The Twins Paradox - Alan Gasparutti (top ten books of all time txt) 📗

but I believe it will be sometime in the new year, probably about March," Frank informed him. "I've had some good news of my own, as a matter of fact."
"Oh, what might that be?" asked Henry.
"I've been apointed Managing Director of the new company," Frank told him. "I thought Gary would be the MD, but he's too busy with other businesses. Apparently, he's the Chief Executive of the holding company."
"Congratulations," Henry said to him. "I suppose you're going to crack open another bottle of champagne?"
"I can't say I'm really struck on champagne," Frank admitted. "Actually, I wasn't too sure whether to take the role, as I only moved to Colorado just over a year ago. I didn't really fancy moving another thousand miles again, but in the end, the offer was too good to turn down."
"Well, I can't fault you for that," said Henry. "As MD of the new company, when do you want my payment by, or should I send it to Gary?"
"Can you send the payment to me, please," Frank requested. "There's no hurry at the moment, but if you can get the money to me by next week, that would be fine. Arthur says he'll have his ready by then, and I've got Dermot's installment."
"Did you say I may be able to do something for you?" Henry then queried.
"Oh yes, yes," said Frank. "We've had a few inquiries about your vehicles over here apparently. Do you think you could send us some over?"
"Certainly," Henry replied. "How many would you require? Ten perhaps?"
"Ten should be okay for now," said Frank. "How much are you charging for them?"
"We're selling the models below their market value at the moment," Henry told Frank, unsure precisely what to say, as the cars had been replicated from write-offs. "We want to gain a march on our competitors, undercut most manufacturers, so that we can get a foothold in the market."
"How much precisely do they cost?" Frank asked again.
"The S1 and D1 are ten thousand pounds," Henry told him. "The sports models are on sale at twelve thousand pounds."
"That's interesting," said Frank. "Do you think you could send us over twenty new models - five of each? That could count as part of your payment, or would you prefer to bill the company for them, and you send me your payment next week?"
"I don't mind," said Henry. "I should have twenty ready for you by next week. You send me an agreement about my payment when you've received the motors."
"I'll probably do that, but I'll have to put you in touch with Gary, as they'll have to be delivered to Sacramento," said Frank. "Let me know when the motors are ready."
Just then Frank heard the doorbell ring. He expected Jeanette to answer the door, but then heard it ring again.
“I’m afraid someone’s at the door,” Frank said to Henry. “I’d better go and answer it, as it seems no-one else is going to.”
“I’ll leave you to it for now,” replied Henry. “I’ll catch up with you by the weekend. I’ll let you know how the car production is coming on. Cheerio for now.”
Frank said farewell to Henry, before going to the front door, which rang again. When he opened the door, there was Clint, together with his former NASA scientist, Steve di Pierri.
“Well hello there,” he said with surprise as he greeted them before walking over to Steve and hugged him. “Is it good to see you again. Come on in, come on in, I’m sure we’ve a lot to discuss.”
“It’s good to see you, too, Frank,” said Steve, who was hobbling on crutches. “This looks a nice place you have here.”
“Yeah, it’s not to bad,” replied Frank. “Not as large as the house Jeanette and I had near Houston, but a lot more peaceful.”
“Where is Jeanette, by the way?” Clint asked before he closed the front door.
“I’m not sure really. I thought she was upstairs, painting her nails or whatever women do, but I didn’t see the car outside just then, so I presume she’s gone into town,” said Frank, before turning to Steve again. “So, what brings you here?”
“I needed to get away from Houston,” Steve told him. “Clint offered to put me and Laura up for a few nights, so we thought we’d take up the invitation.”
“It was the least I could do,” admitted Clint. “They put me up for a few extra nights while I was in Texas, a few months ago.”
“That was mainly because the guy helped me recuperate, coming out of hospital,” Steve insisted.
“Where are your children?” Frank asked Steve. “They haven’t come along as well?”
“They’re staying with my brother-in-law back in Houston,” Steve replied. “Mike wanted to stay at home and look after our house by himself, but Laura and me don’t think we can trust him just yet.”
“How old is Mike now?” asked Frank. ”He must be about sixteen.”
“Seventeen, actually,” Steve informed him. “It was his birthday a few weeks ago. Our daughter Helena is now fourteen. We did consider letting them stay at home, but we can’t trust either of them. They chuck their clothes all over the floor, leave plates all over the place, and don’t tidy up after them.”
“That’s today’s kids all over,” commented Clint. “I offered to take Laura here, but she decided to go in town with Mary. Perhaps they’ll meet Jeanette.”
“They could do,” said Frank. “I’m sure they’ll have a lot to discuss.”
“And spend,” said Clint, to which Frank and Steve laughed. “Women!”
“Say, would either of you fancy a drink?” Frank asked Clint and Steve, as he walked over to the drinks cabinet. “Something stiff, maybe?”
“Why not?” said Steve. “I’m not driving, and I ain’t had a stiff one for quite a while – a stiff drink I mean! I’ve lived like a recluse for nearly six months, now.”
“How about you, Clint?” asked Frank. “Would you like a Scotch, or perhaps you’d fancy something a bit different?”
“Nahh,” said Clint. “I’ll have a Bud’, if you’ve got a bottle. I won’t be driving too far, but I think I’d better keep off the hard stuff.”
“Do you still keep in touch with your family, these days?” Steve asked Frank.
“Not as much as we used to,” Frank admitted. “We still phone them regularly, and we get emails from our lads, but quite frankly, if you’ll pardon the pun, they’re old enough to live their own lives now.”
“Clint’s been telling me there’s a fairly large observatory near here,” Steve queried.
“Yes, Pikes Peak,” Frank told him. “It’s only about half-a-dozen miles up the road. Pretty good views too, though I may not be going there quite so often in future.”
“Oh? Why’s that?” asked Clint.
“I’ve accepted the offer of Managing Director for that new motor manufacturing company me and Dermot and those other guys have set up,” Frank replied.
“Congratulations,” Steve said to him. “I knew you weren’t old enough to retire last year.”
“So does that mean you’ll be moving away?” Clint queried.
“Probably,” said Frank. “The car plant will be based in California, though it won’t be ready for a while yet.”
“California, eh?” said Steve. “I wouldn’t mind moving there myself, if I had half a chance.”
“Oh it’s not going to be located in Hollywood, or even on the coast,” Frank told him. “The car plant will be located to the west of Sacramento, about one hundred miles from San Francisco.”
“Will that be producing this digital motor Clint’s been telling me all about?” asked Steve. “Apparently it’s been designed by some guy from outer space!”
Frank seemed unsure as to who Steve was referring to, as Henry had wiped the memory of what Arthur had told him. Or had he?
“He means Arthur, that little guy with the white hair and balding forehead we met at the astronomer’s convention in San Bernardino earlier this year,” Clint explained.
Frank knew who he was referring to, but still seemed unsure, though he began to think to himself.
“Are you okay Frank?” Clint asked, as he walked over to him.
“You look like you’re having an epileptic fit,” added Steve.
“I’m okay, I’m okay, I’m just trying to get it all in perspective,” said Frank, to which Steve killed himself laughing because he thought Frank was being sarcastic, as he couldn’t believe the story that Clint had told him, about the man from outer space.
“It’s true, I tell you,” Clint insisted to Steve as he looked at Frank. “You haven’t forgotten about what Arthur told us already, have you?”
“No, I haven’t,” said Frank, as he went to pick up his glass of Scotch. “I mean I did…but I remember it now.”
“Are you sure you’re okay, Frank?” Steve then queried with him.
“I’m okay, I’m okay,” Frank said again. “I guess I must have forgotten about it all, what with the car project, and everything that came with it.”
“Are you telling me that you and Clint really met some guy who claimed to be from outer space at the astronomer’s convention?” queried a puzzled Steve.
“He wasn’t some sort of little green man who’d stand out in a crowd,” Frank told him. “He was just like one of us, like an ordinary human being.”
“So what did he look like?” asked Steve, curiously.
“Didn’t Clint just say what he looked like?” queried Frank.
“Yeah, yeah, but I want to hear it from you,” Steve told him, ever more curious that perhaps what Clint had told him wasn’t a hoax after all.
“He’s a short guy, about five foot seven,” said Frank. “He has white hair with a large, bald forehead, and speaks like a university English professor, and has what you’d consider a typical old English name, Arthur. If he hadn’t told us what he did, we’d never have guessed he wasn’t from Earth.”
“You talk about him as though you saw him yesterday,” Steve then queried.
“I have seen him since the convention,” Frank told him. “I last saw him a couple of months ago.”
“Where? Here?” asked Steve in disbelief.
“Yes, he came here with another guy, a black guy from the UK, Henry,” said Frank. “We went to Sacramento together to present the new motors.”
“You see, I told you it wasn’t some fairy story,” Clint said to Steve. ”Mind you, if anyone told that to me, I probably wouldn’t have believed them.”
“So, if this guy is from outer space, why didn’t we get to hear about it on TV?” Steve asked.
“Arthur only told us,” said Frank. “He also asked us to keep this a secret, as he only told us by mistake.”
“When he heard that the Governor of California was once Mr Universe, he thought that he was actually from outer space, too,” added Clint.
"I don't disbelieve you, but I find it all difficult to acknowledge," Steve admitted to Frank and Clint.
"Oh I admit, it is very difficult to believe," said Clint. "We found it difficult to believe, too."
Frank just nodded his head in agreement. He had recalled some of what Arthur' had said, but was still trying to remember other parts of it. He could recall the asteroid easy enough though, as this had never been 'cleared' from his memory.
"You're telling me that this guy Arthur lived on that asteroid that ended up orbiting Earth?" Steve queried. "That asteroid couldn't support life - it was too small to support anything and too elongated to have any gravity to hold anything on it's voyage."
"He didn't live on the asteroid," Clint emphasised. "Arthur lived in the asteroid."
"Are you saying that thing was a space craft in disguise?" Steve again queried in disbelief.
"You remember how strange the asteroid