Chapter Nine

'So I won't be seeing much of you?'

He brushed her cheek. 'I promised you the first American interview with the new Prime Minister.'

'You know that everyone wants to see Xznaal, too. Where's the meeting, Downing Street?'

'The Tower of London. Xznaal has taken a shine to it and so the Martians will be based there. We've called in some refrigeration engineers to adjust the climate for them. A simple process, apparently, and the Tower will be fully converted in three days.'

'Mars is a cold world,' Staines informed her.

'Yes,' she said, trying to match its coolness. She turned to Edward. 'Any chance of a talk to Xznaal?'

'I think that might be counterproductive for the moment. If Staines' reaction is typical then the public might react unfavourably towards our new allies. Let's just wait until things have settled down a little bit.'

Greyhaven had described the Martians as large reptilian creatures. They sounded quite palatable - fifty years of science fiction B-movies and corny TV series had prepared the way. They might look a bit like Klingons, but they didn't act like them - Klingons didn't help cut tax and set up trade agreements.

'I think you might be right - but people want to know all about them. What about their history and their culture? Never mind all that fuss about the Martian fossil last year. Everyone said that that was the greatest scientific discovery of the century. Guess that'll teach people to wait until the end of the century next time.'

'This certainly knocks what the Americans found into a cocked hat,' Staines simpered, smiling knowingly at Eve. She grimaced back at him.