Gravity Versus Gravity, page 10
The car stopped somewhere in the middle of the hill in front of a beautiful house.
“Are we supposed to go to someone’s place?” Al asked.
“No, Sir,” said the driver. “That is your house.”
“Wow!” Al said.
Throughout his life, Al had stayed in a flat. When he grew up in Baltimore and lived with his parents, he stayed in a small flat. When he started working at the Space Center, he had an even smaller flat. Only three people at the Center had independent houses - the top three bosses. They had spent a lifetime at the Center to get one.
“I hope this is not temporary,” Al said, opening the door of the car.
“No, Sir,” the driver replied. “All yours for the whole time you would be with us.”
Al took his two suitcases and walked behind the driver. On both sides of the footpath, there were small lawns surrounded by flower beds.
While opening the door, the driver said, “The address of this house is 2 Windsor Road.”
“Thanks,” Al replied.
“And this is one of the few houses in the Center, which has a name. Houses are not given names officially, but some of them get because of their historical association with a person or an event.”
“What is the name of this house?”
“It’s called the Holmes House.”
“Named after the discoverer of the comet by his name?”
“Maybe,” replied the driver, handing over the keys to Al. “You can take some rest since I’m told that you may have a visitor in a short while.”
Al surveyed the house. It had everything - a drawing room, a study, a bedroom, a guest room, and a dining room connected to the kitchen. The kitchen racks and the refrigerator were well stocked. At the back, the house opened into a small courtyard which had a nice set of garden chairs.
When Al saw the Jacuzzi in the bathroom, he poured himself a glass of red wine and lay down to enjoy the warm water splashing on him taking out his tiredness.
Al started thinking about Ohio. And then his thoughts turned to Sam. And then to Samantha. He went to sleep holding the wine glass in his hand. The continuous ringing of the door-bell broke his sleep.
All came out of the tub, quickly wiped himself and ran to the door wrapped in the towel.
There was an elderly woman at the door.
“I’m Sylvia Peters from the Director’s office,” she said, trying to avoid a smile. “He would like to see you around four. His office is on the ground floor of the main building.”
“I’ll be there,” Al said, making the hold on his towel stronger.
Al looked at the clock. It was fifteen minutes to four. He had forgotten to ask where the main building was. He once again opened the door and came out. Sylvia had just crossed the garden.
“Excuse me,” Al said aloud.
Sylvia turned around. She ran towards Al lest he came out to meet her.
“Where is the main building?” Al asked.
“If you take the road to the right, you’ll come to the main building after about a hundred meters.”
“Good,” Al replied. “That is close by. Otherwise, I was wondering it if I would be able to reach at four since I’ve just fifteen minutes left with me.”
“Don’t worry,” Sylvia replied. “You don’t have to come exactly at four. Dr. Wardle said that he will wait for you.”
“Okay,” Al said and went inside to first eat something and then prepare for his first and perhaps the most important meeting at the Center.
The kitchen was well equipped. If only I had one like this in Ohio, Al thought. I wouldn’t have had to eat the pathetic food of the Center’s canteen. The kitchen had three cupboards on the wall and three standing on the floor. The cooking range was small. Al turned on one electric-plate and put his hand above to see if it was getting heated. It took about thirty seconds before Al felt the warmth in his hands. He looked at the clock. Ten minutes left. He thought that it would take him more time even to fry eggs.
He opened one cupboard. It had a neat row of cereals on the topmost rack. The second had a dozen tins of dry fruits. The third had scones, muffins, cakes, buns, and biscuits. He opened the next cupboard. More food. The next. More food. The drawer under the cooking range had some utensils. He opened the refrigerator. It was overflowing from sandwiches on the top to salads at the bottom. By the time Al had finished the survey, five more minutes were gone. He took out a sandwich, poured a glass of cranberry juice and finished them off in two minutes.
Al put on his dress in the next three minutes and was out of the house exactly at four. He almost ran to the main building. Sylvia was waiting outside.
“You have come on time,” she said as she led him to the Director’s office.
“Three minutes late,” Al replied, looking at his watch.
“That is pardonable given that you arrived only a few hours ago from a long trip.”
“The Director’s office is on the tenth floor,” Sylvia said as they got into the lift.
“The highest floor?” Al asked.
“No,” Sylvia said, “This building has eighteen floors.”
The lift had glass walls. As it went up rapidly, Al admired the surrounding. He could see the slopes of the hill and the roads leading to the Center. Wherever there were no buildings or roads, there were trees. On one side, he could see that the trees were thick and tall as in the tropics. On the other side, the trees were slender and tall.
“The lift journey to the top of the building must be beautiful,” Al said.
“Yes, especially in the nights. We also have a roof-top canteen. You should go there whenever you can.”
“Yes, I surely will once I exhaust the stock of food in my house.”
The Director’s office was at the other end of the corridor. By the time they reached there, it was ten minutes past four.
“Good evening, Al,” a man waiting at the door said. “I’m Peter Wardle, Director of the Center.
Al had expected to find a sixty-year old on the Director’s seat. He was pleasantly surprised that Dr. Wardle looked around forty. He had a thick lush of brown hair without a strand of white hair. His moustache had been neatly trimmed and was symmetrical on both sides.
“Al, you must be tired,” Dr. Wardle said.
“Not much,” Al said. “Your team has taken care of me well.”
“The jet leg sometimes catches up late,” Dr. Wardle said, leading Al to his office room. He put his hand on Al’s shoulder and looking at him said, “In any case, we don’t have much time. Therefore, every minute is important.”
“I understand that,” Al said.
“Your office is ready. We have put two space image scanning computers in your office. The Multi-channel Multi-polarization Imager, the Along-Track Scanning Radiometer, the Optical Imager, the Data Collection System and nearly everything that you would need are in the adjacent lab.”
“Thanks. That would be very useful,” Al said.
“I would imagine that you don’t have any of your documents.”
“I don’t. I could have brought them, but I did not feel it right. But don’t worry. I’ve everything inside my head,” Al said, putting a finger on his head.
“Good,” Dr. Wardle said. “You have our full support. After you get to know our people, you can choose someone to be your personal assistant. But if you know someone or you have any preference, please let me know. The person would be at your service from tomorrow.”
Eureka! Al thought. He would have to put his shame aside if he did not want his days in the UK to be spent in boredom. “Yes, I would like someone,” Al said.
“Who is this lucky person?”
“Samantha from the airport protocol.”
“Airport protocol?”
“Yes,” Al said.
“And what is her surname?”
“Bradley. That is what she told me, I think. Not sure, although. Someone will have to find that. She received me at the airport.”
Dr. Wardle smiled.
Al continued, “And don’t be surprised if she refuses. I’ve known her for only fifteen minutes.”
“She’ll not refuse,” Dr. Wardle said.
“How are so sure?”
“We’ll offer her more in a month than what she gets in a year,” Dr. Wardle said with a wink. He continued, “Well, that is not how we’ll get her. But we’ll get her.”
Al smiled.
“Let’s have a peek inside your office,” Sylvia said.
“You need not start working today,” Dr. Wardle said. Before Al could say anything, Dr. Wardle continued, “But check all the machines.”
Sylvia smiled. Al got to know the reason for her smile once he reached his room. It was at least four times the size of his office back home. In all, there were twenty-three machines in his room and in the adjoining lab.
“I’ll get our senior technician. He has already checked everything. He can set the machines as you desire,” Sylvia said.
“Okay,” Al said and sat down to check the computer on his table. He had finished checking his computer when Sylvia arrived with the technician.
“I’m on the same floor in the last room to the left. Do let me know if you need anything or when you are done,” Sylvia said before leaving the office.
Al and the technician went from one machine to another. By the time they got over, it was almost nine. Al’s eyes were drooping.
The technician called Sylvia over the phone. She locked the room, and the three of them walked out of the office together. Back in his house, Al crashed into his bed without changing his clothes.
The next day, Al got up refreshed although he got up very early in the morning. He had forgotten to ask the time at which the office opened. By seven, he had had his breakfast, watched all news channels, and read all the newspapers.
He decided to go to his office and check if it was open. When he reached his room, he found that it was not locked. And getting inside, he found a pleasant surprise. Samantha was already there.
“Hi,” Al said, breaking into a smile. “I had never imagined that you would come. It’s like a dream come true. How much did they offer me?”
“Offer me? I think they emotionally blackmailed me. They told that you were going to save the UK from some zero-gravity event. And it was a lifetime opportunity for me to be a part of the grand mission. I think they sent some hypnotizer to make me agree to do this. After I had signed the papers and the man had left, I started having doubts. But by then it was too late.”
“What they told you about the zero-gravity event is true. But it would be incorrect to say that I’m going to be the savior. My job is to find out the exact time and place of the event,” Al said.
“Okay,” Samantha said. “Since you, too, are saying the same thing, I’d like to believe that this zero-gravity event is happening.”
“You better do,” Al said. “Pessimism will only make your work a burden.”
“I’ll try to. But tell me one thing. What made you select me to be your assistant? I’ve neither experience nor any background. And you don’t know me, either.”
“Intuition. If it were not for my intuition, I’d not have come to the UK.”
“And what work am I supposed to do here?”
“When I find that out, I’ll let you know. For the moment, you can sit in my office and drink tea.”
Samantha made herself comfortable on the sofa and drank tea while reading a magazine. Al went around the room carefully examining the computers again and other machines.
He switched on several of them, including the two computers with telescopic data. He had memorized the seven equations related to the trajectory of the binary comets. He was glad to see that the two computers were scanning the data from telescope the way he would have wanted them to. He took out some sample print outs and frames. He did not notice that he had been setting and checking his machines for nearly an hour. He had forgotten about Samantha.
Samantha had finished her tea and the three magazines on the table. She said to Al, “I think, I should go to my room and let you work. If you need me, call me. My extension is 12, and yours is 11. You can also walk over to my room. It’s the adjacent one to the left.”
“I’ll call you if I need something. In the meantime, you can also try to figure out the place. It’s as new to you as to me.”
“I’ll do that. I’ll go around. So far, the job looks great with nothing more to do than reading magazines and getting paid for having a walk.”
“And with good company, you couldn’t have expected better.”
Samantha smiled as she left the room. Al got back to work.
Al spent the next few days refining his equations. He also got acquainted with others associated with the mission - Samir Kumar and Joe Cummings were two junior astronomers, Ursula Raymond was the telescope station manager, Robert Gales was the technical assistant, Desmond Gower was the imagery in-charge.
It took just one day for Al to notice that Samir was the most intelligent. He had been a topper in the entrance exam to the IIT of India. However, he had given up his studies at IIT after the first year to pursue his passion in astronomy. He had received a full scholarship from the MIT. He had completed his Ph.D. in astrophysics in MIT and had joined the Swindon Space Center. Al did not have to explain anything to Samir. He seemed to know everything. And whenever Al asked Samir to do some task, he finished it before time. In the first day itself, he had corrected two algorithms.
Of the rest, Ursula was the hardest worker. She never got tired. If she was not doing an assignment given by Al, she was doing her research work or checking the machines. She was usually the first person to reach office and the last one to leave.
Joe Cummings, Robert Gales, and Desmond Gower had a mix of everything - intelligence, diligence, and practicality. Joe Cummings was nearly two meters tall. He was a great help in fixing everything technical and otherwise. Robert Gales had a great sense of humor. He entertained the team and kept their spirits high. Desmond Gower had six children. He was caring and ensured that everyone had food on time and took care of everyone’s comfort.
There were a few others, who sometimes walked in out of Al’s room. Al thought of giving himself some time to get to know everyone associated with the mission. In Ohio, he dealt with half the number of people he was dealing with in Swindon. However, Samantha had done a better job. In a few days, she had come to know almost everyone at the Center associated with Al’s office.
A week after Al’s arrival, Dr. Wardle asked him to come to his office. Al had thought several times of calling on Dr. Wardle. So, he was happy when he got a call from Dr. Wardle.
Al immediately scurried out of his office. He went to the tenth floor. When he came out of the lift, he found that he did not remember where Dr. Wardle’s office was. He looked from one side to another when the lift door opened again, and he felt a tap of fingers on his shoulder. He turned around. Samantha was standing behind him.
“Looking for Dr. Wardle’s office?” she asked.
“Yes,” Al replied.
“To the left,” Samantha said. The two of them walked together towards Dr. Wardle’s office.
“How did you know that I’m here?”
“The camera outside your room.”
“But how did you know that I’m on the tenth floor?”
“The telephone,” Samantha replied.
“The telephone?”
“Your office telephone has a parallel connection in my room. Every time you are on the phone, the loudspeaker automatically switches on.”
“You can hear everything?”
“Yes, everything.”
“What about my personal conversations?”
“You have not had one in the seven days that I’ve been here.”
“Thanks for letting me know. I’ll use my mobile from my office should I require to make a personal call.”
“That is not needed. Whenever you don’t want me to hear the conversation, press the button with asterisk sign anytime.
“Wow! I’m impressed. You know many things.”
“That is my job. I don’t know about your equations, algorithms, and charts. And you don’t know about the mundane things that I’m supposed to know.”
They had reached Dr. Wardle’s office.
“Should I come along?” Samantha asked.
“Sure,” Al said. “I don’t think Dr. Wardle is going to talk anything confidential. In any case, you need to know everything.”
“Okay,” Samantha said and entered Dr. Wardle’s office along with Al.
Dr. Wardle said, “I’ve been getting feedback from Ursula and Desmond about your progress. But I would like to have a coordinating meeting cum conference cum Q&A session at the earliest to be sure that everyone is aware of what they are supposed to do. People can also clarify their doubts if they have any.”
“That is a good idea,” Al said. “I, too, have various issues and a meeting like that would expedite solutions.”
Dr. Wardle took out a chart and started discussing the position of the binary comets with Al. After five minutes, Al noticed that Samantha was getting bored.
“Why don’t you get us some tea, Samantha?” Al requested her.
Samantha’s face lit up. She was out of the room fast.
After five minutes, when Samantha entered the room with tea, she found that Al and Dr. Wardle were nowhere near the end of their conversation. She put the cups in front of them and left the room once again.
When Dr. Wardle and Al had finished their technical discussion, Dr. Wardle said, “Please let me know if there is anything required.”
“I’ll do that,” Al said, getting up to leave. When he was at the door, Dr. Wardle said, “Hope Samantha is enjoying her work.”
“So far, she has not told anything otherwise,” Al said.
“And I hope both of you are enjoying each other’s company,” Dr. Wardle said with a wink.
“I am,” Al said, shutting the door behind him.
Outside, Al found Samantha leaning on the railing and looking out in the distance. Al came to the railings and stood beside her. She did not react.
