The Twins Paradox by Alan Gasparutti (best contemporary novels txt) 📖

a possible mutiny, led by Major Kong.”
“Is ‘Kong still locked away, now?” asked Henry. “Has he reconsidered his actions, and prepared to forget his warrior’s conscience?”
“For the time being,” said the Commander. “We’ve released him from confinement, on condition that he renounces his views on war and conquest in the cosmos. He’s not a bad leader, in truth, just a warrior at heart.”
“I think you may be getting soft in your older age,” commented Henry.
“You may be right,” the Commander acknowledged. “I don’t now if I really want to command the Interstellar Pilgrim anymore. I’ve seen Earth, I’ve seen how you and your team have settled down here, and I’d like to do the same.”
“Well, if you feel that way about things, you can always come and stay with me,” said Henry. “I’m sure we can sort something out for you.”
“The problem is who would I leave in charge of the ‘Pilgrim, though?” asked the Commander. “I can’t let Kong assume responsibility, or let Professor Schmidt lead the rest of the crew on a wild goose chase.”
“Well it’s up to you,” suggested Henry. “There are plenty of places on Earth in which you can settle. With a small team and a number of replicators, you could develop your own business. First of all though, you must assess where you’re gong to land and settle. Different countries have different risks attached.”
Henry and Commander Ondichi continued their discussions as they had a few bites to eat and the odd drink or two, until the sun went down. By that time everyone was preparing to return to the Interstellar Pilgrim. Before they left, though, Commander Ondichi then turned to Doctor Gammazeta.
“We’ve a lot to thank you for, since assuming Doctor Stardust’s role, and we may all miss you on the Interstellar Pilgrim, if you choose to remain on Earth,” he said to her, before shaking her hand. “We haven’t gone far, in astronomical terms, and now we have established contact, feel free to keep in touch.”
“I will, Commander, I will,” she told him, before the Commander turned to Henry. “I’m ready when you are. Shall we get going?”
When Doctor Gammazeta had fully dried her eyes, she followed the Commander outside the house. As he and his team got into Henry’s car, she waved them off.
When they arrived at the pot hole, they didn’t take long to set up the equipment, and one by one, the Commander and his team were lowered towards the Large Reconnaisance Craft. The Commander was last to descend, and shook hands with Henry and Ramondo before checking he had everything prepared for his own descent.
By 3am on Saturday morning, the Commander told Ramondo that his team were preparing for departure, after which Ramondo and Henry pulled the winch up before putting away the equipment. When they had reached safety behind a stone wall nearby, Henry contacted the Commander and gave him the all-clear. A minute later, a quick flash seemed to go by in the dark of the night, to signify that the LRC had now left. It was now time for Henry and Ramondo to return.

Henry and Ramondo now had the weekend to relax, before they went back to Skipton. They also had Doctor Gammazeta to help them, for the time being at least. Over the next few days, it was decided to register her as a migrant from Lithuania, and she was trained to talk with an appropriate accent. She was also given the name Maria, and it was intended to sign her for a vetinary course in the new year, after she had recovered from giving birth to Ramondo’s child.
On Monday, Henry received a call from Andrew on Stornoway.
“I see everything’s ready now,” he told Henry. “I must say, you cut it a bit fine, though.”
“I thought the contractors weren’t due to start the work until a few weeks time?” Henry queried.
“Yes, but the contractors needed to visit the site, look at the infrastructure on hand and assess what plant and machinery they may need to carry out the work,” Andrew told him.
“Oh, I hadn’t thought about that,” said Henry. “I have been rather busy these past few weeks.”
“Have you been up to much?” asked Andrew with interest.
“Well, you know that car plant in California that I was telling you about,” Henry told him. “I was invited to the opening ceremony a couple of weeks ago.”
“How did it go?” asked Andrew.
“Oh, like most things in America, with pomp and ceremony,” said Henry. “The Governor of California was there to open the ceremony. They also had a meeting with managers and inspectors in the afternoon.”
“I wouldn’t mind being in California right now,” said Andrew.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice place to be, but I’m quite happy here in wildest Yorkshire,” Henry said to him. “If only the weather could be as reliable!”
“I think you should count yourself lucky!” exclaimed Andrew, with half a giggle. “We get the worst of the weather here in the Hebrides. We’re further west than you are, so any storms reach us first, plus we’re further north, so it’s always colder. Gales, storms, snow – you name it, we’ve had it.”
“It’s never been too bad when I’ve been to Stornoway, but I’ll take your word for it,” said Henry.
“Okay then,” said Andrew. “Anyway, can I make an appointment for a couple of weeks time, Wednesday July 8th, perhaps? We can sort out any last-minute problems before the work on the turbine will commence the following Monday. If you’re feeling confident with everything, you could come along on Friday 10th, and stay for the weekend.”
“Either date is fine by me at the moment,” said Henry. “I’ll have a word with my assistant, and come back to you later today.”
Henry was basically bluffing, but informed Ramondo that he would be going to Stornoway on the earlier date suggested, and asked him to visit Leeds, to view a possible car showroom. Though the markets appeared to be over the worst, and sales of the digital cars were picking, this was rather slowly. After the success of the showroom at Rayners Lane, it seemed this may be the perfect time in which to open a similar showroom in a major city.

While Ramondo was visiting Leeds, and indeed Bradford too, Henry remained in his Skipton office, preparing for the turbine, for which construction was due to commence in the next few weeks. He was now eager, counting each day as it went by, until he flew to Stornoway.
He took his final plans with him on the flight, and on arrival at Stornoway, was met by Andrew. The two of them went to have lunch and a drink or two, before discussing the final plans. Andrew then took Henry to meet the chief contractor, and to discuss matters. A hard-hat was issued to Henry, and he and Andrew were each issued with a badge, to give them the authority to proceed onto the construction site.
The following Monday morning, they visited the construction site, which was now being set up. A large path was being created by the trudge of lorries proceeding from the main road to the cliffs. A crane was already in place and helping to move a portacabin on the site. Amid further lorries coming and going, it was decided to leave the site for the time being.
It wasn’t too far from the site to Stornoway, though the roads weren’t good which made progress slower. When Henry and Andrew returned that afternoon, and noticed the site was still being prepared, they decided to call it a day.
Henry was keen to view the progress on the turbine, so they returned to the site on Tuesday afternoon. Henry was a little disappointed, though when they returned there the following afternoon, it seemed as though the construction was finally ready to commence.
Henry had booked a return flight to Glasgow airport for Thursday, so took the telephone number for the construction site, for the foreman and for the contractors’, home with him. Andrew would monitor the construction and send photographs to Henry which he would capture on his mobile.
When Henry returned to Ribblehead Cottage by tea time, Doctor Gammazeta had prepared some food for him. Soon afterwards, Ramondo returned home from Skipton, and after they had each eaten, briefly showed him pictures of several possible showroom sites in Leeds, Bradford and the surrounding area.
Henry was still tired, so they had a closer look at the possible sites for a new showroom the following day. Henry was rather keen on some out-of-town sites, particularly a couple near the M1 and M62 though Ramondo had also included some vacant sites nearer to the city centres of Leeds and Bradford. They discussed the possibilities over the weekend and on Monday went to visit the sites concerned, and made inquiries about the premises at the respective agents.
By Tuesday, they had whittled down the possibilities to three main sites, after which they checked with the local councils regarding rent and other charges involed, and by the end of the week they had selected a large store between Morley and Birstall, situated near to the junction between the M62 and M621.
“Shall I put out an advertisement for car salespersons?” Ramondo asked Henry as they drove through Bradford that afternoon. “I can place an advert on the internet – there are quite a few sites where jobs can be searched for.”
“Wait until we’ve received the final sale details, first,” suggested Henry. “I was considering sending you there, at least initially.”
“I can’t handle everything on my own,” replied Ramondo.
“Well we do have another person who can assist you,” said Henry. “Mind you, she may not be in the best condition for dealing with retail matters.”
“Now we’ve registered her as Maria Gammazeta from Lithuania, shouldn’t we send her to the nearest clinic to get checked-over regularly?” suggested Ramondo.
“I suppose we should,” muttered Henry. “Do you know where the nearest health clinic is, to Ribblehead?”
“I’m not sure, to be honest,” said Ramondo. “I haven’t noticed one at Horton-in Ribblesdale. Perhaps there’s a clinic at Ingleton or Hawes. I’ll have a look on the internet this evening.”
“You do that,” advised Henry. “We’ll have to start making plans for her soon. Which reminds me – do you intend to get married?
“Zebrina has taken it alright, so perhaps we should start thinking about it now,” said Ramondo. “We haven’t made any plans yet, but, I’ll speak to her tonight.”
“You do that,” Henry said again, before reconsidering an earlier suggestion. “On second thoughts, perhaps we’d better put out an advert for salespersons at the new showroom. When this is all up and running, I shall have to leave you to sort out your arrangements, and I can get on with checking on the Atlantic turbine project.”
When they arrived back at Ribblehead Cottage, Ramondo spoke to Maria Gammazeta about his concerns.
“Aren’t you going to deliver our child?” she asked him.
“I know babies are often delivered by their parents on the Interstellar Pilgrim, but wouldn’t it be better to go and relax in one of those maternity hospitals?” Ramondo said to her.
“You can’t really relax when you’re having a baby,” she told him. “Well, I can’t at least. Besides, I’ve already searched the internet for local maternity units. I tried telling you that the other night, but you were too engrossed in that new showroom you were looking out for.”
“Oh,” Ramondo replied. “I must have forgotten.”
“There are no