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Page 433
Evan Hams and Amalie Hebert had come down to Washington as representatives of the Canadian contingent to receive the gratitude of the people of the United States for their part in averting the Soyuz disaster. And I'm to get special mention, whatever that is. Anna looked helplessly at the ingredients for the French toast. The food police in the next apartment would approve of the cholesterol-free egg mixture, she thought. She read the directions on the carton and set to work.
"So these are the famous Watergate apartments," Lieutenant Colonel Evan Hams said, peering out the window toward the river. "Where all the President's men went walkabout, is it?"
"Glad to see you got your promotion, Evan," Ave Peters said, joining him, gin fizz in hand. "Me, on the other hand, all I got was the chance to go hack to my charter service in California. Do you know, I haven't put a foot outside Half Moon Bay since I got home?" He gave a mock sigh. "How about you, Amalie? How did they reward you?"
Amalie Hebert laughed. "I am now in charge of public relations for Maritime Command." Her accent sounded much softer to Peters today than it had at that tense briefing at Site X.
"I propose a toast," Hams said, suddenly serious. "To everyone who was with us in that great adventure. To those who still toil at Site X, cleaning up the mess. It's going to take years, and many, many volunteers to finish up. And to those who'll never come home." The three clinked glasses and drank. Harris went on, "It's quite a group up there right now. About a dozen Russian boffins, passing on what they learned at Chernobyl and the other disasters they still won't admit happened, picking up the new procedures developed by us; several people from the science cadre of the CCND helping out with the environmental studies. And there are, God bless them every one, the regulars from the Canadian and American services, doing their rotations."

 
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