15 IMPOSSIBLE TRAVEL

15 IMPOSSIBLE TRAVEL Lunar day 189 Afternoon The memorial service was held for Dr. Holtz that afternoon. Attendance was mandatory. The Sjobergs didn't show up anyhow. Everyone else came, though. Even the kids were asked to be there, so the rec room was unusually crowded. There were so many people we'd had to bring extra InflatiCubes from our rooms—and some of us still didn't have a place to sit. I had to stand in the back with Kira. Unlike the other funerals I'd

been to before, this one was weirdly casual. No one had anything formal to wear on base. Instead we all looked like we were dressed for a Sunday barbecue. Although lots of people had been asked to speak about Dr. Holtz, Nina ran the proceedings, which was probably a mistake. Her speech about Dr. Holtz was merely a flat, emotionless laundry list of everything he had done in his life. And I mean everything. Short of what he ate for breakfast every day, it didn't sound like any fact had been left out. I could barely keep my eyes open—and I wasn't alone. The little kids passed out within a few minutes. Most of the adults were struggling to stay awake as well. Dr. Howard was slumped against the wall, unconscious, his tongue lolling out of his open mouth. My parents were up front. They had to be, as Mom was going to speak. Violet was curled up in Dad's lap, snoring softly. "In 1998," Nina droned, "Dr. Holtz published his first paper in the International Journal of Astrophysics and Space Science, concerning the effects of long-term spaceflight on the human intestinal tract..." Kira leaned over to me and whispered, "I have to

tell you something about Dr. Holtz." Before answering, I glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention to us. It seemed disrespectful to talk during the memorial—but listening to Nina one more minute was going to put me to sleep, and that wasn't particularly reverent either. Besides, we were a good distance away from everyone else. "What?" I whispered back. "I had an idea for a lead this morning. I figured I could hack the computer and check MBA's phone logs for the night Dr. Holtz died to see who he was talking to when you overheard him in the bathroom." If I hadn't been in the middle of a funeral, I would have smacked my forehead. NASA certainly would have kept a log of all phone calls made at the base. I couldn't believe I hadn't thought to check it myself. "And? Did you do it?" "Well, I tried, but... there's no record of Dr. Holtz making a call at two thirty that night. In fact, there's no record of anyone making a call at any time around then." I frowned, concerned. "That's not possible. I heard him. Someone must have erased the call logs." "That's what I figured. And who do you think has

the authority to do that?" I looked toward the front of the room. "Nina." "Exactly." Nina was still delivering the eulogy without any passion whatsoever. "Dr. Holtz followed his landmark work on the digestive system with a detailed analysis of how zero-gravity travel affects the spleen..." I said, "Although if you and Roddy can hack the computer, there are probably other people who could have done it too—and they could have tampered with the call logs." "True," Kira admitted. "So have you come up with any leads besides Nina?" "Plenty." "Who?" I glanced around again. Chang Hi-Tech and Dr. Marquez were both close enough to overhear us. Neither appeared to be eavesdropping, but they could have merely been pretending not to. "I can't go into it right now. But what I really need help with is finding Dr. Holtz's phone." Kira nodded. "Have you figured out how to get into his residence?" "No, but I'm pretty sure it isn't there anyhow."

Kira's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement. "Maybe the evidence on it is the call from the bathroom the other night! Maybe he recorded it—so we'd know who he was talking to—because he knew someone would erase the call logs." "Maybe," I agreed. "Of course, that doesn't do us any good if we can't find the phone." I suddenly got the feeling someone was watching us and cased the room. Everyone was still doing their best to listen to Nina and stay awake—except Roddy. Even though he was sitting in the third row, he was facing backward, staring right at us. Or really, he was staring at Kira. Kira noticed him too, then quickly averted her eyes. Roddy broke into a big, wolfish smile. He slicked back his hair and, even though Nina was speaking, hopped to his feet and slipped out of his row. "Uh-oh," I said. "What's he doing?" Kira asked, keeping her eyes down. "Coming our way." "Why?" "Um... I guess because he likes you." At the front of the room Nina droned on.

"Eventually, Dr. Holtz completed the first significant analysis of how spaceflight affected pregnancy and subsequent generations of many species, including rats, mice, and cockroaches..." Roddy sauntered back to where Kira and I were standing. "Hey, there," he whispered, in what he probably thought was a suave tone. "What are you guys doing back here?" "Nothing," Kira told him. "Doesn't look like nothing to me," Roddy said. "Were you talking about me?" "No," I said. "We were talking about Dr. Holtz—" Roddy turned to Kira, ignoring me completely. "How'd those codes I gave you work out? You find what you needed?" "Yes, thanks." Kira shrank back from Roddy, looking a bit uncomfortable. "You ever need anything else like that, let me know." Roddy grinned. "I know the computers here inside and out. It's not like there's anything else to do in this crummy place." "This place isn't that crummy," Kira replied. "Give it a few weeks," Roddy told her. "We're on the moon," Kira reminded him. "Have you forgotten how amazing that is? Every kid back