Part 9 (1/1)

”Don't be silly,” Sylvia said. ”It's not as if you were an astronaut or something.”

I was back on the ground, all right.

Well, there was sort of a de-briefing. Cleary and Stone got me alone for a moment in somebody's office.

”Well, Mike,” Paul said, ”that was a great performance. What was the trouble up there?”

I laughed at both of them. ”Go jump in the lake,” I said. ”I'm out of the middle.”

”What do you mean, Mike?” Doc Stone asked, holding his young-man's pipe at arm's length.

”It wasn't design--because the solenoid worked. And it wasn't installation. It was materials.” I told them about the no-good insulation.

”Lucky it's only used in a couple points,” Paul said, scowling. ”I guess any other point where it broke up wasn't as critical in dimension and no short resulted.”

”Not yet,” I grinned. ”It may. And I couldn't care less.”

”You're a big winner, then, Mike,” Paul grinned. ”Fred and I have kind of made up anyway, and you're in solid with Sylvia.”

”Not with that noise,” I said. ”No dame was worth that ride. Let Sid have her.”