A quantum physicist. A secretive government summons. And a mystery that will change everything he believes.
CHAPTER ONE
Rigel Emerson wasn’t looking forward to his upcoming trip. He and his wife were trying to have a baby, and this trip was scheduled during her next ovulating cycle. She wasn’t going to be too pleased, and he dreaded having to tell her of his need to attend. He also dreaded trips of this sort. He had no idea with whom he’d be meeting. All he knew was he had gotten his orders to be there.
He was an up-and-coming scientist in quantum mechanics specializing in propulsion systems. He had received his PhD from MIT and was one of the youngest to have graduated in that field. Science and math had always come easily to Rigel. He could look at equations others were unable to solve and figure them out with relative ease. He lacked a little on the social side. Rigel recognized this weakness and surmised it was one of the reasons he would prefer to avoid this trip.
His wife, Anna, had met him in college. She was initially attracted to his extraordinary good looks, but he shied away from her at first, as he did all women. Rigel had spent most of his life with his nose in books, so never really developed the social skills a normal person with his good looks would have acquired at this point in life. Instead, he was standoffish, mostly avoiding social situations. When Anna first approached Rigel in the hall of the Bosworth Building at MIT, she could tell that he was a little awkward around females, but her curiosity tempted her to pursue this attractive, yet awkward treasure. It wasn’t easy at first. He had no interest in women, but once she warmed up to him and convinced him she wasn’t a threat, he became more at ease. It also helped that he didn’t have a whole lot of other friends.
Anna was very attractive and highly intelligent. She was constantly pursued by men, but as a result of her intelligence, normal guys just didn’t measure up. She was looking for someone who could challenge her mentally while also driving her wild physically. In her mind, Rigel could easily fit that bill. Besides, she knew there was something very special about him; she just didn’t know what it was.
Anna was pursuing a master’s degree in engineering while Rigel was working on his doctorate in physics. Anna normally wouldn’t be in the Bosworth Building, but that semester she had one physics course she needed to complete for her Masters requirements. That made her a visitor to Bosworth three times a week. She didn’t believe in luck. She felt running into Rigel had more to do with fate. She believed in making her own opportunities and Rigel became her latest adventure. They began hanging out together shortly after that first encounter.
They both graduated from MIT with honors. While Anna’s master’s degree in engineering from MIT would easily open opportunities, Rigel’s PhD had prospective employers pounding on the door. He had offers from all over the world. With a little help from his father, who was an extremely well-known physicist in his own right, Rigel made the decision to join DARPA. DARPA is the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency for the U.S. government and Rigel was immediately sent to Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Although Anna received several offers upon graduation, she knew the job at Los Alamos was too good for Rigel to pass up. She could search for jobs there as well as anywhere. Besides, she figured they wouldn’t be there too long before DARPA would transfer Rigel someplace else.
It had been two years now since they had moved to Los Alamos. Anna had received a few offers, but none in the immediate area. They could easily live on Rigel’s salary, so finding a job wasn’t urgent. They decided that maybe it was time to start a family and once the kids were grown, Anna could pursue her career once the kids were in school.
They had been trying to have a baby, but nothing yet. They weren’t sure what the problem was, but both decided it was time to get some professional help. They had made an appointment at the fertility clinic just to find out what was going on, but now Rigel had to break the news that his recently announced trip was scheduled during the same week as their appointment. Appointments were hard to come by. They had scheduled this one several months in advance, so he hated to have to postpone it. The problem was he had no choice regarding this trip. He was told by his boss in no uncertain terms that he was required to attend.
Of all places, the meeting was being held in Washington, DC. He hated traveling to Washington. It was always hectic, and he was always expected to socialize with the people with whom he was meeting. He had gotten better at socializing since college, but he still found himself uncomfortable in most social situations. Worse off, he wouldn’t have Anna there to keep all his male comrades entertained. She knew exactly how to capture men’s attention and draw the attention away from Rigel’s unease and awkwardness. Luckily, it would only be a few days.
When he finally broke the news to Anna, she was disappointed, but she understood. He didn’t have a choice. She’d call the fertility doctor’s office in the morning and reschedule their appointment.
Over dinner that night, Anna asked him what the meeting was about. Rigel kind of furled his brow before he informed her he really didn’t know. They hadn’t told him. They just instructed him to be in Washington, DC for a meeting scheduled at 1:00 PM on Tuesday, September 27th. He didn’t even know where the meeting was to be held, only that he would receive further instructions once he got there. It sounded important, but you never really knew when the government was involved. It could be one of those meetings where you justified expenditures for upcoming budgets or were assigned a new project. Either way, Rigel figured he’d find out once he was at the meeting.
WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT REALLY SUMMONING RIGEL FOR?
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