Einstein Must Die! (Fate of Nations Book 1) (3 page)

Tesla shook his head. “That was too close. The entire building could have fallen on our heads.”

“I certainly had that impression, yes.”

“I know what it was now. It’s the building’s skeleton. The main support structure is a mixture of iron and nickel. I found the frequency that would undo it at the smallest level.”

“How on earth would you know the makings of the building?”

“Hmm? Oh, I did some work for the Academy last year. Experiments in grounding the site against lightning strikes, so I had to know the composition of the metal within. The alloy of iron and nickel has some special properties, which…” Tesla trailed off, lost in thought.

Samuel was accustomed to his friend going frozen, transported to some other land in his mind. Sometimes his journey was short and he would finish his sentence at once. Occasionally, the delay was so great, Samuel would lose patience and wander off, to catch up with Tesla another day.

Today the trip was brief. Tesla’s head snapped up, his mouth agape. “My God, that’s the answer!” he exclaimed. He knocked back the glass of whiskey and gathered his overcoat. “I have to go!” He rushed out the bar and ran down the street, oblivious to the downpour.

Samuel sat alone. “Yes, clearly you must,” he said to the empty bar. “Not to worry, I am happy to drink alone. I make very good company, actually.”
 

He finished his drink and reached behind the bar for the bottle.

***

Tesla stood in Edison’s reception hall, beaming and dripping wet. “It’s a question of impedance, you see? By using a nickel/iron winding, and then changing the shape of the rotor like so, we gain the efficiency required!”
 

The solution had finally come, and it sprang into his mind fully formed. He’d sketched out the needed diagrams and confirmed the math before bringing it all to Edison, but he’d known he was right that moment in the bar.

Edison regarded the exuberant man standing in his home.
A tall, lanky, drowned rat
, he thought.
But maybe one with a solution
. He examined the documents Tesla brought.

Watching Edison’s face as he perused the diagrams and formulas, he saw Edison believed in the solution as well. His money issues would very soon be laid to rest.

“Yes,” said Edison. “I see now what you mean. It really is clever. Somewhat obvious, actually, but clever nonetheless. Well done, Nikola. I’ll have my engineers begin making the modifications straight away.”

Tesla grinned. “Excellent, Mr. Edison. Excellent!”

Edison straightened up and looked at Tesla. “Is there anything else?”

Tesla cocked his head. “Well, there is the matter of payment. You promised me fifty thousand dollars if I could solve your problem. You have your solution, so…”

Edison’s face broke into a smile. Then he grabbed his belly and laughed heartily. He bent forward from the force of the mirth, then stood up, shaking his head.
 

“Nikola, you do entertain me. I never made such a promise.”

Tesla’s face grew warm, and he imagined his cheeks reddening. “Mr. Edison, you most certainly did. Fifty thousand. That was our agreement, and I have delivered my half of the barter. I very much need you to—”

“Son, I don’t know what you think we agreed to. Honestly, I think you just don’t understand our American brand of humor.”

Tesla felt nauseated and fought the urge to sit down.

“Now, I am happy to compensate you for your work, of course. I believe two thousand dollars would be a fine payment for this level of work. How does that sound? I have that much right here, in the safe.”

Tesla’s ears rang with the rushing of blood in his head, and his vision narrowed to a tunnel vision. Edison was still speaking, but he couldn’t hear the words. He could barely see him, even. Instead, he saw Mrs. Harrison’s contempt and pity. He saw himself evicted from his room. Disgraced and humiliated. He saw his father’s disappointed scowl.

“Are you all right, my son?” asked Edison.

Tesla held up his hand to ward him away. His jaw tightened hard, and he felt his molars grinding against each other.
 

“Nikola, please don’t refuse my offer. If I wish it so, there will be no electrical work for you in this city.”

Tesla desperately wanted to strike this man who so casually mocked their agreement. He saw his hand of its own accord had become a fist.

But instead, he blinked back the fury, sucked a deep chestful of air, and unclenched his fist. Then he turned away and headed for the door.
 

“You keep your money. I have no need for it,” he said and stepped out into the rain.

THE ROOSEVELT DOCTRINE

WASHINGTON, DC

The White House receptionist was exceedingly polite. “May I bring you anything, General? We have very good coffee.” She smiled sweetly, genuinely wanting to make him comfortable.

General Sam Houston waved off the offer. “Thank you, but no, ma’am.” His Tennessee drawl made her smile every time.
Sometimes one should not be comfortable
, he thought.

As the young woman returned to her clerical work, the general clasped his hands behind his back, looking around the small room. The receptionist’s desk, an American flag in the corner, a comfortable couch, and three bookshelves. And the door, of course. Behind that heavy but nondescript door was the Oval Office. History was changed by the decisions made behind that door. He’d met the president five times previously, but every time was an impressive experience. He looked down, ensuring his uniform was straight, and his medals aligned. As always, they were.

He heard two men approaching, chatting amicably. He looked up to see the chief of military R&D, Dr. Bertram Gladstone, wearing his trademark tweed jacket. He didn’t know the second man. The general’s face broke into a smile, and he stepped forward to shake hands.
 

“Bertram, very good to see you again.”

Dr. Gladstone was just as pleasantly surprised and clasped the general’s hand tightly. “Sam! A pleasure, I didn’t know you would be at this briefing too.”

“I imagine the president wants an update on Beowulf, so here I stand.”

“Of course, of course. General, let me introduce you to Thomas Edison. He’s a brilliant inventor and scientist. I thought his perspective would be invaluable, and he was kind enough to join us.”

The men shook hands. “Very nice to meet you, Mr. Edison.”

“And you, General,” Edison replied, impressed by the man’s commanding presence. The general’s large, strong frame, craggy features, and deep, rumbling voice often intimidated people. He gave the impression of power held in restraint.

Behind them the receptionist stood and crossed to the Oval Office door. She knocked and stuck her head inside, then turned back to the three waiting men. “The president will see you now.”

The men filed inside the Oval Office, properly impressed by the trappings of power.
 

“Gentlemen!” a booming voice said. They turned and found President Teddy Roosevelt standing up behind the Resolute desk. He strode forward, welcoming them and shaking hands.

“Please, sit. I’m eager to hear the latest, and we have an important matter to discuss.” He returned to his chair behind the desk and rubbed his face.
 

“All right… General? Where do we stand on Beowulf?”

“As far as the mechanicals go, we’re on track, Mr. President. The new treads seem to be working much better, and the small armaments are in place. We’ve hit a snag with the main cannon, but Savannah thinks we’ll have it resolved within the week.”

“She’s been a great asset. How’s her father doing?”

“The colonel is hanging in there. He knows what’s at stake. I don’t think he’s going to let his body give up until we get there.”

The president shook his head. “Sad business. Let’s just make something good come from it.”

“Yes, sir. In fact, we’re ready to begin field trials, with the exception, of course, of the central brain.”

Bertram took a breath, knowing the focus was about to shift to him.

“So what’s the story, Bertram?” asked the president. “I have a super weapon, but no brain to drive it.”

“Initial testing looked very promising, sir. But since then, Hollerith has made… disappointing progress.”

Edison leaned forward. “Forgive me, Mr. President, but this super weapon—”

Roosevelt looked at Bertram. “You’ve not told him anything?”

“No, sir, I figured that should come from you.”

“That’s fine.” He turned back to Edison. “You know Bertram’s R&D lab is hosted within General Houston’s base?”

“I do, sir,” Edison replied.

“Well, there’s a good reason for that. That lab is working on some fairly exotic technology. Extremely sensitive work. We knew many of those efforts wouldn’t bear fruit, but some will, and those can change the course of the war in our favor. Foremost among these projects is Beowulf. Basically, it’s a super-tank. Massive, armed like a battleship, and tough enough to take on an army single-handedly.”

Edison nodded. “Very impressive.”

“It is, but you haven’t heard the best part.”

“And that is?”

The president smiled. “It’s unmanned.”

“I don’t understand, sir. Unmanned because it’s still under development?”

“No, no. When the Beowulf tank goes into battle, it will do so without a crew. You’ve heard of the new ‘computers’?”

Edison nodded slowly, unsure of what he was hearing.

“Hollerith’s team has been working on a mechanical brain capable of driving the Beowulf tank. Imagine… we can meet an enemy on the field of battle, and not lose a single man. It’s an amazing time.”

Edison sat back, processing what he’d heard. Machines were a large part of his life, but man was always their master. What the president described turned that on its head. He wasn’t sure he felt comfortable with such a concept.
 

“It certainly is… exotic,” he admitted.

Roosevelt laughed heartily. “I know, Mr. Edison. It’s a radical concept, and it takes some time to come to grips with it. Hang in there.” He focused back on Bertram, and the smile left his face. “This is unacceptable.”

“I agree, sir.”

“If your man doesn’t deliver, this project goes nowhere. And I will not let that happen, not with the wolves at the door.”

“I know that, sir.” Bertram understood the pressures the president must be dealing with. War with Britain was coming. Everyone could feel it, like a cold fog rolling in off the Atlantic.

Roosevelt’s temper flared. “You know it, but what do you plan to do about it? What exactly is your plan?”

Bertram felt his cheeks grow hot. His life had been academia, not politics. “Sir-Mr. President, we are aggressively pursuing all avenues of research-“

Edison interrupted. “Perhaps therein lies your problem.”

Roosevelt’s head snapped to him. “How so?”

“Well, the goal of any undertaking is not to explore all possible avenues of progress, but to identify the single correct branch, and then fully and ruthlessly develop it to its logical endpoint. My friend Henry Ford is having great success applying this methodology.”

Roosevelt froze. This line of thinking was more appealing to him. Don’t spend months walking in circles, trying all approaches. Find one and drive it home.

“Action, action, and still more action,” he said. “That’s what I want, that’s what I demand.”

Bertram held his tongue, knowing he was on thin ice.

General Houston stepped in. “We know that, sir. And it will be done. On that point, Savannah told me of a new scientist, Tesla. She said he was doing remarkable work with electricity. Why don’t we bring him into the program? Another set of eyes may see something previously missed.”

Edison balked, raising his hands. “Ah, I don’t think that’s such a good idea, Mr. President.”

Roosevelt raised his eyebrow. “Oh?”

“I just mean…the man is a loose cannon. He recently almost brought down a building with one of his experiments. I was in the audience at the time. He’s naive and unpredictable.”

Roosevelt laughed. “Perfect! Sounds like just the man we need in the War Department, right, General?”

“Yes, sir. Maybe we can channel that destructiveness toward the Crowns.”

Roosevelt pointed toward the general. “Exactly! Make that happen.”

“So, Tesla is cleared for the Rabbit Hole, Mr. President?”

“He is. Maybe he’ll help us give that royal bastard king something to worry about. Lord knows I’ve lost enough sleep over this Einstein business.”

Bertram saw his opportunity to step in. “Speaking of Einstein, I fear the bombs he’s developing for the Crowns may be worse than we thought.”

Roosevelt stopped smiling. “Worse? The damned things can tear a hole in a city. What’s worse than that?”

“I ran into Professor Schwartz recently at a symposium. He knew Einstein, and he told me some technical details of the man’s previous work that worried me. I did some research, and—”

“What’s the bottom of it, man?”

“Mr. President, I believe Einstein may be close to building a radiological bomb.”

Edison scoffed.