From: Jason Self Date: Sun, 1 May 2022 16:02:24 +0000 (-0700) Subject: Publish new installment X-Git-Url: https://jxself.org/git/?a=commitdiff_plain;h=f5051a6d93b8d483289a4fc14d3b7be9357f4ab4;p=universe.git Publish new installment --- diff --git a/agalder.txt b/agalder.txt index 844c717..924283e 100644 --- a/agalder.txt +++ b/agalder.txt @@ -1661,4 +1661,101 @@ trust her. And me. And Greg. You do your part. We'll do ours." Harlan's eyes turned to Behan and held his gaze. "You think she can do this and come out alive?" -Behan nodded. "Yes. She really is that good." \ No newline at end of file +Behan nodded. "Yes. She really is that good." + +==== Mellie: Detective, Resistance Spy ==== + +Mellie had been given what was probably the hardest role in the coming +rebellion. She was to live a dual life. On one hand, she was to make +herself acceptable to the detectives. She was to become one of the +'boys', slowly insinuating herself into the group until she was +accepted. She agonized on how to break the ice with nine young to +approaching elderly men, not counting Behan. What could she say or do +that would look natural? + +The detectives were playing traffic in a soccer match that night. She +decided to go. She wore her hair caught up in a black cap, which +matched her black pants and jacket. Sitting high up, she could see not +just the field, but the mountains and the waterfall to the west. She +had arrived early and the sun set in glorious colors. She was +transfixed and almost forgot about the game. + +Tearing her eyes from the fading sunset, she watched as the men and +women of traffic outran and outscored the detectives. She didn't +cheer. She didn't even move. She just watched. After the game the two +teams went off to the Oasis Chance Casino for dinner and a night of +carousing. Mellie went home. + +The next morning she was reviewing a file on her tablet, feet up on +the desk. She got a few looks from the 'boys' for this lack of +decorum, but no one said anything. + +Biggers was entertaining the unit clerks with his version of the +soccer game. + +"Hanson kicked the ball to me. The way to the goal was open. I started +running, keeping the ball just a few feet ahead of me. I dodged +Phillips from traffic and swerved around Jimmy Ricci. I was clear. +When all of a sudden,..." he paused dramatically. + +"He tripped over his own feet and traffic got the ball." said Mellie. +She didn't look up from her tablet. + +Biggers mouth dropped open. Every pair of eyes in the room was +suddenly scrutinizing Mellie. She finally looked up at the astonished +Biggers. "Right, Biggers?" and she smiled. + +Behan began to laugh, a couple others joined in, and soon the whole +room was roaring with laughter. Biggers was a little hostile at first, +but then he got a sheepish grin on his face and joined in the +laughter. + +Mellie shook her head. It really hadn't been all that funny. She +pulled her feet down from the desk and leaned forward and got back to +work. + +A few days later, she had an opportunity to insert a comment about a +case as she was walking past three of them. It was something that no +one had thought of. "Did you check the time that it got dark last +night? Dusk is divided into several segments. I don't remember all the +names, but the last one is astronomical dusk when the sun is something +like 18 degrees below the horizon and there's no sunlight left. Your +visibility at that time is just about ten feet. If your witness +claimed she saw the suspect clearly at that time from forty feet, she +was lying." And she continued on her way. Hanson scurried to his desk +to check the information. + +As she was leaving that night, Hanson stopped her. "Hey, Mellie." he +called. She looked back and waited for him as he hurried to catch up. +Hanson was in his 30s, getting a little thin on top and a little thick +in the middle. He'd never said a word to Mellie before. + +"I wanted to say thanks. That little tip you dropped on your way past +this morning made a big difference in the case." He looked out over +Mellie's head. "The witness was definitely lying. You were right. We +arrested her and she broke down a couple hours later and confessed." +His gaze came back to Mellie. "Without that piece of information, we +would have arrested the wrong person and gotten egg all over our +faces. As it is, we're lookin' good." He tapped her on the shoulder, +smiled, and said "Thanks." as he ran down the ramp to the street. + +Mellie watched as a good looking woman on a bright red Air Jumper +picked him up. He hopped onto the back of the skimmer and they went +roaring off into the night. + +There was a definite thawing in the attitudes of her colleagues in the +next few weeks. + +==== John Behan: Detective, Resistance Fighter ==== + +As Mellie slowly, carefully found her way into the brotherhood of +detectives, Behan watched and silently cheered her on. He was +delighted that she had discovered a way to get the 'boys' on her side. +When she spoke, they started to listen, instead of talking over her. +And they often acted on her advice, having found that she actually +knew what she was talking about. + +He stopped worrying about her the morning he came into work and Mellie +was sitting with one hip perched on Biggers desk, drinking a cup of +coffee, and laughing with four of the detectives. He just smiled as he +walked past and got to work. \ No newline at end of file