Part 34 (1/2)

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 96.9, 124.4, 95.7.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 96, 122.5, 96.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 102.2, 111.3, 96.9.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 120.4, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 103, 125, 103.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 99.1, 121.9, 99.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 123.7, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 122.5, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 99.7, 123.4, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 121.9, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 123.1, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 102.1, 121.9, 102.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 124.4, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 124.9, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 99.1, 123.1, 99.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 104.9, 124.4, 99.7.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100, 121.9, 100.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 105.8, 121.9, 105.8.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 101.5, 121.9, 96.9.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 102.2, 123.1, 105.2.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 101.8, 121.9, 99.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 99.1, 123.4, 99.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 205.8, 135.6, 106.7.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 102.1, 122.2, 100.6.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.6, 124.1, 101.8.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 96, 123.1, 98.1.

18.9, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 27.44, 100.9, 123.4, 99.4.

The pattern seemed familiar. d.a.m.n familiar. But elusively so.

”Bill? You coming to bed?” Barbara had apparently finished her crossword puzzle.

”In a minute, babe.”

”You're not writing are you? You know you're more likely to write c.r.a.p than cream at this hour of the night.”

She was right, of course. ”I'm not writing. I'm watching the news.”

”All right then.” Barbara subsided.

Bill leaned his head toward the TV to catch what the SETI guy was saying about geometrical figures. They thought the old Pioneer 10 s.p.a.cecraft was speaking to them in geometry. When asked why this was happening, a pretty East Indian woman-a Dr. Mukerjee-said that they thought her deteriorating condition had caused the old s.p.a.ce craft to start running some mangled first contact programming.

She smiled (it was a dynamite smile) and said, ”I like to think she's dreaming.”

Bill sat back on the sofa. Now that was one for the books-a dreaming s.p.a.cecraft. He waited for them to show the geometrical shapes they thought lived in the neat rows and columns of numbers. They didn't.

Miffed, he hunkered down to do the math himself.

”Bill? Are you sure you're not writing?”

He flipped the steno pad shut, slid the pencil back into the spiral binding, clicked off the TV, and went to bed.

Peter Grace rubbed the back of his neck absently. ”Okay, next time you guys come up with a hare-brained idea I'll just chalk it up to thinking 'outside the box' and go with it.”

Kurt grinned. ”Hey, that hare-brained idea got us 240 data points.”

”Don't rub it in.” Grace shook his head. ”You're an unorthodox son of a b.i.t.c.h, Kurt, but I guess that's why you're out here, in the first place.”

”And not at NASA with the real scientists?”

”Didn't say that; didn't mean to imply it.” He pushed his gla.s.ses back up his nose. ”So, what's our next move?”

Kurt laughed. ”What makes you think we've got one?”

The steno pad lay on the coffee table in the living room. Bill picked it up on the way to the kitchen, where he pecked his wife on the cheek, poured himself a cup of fresh, hot coffee and sat at the kitchen table to think about geometric figures. By the time Barbara put a plate full of scrambled eggs in front of him and sat down caddy corner, he was doodling lines, circles, squares, and triangles. He studied what he'd done as he shuttled eggs to his mouth.

”What's that?” Barbara asked.

His mouth full, he rotated the pad so she could see what he was doodling.

She frowned, shrugged, shook her head. ”I still don't know what it is.”

”Well, neither do I, exactly,” Bill said. ”These rows of numbers are being sent to Earth by the old Pioneer 10 s.p.a.cecraft. Problem is, the scientists weren't expecting her to send anything and they can't figure out why she's sending this all of a sudden. They don't know what it is, either.”

Barbara smiled, puckering the little crow's-feet at the corners of her eyes and firing up her dimples. They were turning to creases now, but he still loved them. ”And you think an old writer can figure out what a bunch of NASA brainiacs can't?”