Waiting by Erin Dennington ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 42 Davis stared at the now silent radio, his mind on a chance encounter that he'd had while a student at MIT. He'd been attending one of the numerous banquets, this one being held in his wife's honor, and he'd grown a trifle bored through the speeches. Whispering to Bethany that he needed a breath of fresh air, he had let himself out of the banquet hall into the gardens behind the building. Pulling a flask out of his pocket, he had taken a swig and almost choked to death when a man had appeared at his elbow and asked for a light. Although Davis didn't smoke, he carried around an embossed lighter that Bethany had given to him for Christmas their first year together. So he didn't think anything of offering a light to those around him who smoked, even when he had no idea who that person may be. "Thanks, mate," the man said, cupping his hands around the end of the cigarette. He passed the lighter back to Davis and took a deep drag. Both of them stared out into the gardens, speckled with the evening's moonlight. "Ever wonder how many of those are out there?" the man finally asked, pointing up at the stars. Davis shrugged. "I haven't a clue, but my wife could tell you. She's really good at that sort of mathematical reasoning." "And you? What about you? What are you good at?" "Well, that depends, Mister...," Davis said, unsure where this conversation was going. "Oh, sorry," he said, extending his right hand out. "I'm Mateo Rivera. I work for the faculty, sort of as an assistant, while I finish my doctoral thesis. And you are?" "Davis Jackson. My wife is the one in there winning the award. I'm not as smart as she is in the realm of the mathematical probabilities of deep space, but you give me something grounded in the earth's atmosphere and I can give you something wholly engineered by me. I can do anything with wires and circuit boards." Davis realized that he could almost be considered to be bragging, but it was the plain truth. Davis was a whiz kid when it came to building things. As a child he had dreamt of building space ships and cars, but reality had hit hard in his late teenage years. Davis was a whiz when it came to electrical engineering, and he was far more comfortable with a computer and some circuit boards than he was with a drawing board. Mateo pursed his lips, impressed. "I wish I had that sort of talent. I'm more like your wife, I imagine, then, as I like to dabble in probabilities and that sort of thing. My friends joke that it's a turn-on for me." Finished with his cigarette, he stubbed it out with the toe of his shoe and then placed it in the butt-box conveniently hidden next to the steps down to the garden. Mateo rubbed his hands together. He didn't appear to be in any great hurry to go back inside, but, like Davis, seemed to yearn for something to do. "Say, Davis," he said, "how would you like to help me with something?" "I'd have to say that depends," Davis replied, "on what it was you were asking me about." "Well, I can't reveal too much to you if you aren't involved in the project, but some of us are working for a governmental agency to engineer the super warrior. We are experimenting on insects, and are looking to move up to a higher organism. I think that, with your experience and expertise, this might work. What do you say?" "Well, actually, I have to head back inside," Davis said, stepping away from Mateo. "Wait," Mateo said, tugging on Davis' arm. "I know you are thinking I am just another one of those conspiracy freaks, but that's not true. If you'd just trust me, then I can tell you all of the details." "Thanks, but no thanks," Davis said. "I hardly know you. Maybe under different circumstances, but now under these." Mateo backed off, hands in the air. "I can respect that. However, if you ever feel like changing your mind, ask your wife where Room 142 is. That's my 'office,' if you will. You can find me there." "Sure thing," Davis said, hurrying inside and back to his wife's side. "Anything exciting happening out there?" Bethany asked, smiling up at her husband. "It's dreadfully boring in here." "Nah," Davis said, deciding not to mention his encounter with Mateo. He didn't know what to make of it and thought it best to keep silent. He kissed Bethany and the two of them decided to call it a night. Now, almost 15 years later, Davis recalled the conversation he'd had with the energetic latino. Although it had been years since the conversation and it had been the only communication he'd had with Mateo, he could still recall every word that was said. He'd been lying to himself then that what Mateo was up to was nothing of importance, but he'd recognized Mateo's face from the newspaper. At the time, he'd blown off Mateo's words, telling himself that it wouldn't be a wise course of action to take. Truth be told, the idea frightened him. He had grown up reading comic books and the idea of changing what God had placed on the planet scared him. So, in a way, he hadn't known what to do. Now, he felt that that conversation held a clue to the bizarre chain of events that were spiraling out of control right before his very eyes. He hoped that Bill would be able to dig something up on Mateo Rivera. 21:48 - 11.11.02 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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