Pawn’s Gambit by Timothy Zahn Page B

are we ready to begin working out some of the details?”
    The discussion took nearly an hour, and the experimental design arrived at was essentially the one that was actually used later that year. Several important problems still remained, however, notably the question of masking the mother’s thoughts while Dan tried to touch those of the fetus. From past experience we knew that a deep, sedative-induced sleep would probably do the trick, but Jordan was understandably opposed to giving large dosages of such drugs to pregnant women. The question of whether or not Dan could recognize humanness in a fetal mind at all also remained unanswered.
    During the drive back to San Francisco, I asked Dan if Halladay could be trusted.
    â€œI think so,” he said. “I didn’t see any evidence of duplicity when I touched her. And she was genuinely upset to find the Family Alliance people lying in wait for us.”
    â€œWhat about them? Do you think they’ll make trouble?”
    â€œHow could they? Denouncing the experiment before it even takes place would make them look silly—especially since a check with Halladay will show them that the design still has some pretty basic problems. Saying this far in advance that they reject the results will leave them wide open to a charge that they’re afraid of the truth.”
    Something in his voice caught my attention. “You sound less optimistic than you did yesterday,” I said. “You thinking of calling it off?”
    He was silent a long moment. “No, not really. It’s just that the whole thing is getting more complicated than I’d envisioned it.”
    I shrugged. “True—but don’t forget that it’s your experiment. If you don’t want to do things Jordan’s way, all you have to do is say so.”
    â€œI know. But he’s unfortunately got a good point: that if we don’t at least take a stab at doing things rigorously, all we’re going to do is throw more gasoline at the emotional bonfire.” He paused. “Tell me, do you have any relatives or close friends who are pregnant?”
    I blinked at the abrupt change of subject. “Yes—four to nine, depending on how close a friend you need.”
    â€œLet me have a fast rundown, will you?”
    I drove one-handed for a while as I gave him a brief personality sketch of each of the nine women. Afterward he sat silently for several minutes, digesting it all. “What do you think Kathy would say if I asked to be present at her delivery?” he said at last.
    â€œI don’t know,” I said. “But I know the right person to ask.”
    We called Kathy as soon as we got back to Dan’s office. Though clearly surprised by the request, she agreed to act as Dan’s guinea pig, provided her husband didn’t object. I got the most recent estimate of her due date—another month—and extracted a promise of secrecy before hanging up. “You going to tell Jordan and Halladay about this?” I asked Dan.
    He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. A slip of the tongue could have the entire Fresno chapter of the Family Alliance descending on Kathy’s birthing room, and I have no intention of putting the Ausberrys through that.”
    â€œBesides which, if you find you can’t even read the mind of a baby that’s only hours from birth, you don’t want anyone to know?” I hazarded.
    His slightly pained smile was my only answer.
    But the Family Alliance was subtler than we’d expected, and neither of us was prepared for the page-twenty story in the Chronicle the next morning.
    â€œI don’t believe this,” I fumed, stomping around Dan’s office with a copy of the paper gripped tightly in my hand. “How can they print something like this without at least contacting you first?”
    â€œâ€˜The Lifeline Experiment,’” Dan quoted, reading at his desk.