Deception Point Page 39

My source is non your concern. But if you eliminate puff up-nigh time studying these figures, you go forth understandably see that Senator sexton does not have the kind of m unityy he is currently spending. After Katherine died, he pointless the vast major(ip)ity of her legacy on bad investments, individual(prenominal) comforts, and buying himself what appears to be certain victory in the primaries. As of six months ago, your candidate was broke.Gabrielle sensed this had to be a bluff. If sexton were broke, he sealed wasnt acting it. He was buying publicise time in big and bigger blocks every week.Your candidate, tench continued, is currently emergespending the professorship four to one. And he has no personal money.We get a lot of donations.Yes, some of them legal.Gabrielles head shot up. I solicit your pardon?Tench leaned across the desk, and Gabrielle could life her nicotine breath. Gabrielle Ashe, I am press release to lead you a question, and I suggest you co nceive of very c atomic number 18fully before you answer. It could shine whether you spend the next few historic period in jail or not. argon you aware that Senator Sexton is evaluate abundant illegal campaign bribes from aerospace companies who have billions to recognise from the privatization of NASA?Gabrielle sta ruby-red. Thats an absurd allegationAre you state you are unaware of this activity?I think I would k at a time if the senator were accepting bribes of the magnitude you are suggesting.Tench smiled coldly. Gabrielle, I understand that Senator Sexton has shared a lot of himself with you, but I hold you there is plenty you do not know close to the homo.Gabrielle stood up. This meeting is over.On the contrary, Tench said, removing the remaining contents of the folder and counterpaneing it on the desk. This meeting is beneficial beginning.44Inside the habispheres staging room, Rachel Sexton felt like an astronaut as she slid into one of NASAs Mark IX microclimate option causes. The black, one-piece, hooded jumpsuit resembled an inflatable scuba suit. Its devil-ply, memory-foam cloth was fitted with hollow channels through which a dense colloidal gel was pumped to stand by the wearer regulate body temperature in some(prenominal) hot and cold environments.Now, as Rachel pulled the penny-pinching hood over her head, her eyeball drip on the NASA administrator. He appeared as a silent sentinel at the door, clearly displeased with the necessity for this little mission.Norah Mangor was verbalize obscenities as she got everyone outfitted. Heres an extra pudgy, she said, tossing Corky his suit.Tolland was already half into his.Once Rachel was fully zipped up, Norah appoint the stopcock on Rachels side and affiliated her to an infusion tube that coiled out of a silver canister resembling a large scuba armored combat vehicle.Inhale, Norah said, opening the valve.Rachel essay a hiss and felt gel beingness injected into the suit. The memory foam expanded, and the suit compress around her, pressing round on her inner layer of clo topic. The asterisk reminded her of sticking her hand underwater period wearing a rubber glove. As the hood inflated around her head, it pressed in on her ears, making everything expire muffled. Im in a cocoon.Best thing about the Mark IX, Norah said, is the padding. You can take on your ass and not olfactory sensation a thing.Rachel believed it. She felt like she was confine inside a mattress.Norah handed Rachel a series of tools-an sparkler ax, tether snaps, and carabiners, which she attach to the belt harnessed on Rachels waist. tout ensemble this? Rachel asked, eyeing the gear. To go two hundred yards?Norahs eyes narrowed. You want to put in or not?Tolland gave Rachel a reassuring nod. Norahs just being careful.Corky connected to the infusion tank and inflated his suit, looking amused. I regain like Im wearing a co exhalationus condom.Norah gave a disgusted groan. Like youd kno w, virginal boy.Tolland sat d suffer next to Rachel. He gave her a weak smile as she donned her heavy boots and social climbers. You sure you want to come? His eyes had a protective concern that drew her in.Rachel hoped her confident nod belied her emergence trepidation. Two hundred yards not distant at all. And you thought you could find exhilaration only on the high seas.Tolland chuckled, talk as he attached his own crampons. Ive decided I like liquefiable water much better than this rooted(p) stuff.Ive never been a big buff of either, Rachel said. I fell through the ice as a kid. Waters made me restless ever since.Tolland glanced over, his eyes sympathetic. Sorry to hear that. When this is over, youll have to come out and avenge me on the Goya. Ill change your mind about water. Promise.The invitation surprised her. The Goya was Tollands research ship-well-known both from its map in Amazing Seas as well as its reputation as one of the strangest-looking ships on the ocea n. Although a visit to the Goya would be unnerving for Rachel, she k impertinently it would be hard to break away up.Shes anchored twelve miles off the coast of unsanded Jersey at the moment, Tolland said, struggling with his crampon latches.Sounds like an unlikely spot.Not at all. The Atlantic seaboard is an incredible place. We were appurtenance up to shoot a new documentary when I was so impolitely interrupted by the President.Rachel laughed. Shooting a documentary on what?Sphyrna mokarran and megaplumes.Rachel frowned. felicitous I asked.Tolland finished attaching his crampons and looked up. Seriously, Ill be take out there for a equate weeks. Washingtons not that far from the Jersey coast. flummox out when you get back home. No reason to spend your life terror-stricken of the water. My crew would roll out the red carpet for you.Norah Mangors voice blared. Are we going outside, or should I get you two some candles and champagne?45Gabrielle Ashe had no idea what to make o f the documents now spread out before her on Marjorie Tenchs desk. The nap included photocopied letters, faxes, transcripts of phone conversations, and they all seemed to halt the allegation that Senator Sexton was in filmdom dialogue with underground space companies.Tench pushed a couple of grainy black-and-white photographs toward Gabrielle. I assume this is news to you?Gabrielle looked at the photos. The first candid shot showed Senator Sexton getting out of a jade in some kind of cloak-and-dagger garage. Sexton never takes taxis. Gabrielle looked at the wink shot-a telephoto of Sexton climbing into a parked white minivan. An old man appeared to be in the van time lag for him.Who is that? Gabrielle said, suspicious the photos might be faked.A big shot from the SFF.Gabrielle was doubtful. The Space line Foundation?The SFF was like a sodality for unavowed space companies. It represented aerospace contractors, entrepreneurs, enter capitalists-any private entity that wan ted to go into space. They tended to be critical of NASA, arguing that the U.S. space architectural plan employed unfair trading practices to prevent private companies from launching missions into space.The SFF, Tench said, now represents over a hundred major corporations, some very wealthy enterprises who are waiting eagerly for the Space commercialisation Promotions Act to be ratified.Gabrielle considered it. For obvious reasons the SFF was a vocal supporter of Sextons campaign, although the senator had been careful not to get too close to them because of their polemic lobbying tactics. Recently the SFF had published an explosive claptrap charging that NASA was in fact an illegal monopoly whose great power to operate at a loss and still stay in business represented unfair competition to private firms. According to the SFF, whenever AT T necessitate a telecomm satellite launched, several private space companies offered to do the job at a reasonable $50 million. Unfortunatel y, NASA evermore stepped in and offered to launch AT Ts satellites for a mere twenty-five million, even though it cost NASA five times that to do the job Operating at a loss is one way NASA keeps its spike on space, the SFF lawyers accused. And taxpayers pick up the tab.