Chapter 5 Part 2

Nathan returned to the club and shared a lunch with Harriet. "You seem preoccupied," she observed.

"Actually," Nathan objected, "if anything I should be releived. A problem that has been on my mind has been passed on to someone else."

"I hope it was because you finished your assignment," Harriet offered.

Nathan nodded. "It was. I solved a mystery and referred it to the proper authorities."

"Does this mean that you will be leaving?"

"Not immediately," he answered. "The problem still exists and I will stick around until it is taken care of."

"So you will have more free time?" she asked coyly.

"You have something in mind?"

"We could always go roving."

Nathan had never been roving. Driving around the Martian landscape in a pressurized dune buggy was a popular sport, though. The lower gravity of Mars made the rides very exciting. "I would like that," he decided.

"I have the next two days off," she informed him. "Let's rent a rover and go wheeling."

Nathan relented. "Fine," he said. "I don't expect that my help will be mandatory tomorrow, but just in case I can't promise you anything."

"Fair enough," she agreed. They ate a little more in silence. "I don't suppose you can tell me what this is all about?" Nathan glanced at her hard. The look told her the answer. "Point taken," she conceded. "I won't pry any further."

"Most people would," Nathan commented.

"Remember that I wasn't always a dancer."

"Right," Nathan acknowledged. "Then you will understand if I can't stay much longer either. As I said, I won't be needed much tomorrow, but today I want to be there when the decisions are made."

"I will still be here," Harriet remarked. They finished their meal, and Nathan departed pausing only long enough to give his friend a quick kiss of affection.