Chapter 10

Yelling and whoops continued coming from the beach as Mac jumped up and made his way carefully to the beach, flashlight in one hand and Natasha's hand still in the other. They picked their way down the steps and onto the beach. The sounds were coming from the shack. They hurried over just in time to see Happer open the window.

"Mac, I was just coming to get you. The comet, the comet is there! Just like Ben thought it would, over in Leo. The photos prove it; I just needed a long enough exposure and a few days between shots to show movement. I'm going to name it after him Mac, just like you said I should. Comet Ben" he said, trying the name. "No, that's too short. How about Comet Knox? No, I don't like that one either; it sounds like I named it after my own company."

"How about Comet Bennox?" Mac suggested, spelling it out. "I won't miss the 'K' if you don't, sir."

"There you go again Mac, another good idea. Comet Bennox…it rolls off the tongue. I like it." He paced back and forth trying listening to the name. "Comet Bennox. Comet Bennnnoxxx. Yes, that's got it I think. I'll register it with all the important coordinate information tomorrow. Tonight has been a great day, Mac. Sleep well, I know I will." He closed the window and shortly afterward the light dimmed, but you could still hear him faintly talking to himself. The failure with the Lord of the Isles was temporarily forgotten.

"Goodnight Fearless Leader" Mac said. Natasha giggled.

"Do you want to do some more stargazing?" she asked.

"I'd like to very much, but I've got some reports to go over. I've got to try and find another refinery location somehow. But this time I WILL walk you back home. I've got a flashlight and I'm not afraid to use it."

"Why would you be afraid to use it? You already use earlier. Or is that joke?"

"Yes, but not a very good one."

"That is okay. In my country we call it dud."

"So do we. Let's get you home." And so he did, leading her back to her accommodations beside the general store. Afterward he went to his room and spread out reports. He was still going over them when he fell asleep. He dreamed of cool arms touching warm arms; the arms were extremely long, grotesquely so.

…

The next morning he awoke to find he had fallen asleep with the lights on and reports strewn across his bed. Feeling very rumpled and unkempt, he drew a warm bath and started soaking in it while thinking about their problem. The recurring thought of his cool arm against Natasha's warm arm intruded, but he would push it back and refocus.

The problem lay in that there were no suitable sites that were available on the western coast. The north coast had stretches that were available and some islands that could be used, but the water was just a shade too cold in the winter for the minimum flow requirements. And that still didn't help with the problem of Furness; the people really needed to be taken care of, but the government wasn't in any hurry with the sleepy little village.

He pondered the problem for some time; so much so that the water slowly turned cold around him. With his foot he reached up and turned the hot water on just enough so that it wouldn't burn. Slowly the warmth spread to his end of the tub. Just like the warm and cold arms, side by side.

That's when the lightning bolt did an arc across his brain. Cold. Warm. American. Russian.

He jumped out of the tub, and slipping a bit ran over to the bed. Drying his hands on the comforter, he moved around pages to find what he was looking for. He read the section again and gave out a great whoop of his own. I've got to get to Aberdeen, he thought to himself. No, I've got to tell Happer first.

He ran out of the room into the hallway. Stella was coming there to see what the yelling was about.

"I've got it! I figured it out!" he exclaimed to her, his arms pumping a 'Yes' while he smiled from ear to ear.

"What, how to catch pneumonia? " she asked with a smirk.

When she didn't say anything more, he looked down. He was still in bath attire, which is to say nothing. He instinctively covered himself with his hands and tried to jump through the door across the hall, bounced off and tumbled back into his own room.

"I'm okay, don't come in here" he yelled from inside. "Sorry, I got a little distracted."

"Good, although I doubt I won't see anything more than what I just saw. Please remember we don't allow nudity in the hallway after 6am."

"Really?"

"Really. Of course we don't allow it before 6am either. Feel free to figure out how to put some clothes on too" she said as she walked away.

Mac toweled off and quickly dressed. His excitement was such that he wasn't even embarrassed when he finally made it down to the dining area. He grabbed a couple of tea cakes and ran out of the room.

"He sure was a blur this morning" said Gordon as he entered the room.

"More like a streak" Stella said, laughing. "It was exciting for all the wrong reasons. Get a mop and I'll tell you about it."

Next door Linda was just opening the store. Mac dashed in and asked if he could talk to Victor and Natasha. She told him to go ahead, that they were awake already but just hadn't gotten out yet. Mac hurried out and knocked on their door. He practically ran Victor over as he opened the door, inviting himself in.

Several minutes later he reemerged and hurried across the street, almost knocking Ricky off his bike in the process. Out of breath he reached the shack and pounded on the window. Happer opened it.

"Sir," he said as he tried to regain his breath "I've got it. A solution, at least I think so."

"To what?" Happer asked.

"To everything! But I've got to drive to the lab over in Aberdeen right now to check on something. When I get back I'll have a definite plan if everything clicks together."

Happer was getting excited. "Order a helicopter. It's a little faster."

"No, I'd rather drive. I've got to go over my plan to find any weakness. Do you know where Danny and Marina are? I need to pick up Moose and Squirrel." This last part he said in a fake Russian accent.

"Danny and Marina are staying at the house just the other side of the hall with the fishing net over the door. I don't know what you need with a moose and a squirrel; you're on your own there. Go then! I'll phone Geddes and let him know you're coming."

Fifteen minutes later Mac, Natasha, Danny and Marina all piled into the rental car and drove off in a cloud of dust toward the lab in Aberdeen.