than fifteen stories above the
surrounding flat-lands, had always given him the impression of two giant hands,
clasped in prayer.  He had often teased Peter about the symbolism, asking what
all these physicists and mathematicians could be praying for.  Peter would
laugh and remind him of the opening scenes of “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, where
Indiana Jones takes all the risks and does the hard work to find the hidden
treasure, and in the end has it stolen from him by that nasty Frenchman,
Belloc. 
    “Well, Oliver, physics
research is just like that.  All of us in this building are working as hard as
we can to find the next hidden treasure, hoping and praying