Iris Johansen - Dead Aim

"I guess that means we follow?" Morgan started the motor. "Must be. What a warm welcome. You'd think we'd come without an invitation."

Melis Nemid had already tied up her boat and was striding toward the house when Alex and Morgan reached the pier. She glanced over her shoulder. "Come on. I can't be all day. I have things to do."

"Sorry." Morgan helped Alex out of the boat. "We won't be hurt if you start without us."

She stared coldly at them. "This isn't funny. None of it."

"We know that better than you." Alex stared her in the eye. "And we're not going to be put off or intimidated by rudeness or bad temper. We came for a reason, and you want to supply us with that information or you wouldn't have let us come. Now, can we get on with it, Ms. Nemid?"

She blinked, and then a slight smile touched her lips. "Maybe I do trust you… a little. At least you don't bullshit. Call me Melis." She turned and threw open the front door. "Come in and have an iced tea."

"We'd rather have conversation," Morgan said as they followed her into the house. "And Philip Lontana."

"Then you'll be disappointed. I never told you he was here." She went toward the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. "So take the iced tea. It's a long, hot trip back to Tobago." "Thank you," Alex said. She wasn't about to turn down any peace offering, no matter how small. "If he's not here, where is he?"

"Somewhere in the Azores, I think." She poured the tea and set the glasses down on the bar in front of Morgan and Alex. "Or maybe the Canary Islands. At any rate, you can't get in touch with him. Forget it."

"We can't forget it," Morgan said. "He may know something we need to know."

"You can't see him," she repeated. "You talk to me. I told him to get lost and stay lost. Phil doesn't usually pay a lot of attention to me, but he will this time. He got scared at Fairfax."

"Why?"

"Why do you think? He was in over his head. He thought he was going to save the world, and he found out that he'd been lied to. It's a wonder he got out alive. Phil's always been transparent as glass."

"He found out about Arapahoe Junction?"

"No." Her tone was sharp. "Neither of us knew that the thermal-sonic apparatus had even been used there. Not until you left the message on the phone. Phil only came to suspect his device might be developed for weaponry instead of geothermal energy."

"The scientists said there were seismograph readings that indicated an earthquake at Arapahoe Dam. Could those have been caused by Lontana's apparatus?"

She nodded. "Theoretically." She shook her head. "No, that's a word Phil uses when he doesn't want to face the truth. Hell, yes, it could have caused an earthquake. One that would be severe enough to impact the dam. I can't tell you how many times Phil told me how careful he had to be about developing probe techniques that would strike a balance."

"Evidently he wasn't that careful at Fairfax."

"For a long time he was so absorbed in the research that he didn't pay much attention to what was going on around him. After working there for a while, he gradually began to distrust Betworth and Powers and the other people who were in and out of the facility. So one night about three months ago he took his notes, destroyed the prototypes he'd developed at Fairfax, and took off."

"I'm surprised they let him."

"He was smarter than they thought. Phil's a little eccentric, and that fools a lot of people. They considered him the typical absentminded professor. Brilliant, but no common sense. In a way they were right. Phil's always lost in his own world."

"But I'd bet you aren't. Why didn't you stop him from going to Betworth?"

"It's his life. I don't interfere with-" She shrugged. "He didn't tell me. He knew I wouldn't approve, so he took off without saying anything. It wasn't that unusual. Phil was always going off on exploration trips without me. Then he'd show up excited or depressed and stay with me until the next time, the next adventure. I didn't even know where he was until he called me and told me he'd meet me in Nassau and to ready the Last Home."

"Then why are you here?"

"I didn't leave him in the lurch," she said defensively. "I'd never do that to Phil. I got him on the ship and out of port, but I had sickness here. I had to come home."

"We need to see him."

"No, he's out of it. I told him to stay away until I let him know it was safe. He can remain out to sea for years if he has to." Her lips tightened. "And he may have to do that. Thanks to those bastards. If they don't kill him, they'll frame him, won't they?"

"Probably," Morgan said. "But I'd bet on the former."

She shook her head. "I won't let that happen. Why do you think you're here? I can't trust the government. Betworth has too much influence. I can't really trust you either, but you're in hot water and you're going to be moving fast and trying your best to take Betworth down. Right?"

"Yes."

"I won't let you near Phil, but you can have me. I had Phil tell me everything that happened at Fairfax in case something happened to him. What do you need to know?"

"What are Z-2 and Z-3?"

She stared at him blankly.

"Okay, let's try another tack. While the experiments were going on, did they concentrate on any particular vent areas?"

"The Rocky Mountains. The coal-mining country in West

Virginia. The offshore hydro vents near Baltimore."

"Offshore?"

She nodded. "Those really interested Phil. He's always more intrigued by anything underwater." "The Rocky Mountains," Alex repeated. "Arapahoe

Junction…"

"He didn't know that," Melis said quickly. "I tell you, it was just scientific experimentation as far as he was concerned. He wouldn't hurt-"

"Okay. Okay." Morgan held up his hand to stop her. "Where are these coal mines in West Virginia?"

"He didn't know. Somewhere south, he thought. They were having him work very hard on the mathematical equations for that area." Her lips twisted. "Phil thought it was wonderful that they'd concentrated on such a poor region for geothermal benefits."

"Yeah, Betworth is all heart. What about the Baltimore hydro vents?" Melis shook her head. "They abandoned them halfway through the initial survey."

"Why? Not practical?"

"Phil thought it the most promising of the three. But

Betworth said that it wouldn't work. That it wouldn't bring the effect he wanted. He told Powers that they'd have to contact a man named Morales. They needed more bang for the buck."

"And that meant?"

"Phil had no idea. But by that time he was getting pretty pissed off at the entire operation. Not enough to abandon his work, but he just gave up arguing and concentrated on West Virginia."

"And they called in Morales?"

She nodded. "Phil saw him a couple times at the plant be fore he was introduced to him. He said he didn't look or talk much like a scientist, but it wasn't his business. He didn't have to work with him. Morales was glued to Powers and Betworth most of the time."

"Morales was there often?"

"Yes, but he came and went. He must have been sort of a visiting consultant."

"You might call him that," Morgan murmured.

"Anyway, he was evidently put in charge of the Baltimore operation. Phil didn't like it. It didn't make any sense to him. He didn't want anyone else to handle his apparatus, and Betworth seemed to be handing his pet project over to Morales."

"So he cut out?"

"Not then. He was still too intrigued, and evidently Betworth lost faith in Morales, because a few months later he stopped coming around the plant."

"And that made Lantana number one again."

"You've got to understand. It wasn't just professional jealousy. He was getting uneasy. There was more talk about volcano and earthquake effects than tapping reserves for thermal power. Phil has a big ego, but he felt deeply about this project. He didn't want it compromised." She looked down into her glass. "But it was compromised. Jesus, was it compromised."