Free The Blue-Haired Bombshell by John Zakour

If more people stand up, maybe the World Council will let the Moon go.’’
    ‘‘When was the last time the World Council ever listened to anything, Electra?’’ It was true. It’s like once they get elected they become deaf and dumb.
    Electra stood up. She pointed at me. ‘‘You should make sure Sexy votes for Moon freedom this time.’’
    I looked over at HARV; his head bobbed in agreement.
    ‘‘You want me to use my influence on Sexy to influence her vote?’’ I asked.
    Electra moved over to me and kissed me. ‘‘Just state the case. Let her decide. Tell her you like her lip gloss.’’ Electra looked at her watch. ‘‘I’d better get to the shuttle port,’’ she said. ‘‘This way I can play my own part in Earth/Moon relationships.’’
    I grabbed her arm gently. ‘‘You sure you want to go through with this? I’m getting a bad vibe.’’
    She turned her head toward me. ‘‘That’s sweet of you to worry. But I’ll be fine. I’m a big girl who can take care of herself.’’
    To drive home her point she used her free hand to grab the arm I was holding her with and used it to throw me over her shoulder. The moment I hit the ground I remembered why I loved Electra. Yes, I probably need therapy.
    Electra bent over and kissed me. ‘‘See you in three days, mi amor.’’
    ‘‘Be safe,’’ I said.
    HARV just snickered.

Chapter 7
    It didn’t take long for Electra to pack her things. She was as excited as I had seen in her in years about this conference. I was happy for her but something about her impending trip was eating at my gut. The scary thing was I didn’t know what or why.
    I was sitting in my living room watching the holosports highlights when Electra walked in the room carrying an old-fashioned suitcase. (Electra insisted that modern, anti-grav suitcases make us lazy and weak.)
    ‘‘You should offer to carry her suitcase to the hover,’’ HARV suggested.
    I shook my head no.
    ‘‘The last time a man offered to carry my suitcase, I broke his arm,’’ Electra said walking past us.
    I nodded to HARV. I may not be the smartest joe in the world but I know my woman.
    ‘‘You should have known that,’’ I told HARV as I stood up to walk Electra out.
    ‘‘Oh, I did,’’ HARV said. ‘‘I was just hoping you didn’t. I wanted to see how Electra would react.’’
    Ignoring HARV, I headed outside with Electra.
    ‘‘I’ll miss you,’’ I said.
    ‘‘I’ll drop you an e-mail when I get there.’’
    We reached the car. She kissed me. She pulled back a bit and looked at me. ‘‘What’s wrong, Zach?’’
    ‘‘Still getting a weird feeling about this . . .’’ I said.
    ‘‘Zach, the shuttle to the Moon is perfectly safe. I don’t think there’s ever been a crash. The food is even good.’’
    ‘‘It’s not the means of travel,’’ I said. ‘‘I’m just worried about you on the Moon.’’
    We reached Electra’s hover. The door opened.
    ‘‘Zach, I’ve been to the Moon on a couple of occasions to teach at their hospital. It’s a great place. I didn’t get exposure to a lot of people, but those I met were very nice.’’
    ‘‘Maybe, but the Earth and the Moon aren’t getting along all that well these days.’’
    Electra got in the hover. ‘‘So? The Earth would never attack the Moon and the Moon doesn’t even have weapons.’’
    ‘‘Maybe this conference is a trick to get valuable Earth citizens to the Moon to hold as hostages.’’
    Electra just looked at me. ‘‘You know you’re paranoid.’’
    ‘‘That’s why I’m still alive.’’
    Electra smiled at me. ‘‘But I’m not you. The universe isn’t out to get me.’’
    She leaned forward and kissed me. She waved good-bye to me, giving me the cue to step away from the hover.
    About twenty minutes after Electra left, I headed to my office. I drove slow. I was in no hurry to get there, just in case there happened to be any press stragglers hanging around. Who knows, maybe