Free J.M. Dillard - War of Worlds: The Resurrection by J. M. Dillard

had. We have only minimal information about the aliens. Not enough."
    "But how did you get these samples?"
    He smiled. "Want ads. There are some government workers out there willing to take some pretty big risks for the right amount of cash."
    "But those samples are thirty-five years old. They've no doubt deteriorated so badly by now, there's probably very little information we could get from them."
    "Whatever we can get would be useful." He rolled his chair up to the desk and leaned forward. "It's a real scientific opportunity."
    "I'm not sure. It doesn't sound like much of a project. Once I've analyzed these samples, then what?"
    "I want to know how the bacteria killed them . . . whether or not they could possibly learn to adapt, to develop defenses against our microbes."
    She almost stood up. "Frankly, Dr. Blackwood, all this smacks of paranoia."
    He sat back in the chair. "Maybe. But consider what might happen." He paused, seemed to struggle with something, then continued. "I thought your attitude might be different, considering . .."
    "Considering what?"
    "Your uncle, Matthew Van Buren. One of the first to die in the alien attack .. . along with my parents."
    She did stand up now. "What a cruel thing to say."
    Harrison tilted his head, confused. "It was cruel. That's why I'm here. That's why Norton's here: he lost his entire family in an alien attack. That's why I thought you'd be interested in helping out. After all, we have something in common: Matthew Van Buren's niece—your second cousin, Sylvia—was my adoptive father's fiancee." A glint of humor shone in his eyes. "Just think . . . we're practically related." The humor faded quickly. "After the invasion, he saw to it that Sylvia was well cared for."
    Her cheeks burned, even though he hadn't added in a mental institution. Cousin Sylvia had gone mad after the invasion and been locked away, forgotten by the family, an embarrassment which was mentioned only rarely, and then in hushed tones. Suzanne had met her only once, when she was four and Sylvia had already suffered her first of many breakdowns; Suzanne remembered little of her cousin, except that Sylvia had been quiet and withdrawn.
    Harrison noticed her reaction. "Maybe I was wrong. The Midwest was safe, and you were born just a few years before the invasion. Maybe you don't care because you never experienced it yourself." His expression hardened. "You have an eleven-year-old daughter, Suzanne. Don't you want to learn something about these—these creatures, before it happens again?"
    "Quite honestly, Dr. Blackwood, I think that's a sick attitude to take," she said. "The aliens can never return. Even a schoolkid knows that. They're dead the instant they're exposed to our microbes."
    Harrison emphasized each word. "You don't know that. We've got to learn more about them. The more we know, the better off we are."
    "Maybe I should have stayed in Ohio." She didn't really intend to say it, but there it was.
    He rose. She could tell that under his civil veneer he was very angry. "I'm sorry. I thought because, well, never mind. If you really want to go back to Ohio, I'm sure PIT will cover your expenses."
    "That's what Norton's really looking for, isn't it?" she said as it occurred to her. "Not just extraterrestrial life in general. He's looking for them."
    "That's right," Harrison answered, with a the-hell-with-you-if-you-don't-like-it expression. "He's looking for them. Now, are you going to work with us or not?"
    They glared at each other for a while. She actually
    considered packing it all up again, but she couldn 't face that right now, not just yet. Maybe if she played along with Blackwood for a while, looked at his precious samples, she could find another project to work on at PITS.
    "All right," she said finally. "I'll do it—sheerly out of scientific curiosity. But frankly, I think it's a waste of time and money, and the minute I can link up with another project here, I'm gone."
    He sighed, relieved, and