Creations by William Mitchell Page A

“Why did he even turn up if he thinks the project is worthless and all he’s going to do is make a pain of himself?”
    “I’ll be honest, Ross,” Victor said. “Oliver Rudd is a highly respected man when it comes to designing robotic systems. His knowledge and experience will be invaluable later on. He does have a reputation for, ah, not suffering fools gladly, but once we’ve won him round you’ll be glad he’s here. I promise you.”
    And that, Max decided, he’d have to see to believe.
    * * *
    For the last ten days the view from the ESOS facility hadn’t changed: the same bright blue sky, the same turquoise sea, the same sweep of land where the flat part of the island curved round to form the harbour. But now, for the first time, Max could see something different. A cloud had appeared in the distance, a small smudge of white on the horizon, but a cloud all the same. He was amazed how something so simple was managing to holdhis attention.
    “So how much have you told Gillian about what you’re doing here?” Ross said. He and Max were sitting on a low wall with one of the island’s beaches ahead of them and the pool hanger loading bay behind them. They’d come out for a break while the machine shop fitted the final few components to the half-scale demonstrator model: Safi’s new design being realised at last.
    “Very little, unless I decide to bend the company rules. The contract said ‘complete non-disclosure’, but there may be some leeway for families. How about you, what does Tess know?”
    “About the same, Victor’s rules are pretty tight.”
    “How does she feel about that? You not being able to tell her anything about the job?”
    “She kind of understands. Lots of people are in jobs where they can’t talk about the details. With this job even the overview would be a giveaway. She knows that limits what I can say. Unless she starts working here herself of course.”
    “She told Gillian she was trying to get a job here.”
    Ross nodded. “Yeah, something in information management ideally. Victor’s going to see what he can do for her. I think the sudden lack of connections is starting to freak her out. She liked the idea of the seclusion out here, but the reality is boring her senseless.”
    Gillian on the other hand seemed to be relishing her time there: a whole new nature trail to paint, plus their ongoing appointments with the medical centre. It took a bizarre set of circumstances to make a trip to the company doctor feel like a dream come true.
    The sound of a jet flying over made Max and Ross look up. It was one of the ESOS company planes, heading along the coast at low altitude, ready for its turn to final approach.
    “That’ll be Marie,” Ross said. “Victor said she might be getting in today. In which case I guess the party’s on.”
    * * *
    The invitation was for seven, with dinner itself — courtesy of Victor’s wife — not long after. Ross and Tess had decided to ride over with Max and Gillian, mainly because none of the roads had auto-guidance markers for the cars and Gillian had volunteered not to drink for the night. She took them down the unlit zigzag road that led to the bottom of the hillside they all lived on, then drove through the residential zone used by the other company workers. The small white painted villas weren’t much different to their own places.
    “So how is everything with Oliver now?” Gillian asked Ross over her shoulder. Oliver seemed to be the main topic of conversation whenever Ross felt free to vent: whatever working relationship the two might have had seemed to have died on day one, and what had started as simple animosity now appeared to be verging on hatred.
    “With Oliver? Pretty awful, same as usual. The guy’s offensive, that’s all there is to him. You should hear the way he talks to his backroom team. God knows why Vic brought him out here.”
    “His reputation must be better than the rest of him,” Max said.
    “Maybe. So