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Across the table Jame sipped cautiously at his mug. "If you went to work, what sort of job would you like?" he asked.
"Well, I'd thought of coming back to the shop with Dader, but you seem to be pretty well settled in there."
Jame darted a glance at his father. "Heck, Jonny, there's enough work in town for three of us. Right, Dader?"
"Sure," Pearce replied with only the barest hesitation.
"Thanks," Jonny said, "but it sounds like you're really too low on equipment for me to be very useful. My thought is that maybe I could work somewhere on my ...
Pearce nodded. "That sounds really good, Jonny. I think that's the best way to do it."
"So back to the original question," Jame said. "What kind of job are you going to get?"
Jonny held his mug to his lips for a moment, savoring the rich, minty aroma. Army cahve had a fair taste and plenty of stimulant, but was completely devoid o...
"Can't hurt to try," Pearce shrugged. "Going to take a few days off first?"
"Nope-I'll head out there tomorrow morning. I figured I'd drive around town for a while this evening, though; get reacquainted with the area. Can I help with...
"Don't be silly," Irena smiled at him. "Relax and enjoy yourself."
"Tonight, that is," Jame amended. "Tomorrow you'll be put out in the salt mines with the rest of the new slaves."
Jonny leveled a finger at him. "Beware the darkness of the night," he said with mock seriousness. "There just may be a pillow out there with your name on it....
"I just shopped today," Irena told him.
"Go ahead, Son," Pearce said.
"I'll be back before it gets too late." Jonny downed the last of his cahve and stood up. "Great dinner, Momer; thanks a lot."
He left the room and headed toward the front door. To his mild surprise, Jame tagged along. "You coming with me?" Jonny asked.
"Just to the car," Jame said. He was silent until they were outside the house. "I wanted to clue you in on a couple of things before you left," he said as th...
"Okay; shoot."
"Number one: I think you ought to be careful about pointing your finger at people, like you did at me a few minutes ago. Especially when you're looking angry...
Jonny blinked. "Hey, I didn't mean anything by that. I was just kidding around."
"I know that, and it didn't bother me. Someone who doesn't know you as well might have dived under the table."
"I don't get it. Why?"
Jame shrugged, but met his brother's eyes. "They're a little afraid of you," he said bluntly. "Everybody followed the war news pretty closely out here. They ...
Jonny grimaced. It was beginning to sound like a repeat of that last, awkward conversation with Ilona Linder, and he didn't like the implications. "What we c...
"I know. But they won't know that, not at first. I'm not just guessing here, Jonny; I've talked to a lot of kids since the war ended, and they're pretty nerv...
"Oh, come on, Jame. That's ridiculous!"
"That's what I tell the ones that ask me about it, but they don't seem convinced. And it looks like some of their parents have picked up on the attitude, too...
Jonny snorted. "The whole thing is silly, but okay. I'll be a good little boy."
"Great," Jame hesitated. "Now for number two, I guess. Were you planning to stop by and see Alyse Carne tonight?"
"That thought had crossed my mind," Jonny frowned, trying to read his brother's expression. "Why? Has she moved?"
"No, she's still living out on Blakeley Street. But you might want to call before you go over there. To make sure she . . . isn't busy."
Jonny felt his eyes narrow slightly. "What are you getting at? She living with someone?"
"Oh, no, it hasn't gone that far," Jame said quickly. "But she's been seeing Doane Etherege a lot lately and-well, he's been calling her his girlfriend."
Jonny pursed his lips, staring past Jame at the familiar landscape beyond the Moreau property. He could hardly blame Alyse for finding someone new in his abs...
"Yeah, well, good luck. I'll warn you, though; he's not the drip he used to be."
"I'll keep that in mind." Jonny slid his hand idly along the smooth metal of the car. Familiarity all around him; and yet, somehow it was all different, too....
Jame seemed to sense the indecision. "You still going out?"
Jonny pursed his lips. "Yeah, I think I'll take a quick look around." Opening the door, he slid in and started the engine. "Don't wait up," he added as he dr...
After all, he told himself firmly, he had not fought Trofts for three years to come home and hide from his own people.
Nevertheless, the trip through Cedar Lake felt more like a reconnaissance mission than the victorious homecoming he had once envisioned. He covered most of t...
* * *
For many years the only ground link between Cedar Lake and the tiny farming community to the southwest, Boyar, was a bumpy, one-and-three-quarters-lane permt...
Now, however, all that had changed. A large vein of the cesium-bearing ore pollucite had been discovered north of Boyar; and as the mining companies moved in...
Jonny found the road foreman near a large outcrop of granite that lay across the road's projected path. "You Sampson Grange?" he asked.
"Yeah. You?"
"Jonny Moreau. Mr. Oberland told me to check with you about a job. I've had training in lasers, explosives, and sonic blasting equipment."
"Well actually, kid, I-waitaminit. Jonny Moreau the Cobra?"
"Ex-Cobra, yes."
Grange shifted his spitstick in his mouth, eyes narrowing slightly. "Yeah, I can use you, I guess. Straight level-eight pay."