"My guess is that we lost a cooling unit." "And if you lost two cooling units, would this place be in the jet stream?" "For the last time, General, I must object to these irrelevant insults." "They're not irrelevant." "Terry, I'd like to keep you from scratching each other's eyes out." "That's enough." "A light green gas had begun to fill the tertiary and secondary feeders." "I had noted a bare glimmer in the main tube when Jackson told me that we had a red no-go light on the secondary delta override." " Prior to that, you had a green board." " Of course we did." "I'm hoping to have that verified soon." "The telemetry records, of course." "Assuming there was no EMP to wipe the board." "The pulse almost certainly did wipe the board, so we're out of luck." " Actually, it's from Dr Redding." " Redding?" "I thought he was..." "Why would you assume that?" "You yourself are fine." "Not so much as a scratch." "Is he conscious?" "No." " That's too bad." " Isn't it?" "I'd like to remind you both that I was halfway across the room." "I didn't actually see that the boards were green." " You were told you had a green board?" " Yes." "If you had a green board, what went wrong?" "System failure, the same thing that always goes wrong when the government's footing the bill." "If the equipment screwed up, DSA investigators will find it." "Shoddy workmanship, bad wiring, bad solenoids, bad switches..." "This isn't the first time this has happened." "Save the sermon, Doc." "We are playing here with enormous forces for enormous stakes." "The government knows this." "It has knowingly sanctioned the risks." "After 12 years of theoretical work with particle acceleration," "I have two aborts and one explosion to show for my time." "Not to mention the loss of a life." "And why?" "Because the equipment is shoddy." "It doesn't work." "Do you read me?" "Are you following this reasoning?" "Sounds pretty crazy to me." "Apologise for that last crack." "Shut up and sit down, Richard!" "Miss Spann?" "Sorry, Dr Todhunter." "I was way out of line." "I..." "I really must ask you to excuse me, General." "I'm..." " I've had a very trying day." " All right." "We'll continue this..." "We ought to find out a bit more about what happened." "While it's still fresh in his mind." "It all happened very fast, though." "Redding.... no, Jackson." "Jackson yelled..." "Redding really didn't pull his weight." "When things got hairy, Jackson yelled we had a red no-go light on the primary delta override." "I thought you said it was the secondary delta override?" "Yes, of course." "I'm..." "I'm confused." "I'm tired and confused." "It was the secondary, and then the primary." "There was a... an explosion like a small firecracker." "I saw one... no..." "I saw two instrument panels blow out." "And that's when I yelled for them to shut down, but..." "But they froze." "Watching them was like watching a bird hypnotised by a snake." "Then the door to the turbine room blew open." "I yelled to dump the board before we lost the turbine." "That woke Jackson up." "Redding never moved." "Redding was completely useless." "He never moved." "That's when I went for the fire extinguisher." "It saved my life." "Because the door swung shut behind me." "It shielded me." "Don't you see?" "The next thing I knew was..." "Someone was shaking my arm." "Asking me what happened." "And that's it?" "What about the janitor?" "What janitor?" "My God, Louis." "We are going to have a token investigation, aren't we?" "You don't believe him?" " Do you?" " No." "The regeneration is just a cover." "For what?" "I don't know." "Don't you think we ought to find out?" "You've got a guy here with a major personality disorder." "You're letting him play with a process that could turn New York State into one big hole in the ground." " You think he's crazy?" " Certifiable." "He's a genius." "He's allowed to be a little eccentric." "Yeah, but not irresponsible." "We don't have to go out to dinner." "You can come over to my place." "What if I could prove to you Todhunter knew he had a red board and went ahead with the experiment anyway?" "We could get a pizza or maybe Chinese." "I could teach you to use those sticks." "Did you see his face when I told him Redding was alive?" "Not exactly overjoyed, was he?" "Better yet, I could cook something for you." "And after we eat, we could have sex." " Do you mind being serious for a minute?" " I am." "Doesn't it mean anything to you that Todhunter nearly broke his back trying to discredit the poor guy?" "Where are you heading with this?" "Louis, if I could prove that Todhunter went with a red board, would you recommend his removal from the Gold Series?" " Bring me proof and we'll see." " Come on, Louis." "Be straight with me." "The shock will be good for your system." "All right." "For what it's worth, yes." "I would seriously consider recommending his removal." "Clean-up crews:" "all refuse must be tagged and submitted for weigh-in procedures." "Thank you." "Maybe I should take him to a real hospital." "Mrs Williams, we've done everything and more that a real hospital would do." "Your husband's getting the best of care." "What happened to the man who was in the other tent?" " We moved him to..." " To a real hospital?" "To a burn ward in New York." "It's the one thing we can't deal with properly here." "That's not the only thing you can't handle." "I beg your pardon?" "Come here." "Well, what's the verdict, Doc?" "You tell me." "How are you feeling?" "Well, a little sore." "I've still got some of that green stuff on my skin." "Maybe you ought to get that nurse to give me another bath." " Mother here about scrubbed my hide off." " Shut up, you old fool." " I want you to look at his eyes." " I did." "They're normal." "I think you should take another look." "What's the matter, Gina?" " Close your eyes, Harlan, and be quiet." " What's wrong?" "Please." "Just do it." " Mrs Williams, I don't know what you..." " Look!" "Look at his eyes." "There seem to be minor phosphorescent properties in the dust he was exposed to." "There's nothing to worry about." "I assure you." "He's fine." "It's a short-lived phenomenon." "And you can take him home tonight." " Miss Spann." " Lieutenant, any word on Dr Todhunter?" "The good doctor has a checkered past." "From mishandling dangerous materials to faking scientific data." "There was an enquiry, but the charges were dropped when the government decided to take the funds from the university." " Thank you, Lieutenant." " There's one more thing." "Dr Redding died last night." "Dr Craig Redding." "Subject suffered severe burns and a concussion from the lab explosion at Falco Plains New York." "Cause of death:" "possible pulmonary oedema." "Initial examination:" "a brief post-mortem exam revealed certain anatomical peculiarities." "After consulting Redding's medical records," "I'm at a loss to explain these observations." "I think I'll take a picture and send it to the Surgeon General." "Don't you know how to knock?" "Why wasn't I notified when Redding died?" " I didn't think it was important." " That's not for you to decide, is it?" " Apparently not." " What did he die of?" " You asking in your official capacity?" " Does it matter?" "Burns and shock and heart failure." "What are the anatomical peculiarities you're at a loss to explain?" "Not only do you not knock, you eavesdrop." "I like to think of it as having a good sense of timing." "You were saying..." "During the course of my initial examination," "I noted several scars." "The oldest was on the left forearm." "Judging from the striae, small horizontal breaks in the scar tissue," "I'd say it was from a cut suffered when he was six or eight years old." "The second scar was from an appendectomy when Redding was about 14." "Are you working your way up chronologically?" "Yes." "The third, and much more recent, was a large burn scar on his lower right calf." "So what is it you couldn't explain?" "Shortly before he died, I noticed that the scar on his leg was gone." "What do you mean, "gone"?" "Disappeared." "His medical records back me up." "You're positive about this?" " See for yourself." " I will." "Oh my God." "What are we doing here?" "May I have a word with you?" "Is it important, Lieutenant?" "I've got a chopper full of DSA people arriving." "It might be very important." " Who else heard what Redding said?" " I don't know that anyone else did." "I had to lean down very close to catch it." "He was weak and we were in our hazard suits." "Are you willing to repeat all this?" "Yes, Ma'am." "Testify to it, if necessary?" " Lt. McGiver, will you testify to that?" " Yes." "But do not say anything until I give the word." "All right, thank you." "Carry on." "The hearing will begin at 2.30." "I've prepared reading material to bring you up to date." "Have a nice lunch." "I'll see you this afternoon." "What the hell are you doing here?" "Just came along for the ride." "I see you're still dressing for success." " Why's the Shop getting involved?" " Who says they are?" "Any of those guys really DSA?" "I really thought you would've done better than this." "I asked for the assignment." "It's quiet." "There's no outside interference." "That's the way I like it." "Well, I'm glad you got what you wanted." "We were worried you had made the wrong decision." "Seeing you again makes me know how right I was." "Say the secret word and win 100 dollars, beautiful." "How about "cover-up"?" "Someday, you'll make one crack too many." "Jokers like you are on the bottom of Lake Saranac wearing cement loafers." "The word is "Chicago"." " Want to go non-reg for a minute?" " I'll pass." "What's the matter?" "If those guys are DSA investigators, I'm Boxcar Willie." "They're from the Shop." "How do you know that?" "I used to work closely with one of them." "Jude Andrews." " How close?" " We were a team." " Where you intimate?" " Yeah." "Very intimate." "We used to kill people together." "So what's he here for?" "You don't know?" "I guess he's either here to stop the project or make sure it continues." "I want to give them Dr Todhunter." "In all his full-blown lunacy." "They'll have to shut it down." "If they believe Todhunter's crazy, that's a decision you'll have to make." " What if he cons them?" " What if they want to be conned?" "If they put him back in business, I'll go public." "Looking for a quick trip to that holiday club the Shop keeps on Maui?" "Where you buy everything with beads, including sex and drugs?" "The place is surrounded by an electrified barbwire and the vacation never ends." "What I expect from you is team play." "You hear that?" "Jackson yelled." "We had a red light on the board." "It was very hard to hear." "I hadn't the slightest idea anything was wrong." "Jackson yelled." "We had a red light on the board." "It was very hard to hear." "Very hard to hear." "It was very heard to hear." "I hadn't the slightest idea anything was wrong." "Until Jackson yelled." "Red light on the board." "I know my proper place was... at the board with those two men, but I was... excited and determined to observe the results of the experiment." "I was excited and determined." "I was excited and determined." "I hadn't the slightest idea that anything was wrong until..." "Jackson yelled we had a red light on the board." "Did you call for an immediate shutdown?" "No." "It was very hard to hear." "At first, I thought Jackson was cheering, but I wanted to be sure." "So I yelled: "Say it again."" "The second time I heard him." "I called for them to dump the board." "Which they didn't want?" " Well..." " Let's cut to the chase." "Jackson and Redding froze, right?" "Well, my guess is that if they had moved at once to dump the board, there would have been no explosion." "But I am not without blame here." "My place was at the board with those two men." "After I verified the fact that we had a green board, I walked to production." "I admit that was a dereliction of duty, but you must understand that I was excited and determined to observe the results of the test." "This was to have been the first real test of a process to which I have given half of my adult life." "I was excited." "I was excited." "I was excited and determined." "And my irresponsible behaviour may have cost two fine men their lives." "That was an Academy Award-level performance." "Shut up, Terry." "Tell us about the fire extinguisher." "I beg your pardon?" "I want to hear how you intended to damp a runaway hydrogen turbine with a class B chemical fire extinguisher." "Tell us, Doctor." "We are all ears." "Did you hear the question, Richard?" "He heard." "Didn't you, Doctor?" "It's very hard to answer that question... without sounding cowardly." "Why don't we take a break, adjourn for the day, reconvene tomorrow?" "No." "No adjournment." "I want to get this settled." "I think tomorrow would be soon enough, Dr Todhunter." "This meeting is adjourned." "Honey, let me do it." "Here, hold still." "Hold still." "Why are you so anxious to take the eye test again?" "So that scientist can finish the job of blowing you up?" "You don't have to worry about that." "They're having a big hearing." "I think they'll take away the Nutty Professor's toys." "All the same, Harlan." "Why?" "You're 71 years old." "Not until November 28th." "Split hairs all you want." "You're not just getting old anymore." "You are old." "Don't you think it's time you hung up your broom?" "Well, to tell the truth..." "I hadn't given it much thought until that fat major told me I was done." "Then I got my Irish up." "I know." "All right." "Take your test." "Just don't be too disappointed if you fail it again." "And listen, old coot." " Will you promise me something?" " What, Mother?" "Have him dilate your eyes and ask him if he sees anything green in there." " Harlan, listen to me." " It's over, Gina." "It was a short-term reaction to the dust, that's all." "Dr Ackerman gave me a clean bill of health." "Of course he did." "He works for them." "I wish you'd go to another doctor, and not just your damned optometrist." "That might do more than get me retired." "It might get me jailed." "I signed a form agreeing to abide by the terms of the National Security Act." " To hell with their forms!" " Will you hush?" "Whatever it was, it's gone." "It's over." "No more glow!" "Normal nails, normal eyes, normal everything." "Ackerman said it would be gone in 36 hours and it was gone in 24." "He never did tell you what was wrong, did he?" "No." "I don't think he knew." "I tell you, Harlan Ethan Williams, sometimes I could just kick your slats." "Sometimes you have." "We had these pictures taken at Coney Island." "The year before we were married." "Do you remember?" "Of course I remember." "God, we were young." "1942, wasn't it?" "Let's see..." "I was 21." "I was 18." "You remember my father?" ""I don't know what you see in that boy!"" "God, you were handsome." "And you, dear, were the most gorgeous creature on the face of the earth." "You'd better be all right." "You are, aren't you?" "Yes." "And you're still the most gorgeous creature on the face of the earth." "Harlan?" "When did we start getting old?" "I mean, why didn't I notice it?" "You were having too much fun to notice." "Was that it?" "The janitor is the easiest thing to explain." "He didn't know I was coming." "I didn't know he was there." "My knocking him down was a complete accident." "He had the fire extinguisher." "I bent down to pick it up." "And then the explosion happened." "According to Mr Williams' signed statement, you hit him with the door, knocked him over and hightailed it out of there." "I ran for help." "At least I was trying to do something." "If I had anything to hide, I would have my lawyer here." "I don't." "I'm more than willing to put my complete faith in this panel's judgement." "The sucker's good when his back's to the wall." "Wait till I bring in McGiver." " Anything further to say, Dr Todhunter?" " No, Sir." "Except I apologise for making a speech." "I'm here to answer questions." "That's all." "Does anyone have anything further to say?" "I think there's one more person we need to talk to." "Yes, Miss Spann." "Who is that?" "Dr Redding." "But unfortunately, he's dead." "I can't believe you told him about McGiver." "Andrews saw him waiting outside." "What would you have me do?" "It's all right." "Now Andrews has to decide what to do with the information." "I want McGiver to testify." " To deliver hearsay evidence?" " Damn it, Louis." "That was an informal hearing." "Not a court of law." "I saw you getting ready to make a mess and I prevented it." "God knows why." "Anyway." "None of the other soldiers in McGiver's party heard what Redding said." "Not even one of them could have corroborated." "Yeah, but we could have rattled him." "Louis, did you see him today?" "He was like an answering machine." "He knew what every question would be." "He was ready with the right answers." " Terry..." " That was not the real Todhunter." "We saw the real Todhunter." "If it comes right down to it and he says: "It's my word against his."" "Then what do we do, Terry?" "What?" " What about the janitor?" " I kept him out of the way on purpose." "What for?" "Williams is at the eye doctor now." "He flunked his vision test." "He's retaking it today." "You get it?" "Your only other big witness is an old guy with bad peepers." "You want him telling those guys where Todhunter was going?" " Those Shop goons would crucify him." " Damn." " Why wasn't I told?" " You just were, sweetie." "By the way, I arranged for Williams to pass his eye exam." " Why?" " Because I don't want his butt caned." "I want him around here." "Where I can watch him." "Control him." "Mr Williams..." ""The shaggy dog bounded joyfully through the green fields."" "Who makes these up, Dr Eakins?" "It sure wasn't Tolstoy, was it?" "Next." " Can you read it, Mr Williams?" " Just hold your water a second." "If we're going to do a dilation, we really have to finish this up." ""John packed his bags and set off for the train station on foot."" " That's it?" " That's it." "Well, how did I do?" "Let's get this dilation process out of the way first, shall we, Mr Williams?" "All right." "Now this is not going to hurt, okay?" "Look to the right." "Try not to blink." " Sorry." " No biggie." "Now the other eye." "Look toward me." "All right." "All right." "You'll have to help me, Mr Williams." "I can't see anything if your eyes are closed." "Oh, sorry." " Tell me something, Dr Eakins." " Yes?" "Anything green in there?" " I beg your pardon?" " Oh, I..." "I come from over by the Vermont border, Doc." "It's just a country way of asking if you see anything odd." "There are a lot less floaters." "Guess I didn't dilate your eyes last time." "That might make a difference." "But I'd say there are definitely less floaters." "Never seen that before." " What are floaters?" " Specks." "Little moving specks." "You usually see them best in the total dark or bright light." "Know what I mean?" "You mean those spots in my eyes?" "Some people have more than others." "You had quite a few when you came in last time." "Floaters in a person's eyes have a tendency to increase with age." "But..." "I've never seen the number go down." "Did you..." "Did you see anything else?" "Just your eyes, Mr Williams." "Did you bring any sunglasses?" "I'll find you an old pair you can borrow." "Wait a minute." "Did I pass?" "Harlan?" "I passed." "Like my glasses?" "Damn." " Lieutenant McGiver?" " Yes?" "I'm investigating the explosion at Falco Plains." "I understand you heard something important." "Something Dr Redding said." "Look, I'm sorry." "What I have to say I can only say before the full panel." "Look." "Off the record." "I think they're going to try to whitewash this thing." "That Todhunter's a crazy bastard." "If you know something that might help me nail him," "I'll sleep better tonight." "Please." "Promise me you'll testify against him." "Your government appreciates your honesty, Lt. McGiver." "...go marching in" "Oh when the saints go marching in" "I want to be in that number" "Oh when the saints go marching in" "Oh when that sun Oh when that sun" "Begins to shine Begins to shine" "Oh when that sun begins to shine" "I want to be in that number" "I want to be in that number" "Oh when the saints go marching in" "Oh when that sun Oh when that sun" "Begins to shine Begins to shine" "Oh when that sun begins to shine" "I want to be in that number" "Morning." "Are you hungry?" "I'm making pancakes." "You never were much of a morning person." "Sit down, Mother." "Coffee will be ready in a minute." "Your arm is all better?" "Just a little sore." "My eyes were itching when I got up this morning, though." "I couldn't see through my new glasses, so I found this old pair." "I can see fine now." "It must have been the eye drops." " You're not thinking of going to work?" " Why not?" "I feel great." "Can't wait to tell that jerk Moreland I passed." "Oh when that moon Oh when that moon" "Turns into gold Turns into gold" " Oh when that moon turns into gold" " Harlan..." "What, Mother?" "Would you mind not singing until I've had my coffee?" "No problem, my sweet." "All right." "Let's keep it in-house for the moment." "State troopers just found McGiver drowned in a river." "He went off a ferry landing." "He hit his head on the steering wheel." "Somebody really wants to keep this thing going, don't they?" "Sounds like it." "Let me ask you something." "How scared of Todhunter are you?" "I'd just as soon not talk here." "We apparently have a leak in the building." "If you don't feel safe in your own office, General Crewes, where will you feel safe?" "Feel safe now, General Crewes?" "Fairly safe." "Oh, my God." "There goes a carp with a microphone in its mouth." "When did you get a sense of humour?" "Go on, Terry." "Say it." "Say it." "Spit it out." "She thinks I killed Lt. McGiver last night." "I know you had something to do with it." "I know you did." "Can we continue?" "Why exactly are you so scared of Todhunter starting up again?" "He went with a red light on his board." " Hearsay." " Well, that doesn't matter now, does it?" "This doctor has got something important locked up inside his head." "He'd start up again, even if he was Norman Bates." "Not if I can help it." "The investigation continues for another month." "They'll rebuild that turbine that blew." "If Todhunter gets a clean bill of health, we expect our buddy could be operational in ten weeks." "Suppose I persuade the Shop to keep you on for another test run, Mr Andrews?" "As what?" "Assistant librarian?" "We could say you're looking at the side effects of the explosion on the janitor." "What side effects?" "That wasn't in the report." "His eyes and fingernails glowed for a day or two." "Fluorescent green." "I noticed something similar when I examined Redding's corpse." " What was it?" " Nothing." "It faded in both cases." "That doesn't matter." "What's important is your Shop." "If Todhunter goes off the rails again, you can take care of him." "You mind telling me what's so funny?" "People always looked at me and saw a loaded gun." "This is the first time anyone ever saw me as a safety catch." " Well?" " Suppose I do stay on." "Suppose Todhunter is flaky and tries to go with a red board again." " What am I supposed to do then?" " Kill him." "If you're convinced he's that dangerous, you kill him." "You could justify it." "Hey, Harl." "It's for you." "It's a welcome back present." "That's... very... nice, Billy." "Thank you." "One of the eyes goes up like that." "It's kind of hard to get them just right." "I see." "Oh, that's very nice." "Very." "Thanks, Billy." "I missed you, old man." "I'll see you upstairs." "New software will now be issued to all secretaries on the first Monday of each month." "Thank you." "Mr Williams!" " Welcome back." " Thank you." "You think you're smarter than me, old man?" "You're not." "That piece of paper doesn't change a thing." "I guess you're right." "I'm still working here." "And you are still a jerk." "Good day, Major." "Here's number six." "Is he there?" "This is Jude." "We have a secure line." "They want me to use the janitor as cover to keep an eye on Todhunter." "But I want to use Todhunter to keep an eye on the janitor." "Something happened to him." "It happened to Redding, too." "I don't think Terry told me the whole story on that." "I know." "Redding's dead, but the janitor's not." "No, it's just a feeling right now." "Like something inside me just woke up." "Yes." "I will." "Okay, Dad." "Fess up." "How long have you been using it?" "Which?" "The heroin or the cocaine?" "This stuff that's supposed to work so gradually that your boss thinks you've lost ten pounds instead of dyeing your hair?" "What are you talking about?" "Your boss may think you've lost ten pounds, but I'm married to you." "I know you haven't had any brown in your hair for at least five years." " What have you been using?" " I haven't been." "What?" "I haven't been dyeing my hair." "The thought never even crossed my mind." "Harlan, don't be silly." "Once your hair turns white, there's no going back." "Gina..." "I haven't." "Well, then what's happening?" "I don't know." "Next, on Stephen King's Golden Years..." " Gina, honey." " You're getting younger." " Gina, that's..." " That's crazy?" "Yes." "But it's happening." "That means that the... effects are much more powerful than we thought." "If I find out that you've withheld anything from me," "I'll perform some dental surgery with a power drill." "He's not National Security, he's Murder Incorporated." "I could disappear without a trace." "And so could you." "I want to go get the janitor and his wife." "I want them clear." "Why did you call, Terry?" "You'll try it whether I say you can or not." "Holy God..." "Where is this going to end, Harl?" "Where?"