atched Cade leave the room and wondered how such people came to be.
She'd met a few others somewhat like him since her arrival on Earth and her
involvement with the NIA. None of them had talked much and few had been as
smilingly sociable with her as Cade.
She paused by the door to help the two men who were working to angle the
long commo equipment trunk through the narrow hallway to the corridor.
One guy grousingly asked, "How the hell did they get it in here in the first
place?"
Grasping the top strap in her right hand, Mandi lifted it out of their hands
and said, "I'll hold it. You guide it."
After a moment of staring, the men steered the trunk through the door frame
and into the corridor, where Mandi put it down on end for a guy with a
two-wheeled dolly.
One of the guys marveled at the way the leather-and-metal handgrip on top
had been deformed by her grip and said he was going to replace it just to have
this one as a souvenir.
When John saw Mandi at the door of 835, he excused himself from the two
women who'd been hostages and went to her, leading her a short distance away
from everyone else.
"Mandi," John enthused, "I just wanted to say that I've never seen anything
like that in my life. It was amazing. I can't tell you how happy we are to have
you aboard."
"Thanks, John. Can you tell me why you wouldn't let me go in there alone?"
Expecting her to simply accept his words, Mandi's question appeared to take
him somewhat aback, but he recovered and said, "No. I'm sorry, but I can't."
"Can you at least tell me whether it was your idea or someone else's?"
He shook his head. "No, Mandi. I'm sorry, but..." A thought seemed to occur
to him and he asked, "Where's Cade? He hasn't been debriefed yet."
For some reason, it gave Mandi a twinge of pleasure to say, "I believe he
went to see about some dinner, John. Besides, what debriefing is really
necessary? You have it on tape."
John regarded her thoughtfully for a moment.
As he was about to say something else, Mandi asked, "Was he 'debriefed'
after what happened earlier today? From what I've heard, he just filed a police
report and left."
"You know about that, huh?"
"Yes," she said flatly. "Ringer told me why the car blew up. What's going
on, John? Why all the secrecy?"
Looking pained, John said, "Look, Mandi, talking could cost me my job. Give
me a break, okay?" After a short sigh, he