Habitats (an Ell Donsaii story #7) (20 page)

BOOK: Habitats (an Ell Donsaii story #7)
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The other girls and boys chosen to demonstrate a particular apparatus then demonstrated their skills for the attendees, all doing well and giving Alice a sense of glowing pride. She took the microphone to congratulate them on their performances and thanked Ms. Donsaii for attending and bringing some excitement to the event. “Now, I believe Ms. Underwood has set up refreshments that we may all enjoy…” she paused to look down at Suzie Plaz, one of the younger girls who took gymnastics. Suzie might be little but she filled every space she entered with bubbling enthusiasm. Just now Suzie tugged vigorously on Alice’s jacket demanding attention. Knowing that Suzie would have something cute to say, perhaps a thanks for their famous guest, but sure to be an audience pleaser she leaned down with the mike and said, “Yes, Suzie?”

Not at all intimidated by the microphone Suzie’s voice boomed over the PA, “Please, Ms. Donsaii
, will you do a ‘demonstration’ for us too?”

Embarrassed, Alice stood and said, “I’m sure we’d all love that Suzie, but Ms. Donsaii hasn’t done gymnastics for years. We should be grateful, just that she attended
, without asking her to do more.” Unfortunately, Alice’s words were almost completely drowned out by the shrieking of young voices, especially the girls, clamoring for their idol. She turned to Ell and gave her an uncomfortable shrug.

Ell was looking down at Denise, who held her hand and stared pleadingly up into her eyes. Ell looked back at Alice and gave her a sh Sgavicroprug in return. She walked to the
floor exercise area and, removing her shoes, stepped out onto it, bouncing a few times to get back the feel of the sprung floor. She looked around, “Can I have some music?” she asked brightly.

A couple of moments later the opening bars of
Velos’
“Concert at the End of the World”
came over the speakers. Someone must know of Ell’s love for Velos. Years later Alice would most strongly remember the simple grace with which Donsaii danced simply and beautifully to the slow gentle arpeggiations of the opening section. The baggy exercise suit she had on no longer looking “dressed down” but somehow elegant as it flowed with her languid streaming motions. Everyone’s eyes followed each fluid gesture.

Then the beat strengthened and sped, the bass began to thump and Donsaii began to
fly
… It may have been years since Donsaii performed in the Olympics, but she left no doubt that she could
still
do everything she had once done, including the oh so many things Donsaii could do—that it seemed no one else would ever be able to match.

 

***

 

Morehead City, NC—Gymnastics fans everywhere were thrilled yesterday when video began to circulate of Ell Donsaii putting on an impromptu performance. This apparently occurred at the request of a child at a local gym in her home town. This floor exercise featured many of the signature moves with which she stunned the world seven years ago at the Olympics. One of the most highly watched video clips in the past 24 hours, it shows her performing the stunning moves no one else has been able to duplicate. The ease with which she performs them has renewed speculation that she may be secretly training for the next Summer Olympics…

 

***

 

After a pleasant Christmas Eve dinner with her mother, Gram and Miles, Ell spent the night at her mother’s new house. In the morning they had waffles, opened Christmas presents and then Ell left to spend Christmas evening with the Kinrais family. She felt sad that Shan hadn’t been able to spend Christmas Eve with her family, but if she were going to keep her life as Ell and Raquel separate it would have to be that way. At least, she’d realized that the island would be a place where her family and Shan could see one another.

Ell pulled off the road at a rest stop and entered the bathroom there. A couple of minutes later, Raquel left the bathroom and got in
to her little truck which had parked itself at the rest stop thirty minutes earlier. The truck started on its way to the Kinrais house. Ell’s Ford Focus left the rest stop a few minutes later and drove itself back to her house in Chapel Hill.

 

Ell bounced up the steps and touched the doorbell at the Kinrais house. The house AI said, “Hello Ms. Blandon, you are expected, please come in.” Ell heard a click as the door unlocked itself.

Shan’s mother met her in the entry with Shan right behind her, “Raquel, we’re so del Se/font>
day with us!” They moved into the great room where a Christmas tree stood. Two young women and Shan’s dad sat nursing cups of something steaming. “Let me introduce you to Shan’s sisters, Morgan and Lane.” They rose and each gave Ell a hug which made her feel very welcome.

The Kinrais had small gifts for
“Raquel” which made her glad she’d brought some for them. She ran back out to her car for some of the snorkels that had ports in them. She’d wrapped them the day before. “I hope you guys like to swim and snorkel. D5R, where I work, made a bunch of these up. The employees can buy them to give as gifts. Since they aren’t sold anywhere yet, it’s kinda cool that we can give them as Christmas gifts before anyone else can get them.”

Not surprisingly, Shan’s sisters were more excited about the snorkels than his parents. After turning the base ports on and trying breathi
ng through the snorkels, Lane asked, “So do you see Ell Donsaii very often? At work, I mean.”

Feeling a little guilty about keeping a secret like this from Shan’s family, even though she and Shan had discussed it, Ell said, “I don’t work at the main facility very often, but I do see her pretty often when I’m there.”

Lane lifted an eyebrow, “So is she nice at work? I mean, you hear about celebrities who act all nice out in public, but then it turns out that they’re really jerks to the people they work with.”

Ell blushed, “Well… she’s always nice to me…” she glanced at Shan.

Shan grinned at Ell and said, “I’ve talked to her quite a few times, you know, ‘cause of our paper. She’s always been very nice.”

Morgan said, “Good! I’m always so disappointed to find out that someone I admire isn’t who I thought they were.” The family as a whole nodded and Lane began an anecdote about a popular television star who played a pleasant, all knowing father on a sit-com but had treated a friend of hers very badly in person.

Ell almost responded with her own story about what a jerk Michael Fentis had been to her at the Olympics. Then she remembered that she wouldn’t be able to explain what she’d been doing at the Olympics herself. After stifling herself, she sat back as the family’s conversation washed around her, thinking again about how weird it was to have people admiring her because she “knew” Ell, rather than for being Raquel. Yet how could she not like having people admire Ell more than Raquel? She’d purposely kept Raquel low on everyone’s radar after all. She snorted softly and shook her head over her own idiosyncrasies.

 

The dinner conversation ranged broadly and Ell found herself enjoying Shan’s family a lot. She felt quite touched when they invited her on their annual ski vacation in February, especially when Shan later mentioned that they’d always had a strict no boy/girlfriends policy in the past.

 

Though the Kinrais’ Christmas dinner was very nice, on the drive back to Chapel Hill Ell admitted to herself that she missed going to the Emmerit’s huge celebration. Who knows what kind of embarrassing things Grandmother Emmerit might have said this year?

R
iding beside her, Shan said, “What0">T S ’t re you thinking about with that little smile on your face?”

“Oh, nothing. Just some pleasant ghosts of Christmases past.”

 

***

 

Stacy stepped into Benny’s and headed for the bar, looking forward to a couple of beers to take the edge off the day. Her usual stool stood open so she claimed it, “Hey Benny, you got any decent beer? Or just the usual?”

“Stacy, Stacy, you know I serve only the best to my fine clientele. The usual for you?”

“Yeah, sure, I guess it’ll have to do.”

“Let me buy that beer for the lady,” a man said from two stools over. “I’d like some advice.”

Stacy looked at the man, recognizing the fellow who’d bought her several beers a few weeks back. “Hey,” sh
e said, lifting her chin at him, “Thanks. I’ve forgotten your name though.”

“Bart.” Basir said. “You helped me understand those port thingys that first time when I met you. Can I ask you more stuff about them?”

Benny slid a beer over to her and she lifted it at Bart. She winked, “Looks like you’ve paid for the right.” She took a sip. “Ahh, tha’s good.”

“I’ve got this old hot rod I race sometimes. Runs on gas
oline. I realized that I could get quite the advantage over the guys I race against if it didn’t have to haul around a tank full of gas. Do you have any ideas about where I could get a port that I could send fuel through?” He lifted an eyebrow, “I’d pay good money.”

Stacy shrugged, “Nah, told you last time. Ports for flammables are restricted. We
only make a few of them anymore. And, it would be really hard to lay hands one.”

“Hey, let’s move over to our own little table where we can talk in private. I have some ideas and I could really make it worth your while.”

Stacy’s eyes narrowed as she thought about the little talk that boss lady, Varka, had given them about offers “too good to be true.”
Still, it couldn’t hurt to hear what the man had to say.
“OK.” She got up off her stool.

 

***

 

Dr. Charles Rhoades left his office and saw the math department’s chairman, Jacob Bensen, a little way ahead of him down the hall. Lengthening his stride, he caught up to him, “Jacob, what have you decided about Kinrais?”

Still walking, Benson eyed him, “Well, he’s got good scores…”

Rhoades nodded impatiently.

“And that paper he’s publishing with Donsaii is an amazing piece of work, certainly a firm foundation for his doctorate.”

“More than a ‘foundation.’ His committee voted that he be granted his PhD.”

“Yes, yes, but I worry, what if he jus Shats ct rode Donsaii’s coattails? You know, contributed a little and she decided to list him as an author?”

“Come on Jake! She listed him as
first
author!”

Benson shrugged, “Maybe she’s just taking the
senior
author’s place as ‘last author’?”

Rhoades couldn’t believe his ears. He’d never had a student with the potential that Kinrais had
, and he’d never really tried to get one a position on the faculty before. Then when Kinrais had had the insight that launched this paper, one he thought might actually win a Nobel for pulling so many things together, he’d thought the young man was a shoo in for a position. He opened his mouth to vent his spleen but Benson shied away, grinning and holding up both hands in defense.

“Come on Charlie, don’t go postal on me! I’m just pulling your chain. I called Donsaii and she was highly laudatory. Called his insight into the long distance implications of her math a ‘stroke of genius.’
She said if we didn’t want him, they’d really like to offer him a job at D5R, however, she thought he’d prefer academics. I’ve got an appointment with young Shan to offer him the job this afternoon.”

“You’re a son of a bitch, Jake, you know that?” Rhoades
grinned at him and thumped his own chest, “I was going to have to go in and get my heart restarted if you didn’t give
that
young man a job.” He paused and narrowed his eyes, “I don’t suppose you’d let
me
give him the news.”

“Oh
hell
no. I’ve got to get on the good side of the young lion before he casts his shadow over all of us.”

 

***

 

BOOK: Habitats (an Ell Donsaii story #7)
6.45Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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