My oldest brother will buy the ranch from them, to get them some of the cash, and a lot of the ranch's operating money is tied up in livestock and fut...ures, so there's not much there." Lenore looked at the pair of faces across the small table the Chief had set up on the deck, and shook her head. "I'm willing to go far into debt with student loans, but I doubt I'll qualify for any financial aid with my parent's last-year Adjusted Gross Income." Lenore referred to the taxable income line on the. "I have a present for you." I don't need anything from you, Van. Fuck off!" This is special stuff, Julie. And I'll give it to you for free." Yeah, right." It's true, Julie. I feel bad about the last time I was here. I want to make it up to you."Julie was about to scream at him again, when she saw a piece of paper begin to slide under the ill fitting door."I've got a couple presents for you baby. Here's the first one," said Van as the 8 by 10 inch paper slid to the floor at Julie's feet.At first. "I certainly wouldn't trust it not to tinker while it's in there." At least, Sparta is a reasonable planet," she said, ignoring my question. "A little warm but tolerable." The concubines won't be wearing much," Dipak said happily. Miranda rolled her eyes at him. Everyone knew what Miranda really wanted to ask, so we waited. She sighed and shook her head at me."How did you do it, Jason?" she asked in a hard voice. "How did you convince an AI to help you?"I smiled. "How do you attack a computer. .."I interrupted him and finished his sentence with "it is the peak of the Orionid meteor showers."It was his turn to look surprised. "A student of the stars, are we?" No," I answered, "but Earl is never available from October 19 through 23 because chucks of old comet are falling out of the sky." All comets are old," instructed the good doctor, "they are the left-over debris from creation. And the chucks don't fall out of the sky, the earth merely passes through the comet's trail of debris. .