United States or Kyrgyzstan ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
"Cobb will set up his equipment here at my house," Steve continued, "and try to intercept all signals from the mansion. McDevitt will set up here too, and track the balloon through my telescope if it rises watching until the rocket fires. McDevitt also will keep in touch with Wallops Island by radio, and notify me on the walkie-talkie when the countdown reaches thirty minutes."
"By the time you wake up, I'll have a lot more than guesses, and I'll give you the details then." Crowd at Martins Creek Rick and Scotty awoke to find four newcomers at Steve's house. Steve introduced them to Dave Cobb, electronics specialist; Joe Vitalli and Chuck Howard, JANIG agents; and Roy McDevitt from Wallops Island.
McDevitt had the telescope set up next to his car and was practicing with it by tracking a high-flying osprey. Cobb was finishing work on his electronic setup. His antenna was in place, the dish on top of the collapsible pole aligned on the compass direction to Calvert's Favor. Steve shook hands with Joe and Chuck. "On your way. See you when the balloon goes up." He motioned to the boys.
McDevitt, who had just driven over from the rocket range, was a tall, lean engineer dressed in slacks and a spectacular sport shirt emblazoned with tropical flowers. He shook hands cordially. "You're Hartson Brant's boys. We've certainly enjoyed having your family over at the island. When Barby and Jan leave, the whole base will go into mourning." Rick grinned. "Somebody loses, somebody wins.
I'd picked up a beastly fever somewhere, and I knew not a soul in your blessed city. So I wabbled into a hospital and let them tuck me away in a cot. Now grin, blast you! Yes, she was one of the day nurses, Katie McDevitt. No raving beauty, you know. Ah, but the starry bright eyes of her, the tender touch of her soft hand, and the quick wits under her white cap!
In summary, this is a very elegant little assembly of receiver, data recorder, transmitter, and command circuits." "Fine. McDevitt, what about the rocket?" The man from Wallops Island shrugged. "Nothing very complex about it. It's a simple solid-fuel rocket with star grain, fired by a squib that is commanded from the ground. A squib is simply an igniter to start the fuel burning.
"Then you're nutty in the head, Mr. Larry Bolan," says I; "for I've known her these two years, and never heard of her being an ex-nurse." "She might not care to boast of it," says he. "Rich, did you say?" "Near a million, they say," says I; "which don't fit in with the nurse idea, does it?" "I couldn't mistake Katie McDevitt," says he, waggin' his head mulish. "But who was this Steele beggar?"
Cobb was already opening a pair of leather-covered cases, exposing electronic gear. He had also brought a portable antenna, which he began setting up. McDevitt had a radio in his car with which to talk to Wallops, and Steve handed him one unit of a walkie-talkie radio network. Another unit went to Chuck, and Steve retained one. Steve glanced at his watch. "Let's get going.
Also I had him tell Sadie about Katie McDevitt; and when he'd made friends with little Sully and the dog we could have kept him for a year and a day. But that Sunday afternoon, while we was swingin' out of the front gates for a walk, we stops to let a limousine whizz by, and we gets a glimpse of a woman's face through the windows.
"Lord love you, McCabe!" says Larry, grippin' me by the arm, "but who was that?" "In the car?" says I. "No one but Mrs. Sam Steele." "Mrs., did you say?" says he. "The rich widow," says I, "that lives in the big house over on the Shore Drive." I pointed it out. "A widow!" says he. "Thanks be! Shorty, she's the one!" "Not your Miss McDevitt?" says I. "No other," says he. "I'd swear it!"
Word Of The Day