"This is huge."
"I agree. Should we call Rachel?"
Val checked her watch. "No, she's still in the air. Bundle the output screens and send them to her as an e-mail attachment. She and Tavak will know what to do with them."
* * *
Tavak and Rachel studied the computer readouts that had just come in from Val and Simon on the large LCD screen in the main cabin of Demanski's jet.
"It seems I'm going to have to become fluent in Diamicus," Tavak said. "With all possible speed."
"It's not like taking a Berlitz course." Rachel surveyed several more pages of Jonesy's progress on her laptop, which was connected to the wall screen via a cable port on her armrest. "But if it's any consolation, Jonesy is directing more computing power toward cracking it than there has ever been."
"Brute force computational power is one thing, but instinct and experience also counts for a lot. It might help to have an expert guiding Jonesy's progress."
"I thought you were the expert." Rachel smiled slyly. "In everything."
"I wish that was case. Hard as it may be to believe, I occasionally have to rely on outside expertise."
"Expertise like mine, for example?"
"Don't remind me."
"Didn't you say that James Wiley is an expert in Old Kingdom linguistical studies? Since we're on our way to him right now, is there some way we can use him?"
Tavak shook his head. "I wouldn't even want to try. He's in Dawson's pocket."
"Then whom do you propose?"
"I need to think about it." He smiled. "In the meantime, I'm glad Jonesy is making progress. That's quite a tool you've developed."
She made a face. "You make it sound like a screwdriver."
"No offense. I know that insulting Jonesy would be like calling a woman's child fat or ugly."
"Jonesy's not my child. Don't lump me in with the crazies who think that way. And you're right. It is a tool, but it's one with almost limitless uses. We're only scratching the surface with what's possible for it and other systems like it. Just last week we started an amazing new project."
"What is it?"
"You probably know that most laptops these days have an accelerometer chip inside."
Tavak nodded. "It detects movements to allow the hard drive to protect itself when the laptop is dropped or hit."
"Exactly. One of our software packages configures these chips as makeshift earthquake sensors. Laptops collect seismic data from these thousands of locations and, using models from earlier events, determine in seconds where the quake will spread from the epicenter. We might be able to send alarms minutes before a quake hits a major city. Can you imagine the lives we can save?"
"You're doing this now?"
"Yes. Seismic-monitoring stations in any given area once only numbered in the dozens. Now there are thousands. In a few years, with all those laptops running our software, it could be millions."
Tavak smiled. "When I was researching you, I was wondering if you'd be like this."
"A total geek?"
"An idealist."
"I've never been accused of being that."
"But you are. These projects aren't just a proof of concept for your computer system. You're trying to save the world."
She'd thought Tavak was teasing her, but now she realized that he was dead serious. There was genuine admiration in his face and voice. Good God, she could feel the heat flush her face. Great. Next she and Val would be comparing notes about Tavak at a sleepover.
"I'm not trying to save the entire world. Maybe a few million people. Plus my sister."
"Fair enough. Your system controls an amazing amount of computing power. You designed it to do all these amazing things for the good of mankind, but have you taken a moment to think of the harm it can do?"
"You've been watching too many Terminator movies."
"It's not the machines I'm afraid of. It's the humans controlling the machines. Instead of trying to break an ancient code, what if I had tasked your system to crack nuclear launch sequences? Or instead of synthesizing protein strings, someone used it to synthesize an incurable disease? For every wonderful thing of which Jonesy is capable, it's also capable of a horrific act we can't even imagine. I'm sure you've considered that there are people out there who will make it their business to imagine these things."
"Of course, I have. It goes with the territory," Rachel said. "This conversation has taken a grim turn."
"Sorry, but it's been something I've been thinking about even before I met you. It's a tremendous responsibility. I sure wouldn't want it."
"Point taken. Neither do I. But I made the commitment, and I have to ride with it."
"And you do it well."
Why did those words mean so much? So he might be one of the most brilliant and ingenious men she had ever met. She wasn't even sure she could trust him.
It didn't seem to matter. When she was with him, it was like being swept away to a place where anything was possible. It might only be that she was drawn to him physically. Oh, yes, there was definitely that factor to figure into that equation. That moment back at the barge had been too revealing to ignore. She had to ignore it. She had to think clearly and weigh everything that was happening. There could be no more disturbing moments like the one earlier this evening.
Tavak glanced toward the back of the plane. "How is your sister doing?"
She eagerly seized at the change of subject. "Tired. Even though she's been feeling better, she's not used to this kind of activity. Demanski is setting her up in one of the staterooms."
"Staterooms? I'll say this, the man knows how to live."
"We could have a worse partner."
"You mean this jet? Yes, it's nice."
"No, not only the money. He's a dynamo. He may be a rough diamond, but he cuts deep." She smiled. "You once told me that you were like him. You're right, I can see you hijacking that mastaba wall. I think that's why you're so angry with him."
"Maybe. But if he hadn't bribed that mastaba wall out of the museum, it probably never would have been taken. And now not only do we not have it, Dawson almost certainly does. I'm not at all pleased about that. Demanski gets a lot of credit for weakening the power of the Las Vegas crime syndicates, but I'd make a bet he's never dealt with a man like Dawson."
"A criminal is a criminal."
Tavak shook his head. "No, Dawson is a special breed. Ugly. Very ugly. I've learned what drives him, how he thinks. It all comes down to pride. As long as we keep that in mind, it will give us an edge. I know what buttons to push."
"Aren't you afraid of him pushing your buttons?"
"I'd be a fool if I wasn't."
* * *
Demanski switched on a light in the rear of the plane, and Allie's eyes widened at the sight of the elegant, well-appointed bedroom that wouldn't have been out of place in a luxury hotel suite.
She burst out laughing. "When I said I wanted to take a nap, I thought we might just push two chairs together."
"That can be arranged, but I think you'll be more comfortable here."
She collapsed on the king-size bed. Lord, it felt good. She had held up pretty well through that nightmare on the bridge. She didn't think that even Rachel had noticed the tremors that had attacked her afterward. Thank heaven everyone had been too frustrated and upset to pay any attention to her. "Uh, yeah. This bed might be a little more comfortable than those chairs."