V - The Original Miniseries by Kenneth Johnson

this!"
    His green eyes, when they met hers again, were full of challenge. Kristine bit her lip. "I'd like to think I had your backing, honey. You know how I respect you." Her hand moved to brush his cheek, lingering for a moment against the freshly shaven smoothness. "More than respect ..."
Donovan looked down at his hands, slowly extricated them from her fingers. "You'd better put the steaks back in the freezer, Kris."
     
Her mind flashed back to the conversation with Diana. "Oh yeah. Tonight's a problem-the last thing Diana mentioned was that she'd send a shuttle for me so we could meet. How did you know?"
    He stared at her for a long moment, and slowly his meaning dawned. Kristine moved blindly to look for her pen, eyes blurring, holding her shoulders stiffly erect. After a second he closed his camera bag, then went back into the bedroom. She heard him packing.
"Damn," she whispered, and was horrified to hear her voice crack. "Damn, damn, damn ... damn!" She didn't turn around until the apartment door closed behind him.
6
    WILLIAM THE VISITOR LOOKED OUT ACROSS THE CRYOGENICS SECtion to see a familiar blonde head halfway across the compound. He smiled, the expression coming unconsciously now. His bootheels rang on the steel catwalk as he trotted down the stairs and over the pavement. Harmy had apparently seen him coming, and stood waiting, the familiar tray in her hands. William nodded shyly. "Hello."
"Well, hello yourself. How are you doing?"
     
"Fine, fine." He smiled. "I like to thank you again for your help. Without you, I would have stayed `just'-probably forover."
     
She giggled. "Forever, Willy. But listen to you! Only a week here, and your English is better than mine! You guys really learn fast."
     
William nodded. "We are told to practice all the times. How are you today?" "Okay-same old, same old. How are you getting along with that guy? He didn't look any too thrilled t'see you, the other day."
     
William shrugged-another gesture he'd picked up from the humans. "Caleb Taylor is good worker. He knows a lot about refinery equipment. But I don't think he lives us being here."
     
"Likes. He treating you okay?" William shrugged. Harmy's face fell. "That's too bad. I know what it's like t'work with people who are down on you. I had a boss once who-"
    An explosion rent the air, and the ground shook beneath their feet. A Klaxon screamed. William instinctively jumped between the human and the blast, but they were too far away to be hurt. One quick glance told William that it was his own work area!
    He began to run, shoving past panicked workers and Visitors alike. Shouts and screams challenged the alarm Klaxon's shriek. He'd been working with Caleb Taylor and Gus Jennings-and they weren't among the crowd!
"Caleb!" he shouted.
    White clouds of frozen vapor and supercooled gases poured out of the hatch as William reached the stairway to the catwalk. A shape darkened the opening-Gus Jennings! The burly worker staggered out, his mouth working as though he was screaming, but the whoosh of the gas drowned out even the alarm. Jennings was covered with white frost, clutching his arm above the wrist. Even as William started up the stairs, the human lurched, his hand smashing into one of the steel pipes.
Both William and Jennings stared unbelieving as the impact shattered the flesh like so much glass. Jennings was left clutching a bloody stump. William was close enough now to hear his screams. Even as he reached Jennings, shouting "Caleb?" the man collapsed. Bill Graham, another worker, caught him.
    "Caleb's still in there!" He eased Jennings onto the catwalk, shouting down to the men on the ground, "Get an ambulance, for God's sake!" Graham turned back to William. "The liquid nitrogen blew through the inner seal-there's no way anyone can get past it to reach him!"
William stepped over Jennings, heading for the hatch and the billowing frozen gases. Behind him he could hear Graham's shout. "William! Stop! For God's