"Michael Flynn - Falling Stars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Flynn Michael)

presented them to her in plain brown wrappers тАж
Little Chase was still asleep, so Chase left the house after no more than a lingering look into his sonтАЩs
bedroom. Outside, the sun was rising into a cloudless sky. His red Ford Panther started with the roar of a
predator. Long and sleek, it had more power than some Third World dictators, but Chase kept his speed
moderate as he negotiated the curving streets of his subdivision. You didnтАЩt find power in brute strength or
speed, but in subtlety and control; and his тАЩchine was always perfectly under his command тАФ responsive,
quick, precise. Besides, Little Chase played on these streets and neighbors ought to show a sense of
community.
By the time he reached the flight ops center of Pegasus Spacelines, his good mood had evaporated
somewhat. He recognized way-too-many of the cars slotted in the pilotsтАЩ lot. Big schedule shuffle coming
up, he guessed. They were only flying three out of five lifts from the original schedule as it was; how many
more flights could they cut? He waved to Lakhmid Singh and Reeney Cue as he cruised for a parking
place. Definitely too many pilots on the ground. He was ninety percent sure that Reeney had been booked
for todayтАЩs Prague-to-Europa lift.
There were no open spaces in the pilotsтАЩ lot, so he had to park among the commoners. As he walked
toward the building, jiggling his keys in his hand, he noticed cars with New Mexico plates in the spaces
reserved for the big hats. Bosses over from Albuquerque. Not a good sign.
In the meeting room, he hung out in the back with Singh and Choo-choo Honnycott, drinking bad coffee
from a row of urns set up on a table there. Plates held the usual assortment of bagels and croissants, but
few of the pilots touched them. тАЬDesk jockey feed,тАЭ they called it. Chase noticed that the chairs were set
up auditorium-style. No tables, no notepads. Which meant whatever the big hats had to say, it would be
short and simple. Chase scowled and drained his coffee.
He tried to remember who was booked to be up this week. What with cutbacks and cancellations, the lift
schedule had been changed more often than a newbornтАЩs diaper, so it was hard to keep straight. Felicity
Coraz├│n, he thought. Maybe Gerhardt Brunnemacher. тАЬWho has the lunar run this month?тАЭ he asked the
others. He spotted FelicityтАЩs shaved head over near the windows, so either he had misremembered the
schedule, or her lift had been canceled, too.
тАЬI am thinking the schedule is to be revised again,тАЭ Singh suggested with a fatalistic gust of breath.
Chase shook his head, but said nothing. Alexandra Feathershaft, PegasusтАЩs chief pilot, had taken a seat
in the front of the room and was bumping heads with a dark-haired man whom Chase failed to recognize.
New CEO? he wondered. But you didnтАЩt need a general meeting to announce a new snout at the top
trough; and Sandy was lookingvery unhappy. Chase handed his empty coffee cup to Choo-choo and
walked up the center aisle of the room to where some of the office staff had already taken seats.
The three pilot coordinators were sitting together, as they usually did at these meetings. Heads close,
chatting; but no smiles тАФ whichwas unusual. If anyone knew who was up, it was this trio. Virginia saw him
coming and nudged her companions and they fell silent at his approach. тАЬWhy, hello, Chase,тАЭ sang Marie
with broad enthusiasm. She was a certified Italian grandmother, gray of hair and short of frame. She
seemed as frail as a bird, but was as tough and resilient as spring steel. Not only did she know who was
flying which birds, but also which hotel or orbital station they were flopping at and тАФ more important тАФ
who had birthdays and anniversaries coming up. Somehow she made sure that you were never on the far
side of the Moon when you were supposed to be celebrating with your significant other. The pilots all
called her тАЬMom.тАЭ
тАЬBig meeting,тАЭ Chase said, letting his head indicate the crowded auditorium.
MarieтАЩs smile wavered just a bit. тАЬThe biggest ever, I guess.тАЭ And was there just a touch of wistfulness in
her voice?
тАЬIs there anyone whoтАЩsnot here?тАЭ
The coordinator exchanged a glance with Wendy. If Marie was everyoneтАЩs mother, Wendy was everyoneтАЩs
big sister. She swept back her brown, shoulder-length hair. тАЬWeтАЩre not supposed to release that
information.тАЭ
Chase digested that. Theoretically, the pilot schedule was public information, and while some