"You say 'when' and 'what,' and Jak and I'll figure out 'how.'" Jon grinned.
She stretched out her arms and grasped each by a hand. "My big boys! I'm sure we'll come through safely. You're getting to be real men." Then she changed her tone and asked, "You're going to land on one of those planets, then, as Mr. C. planned?"
"Being so close, it seems best," Jak answered. "How long we stay will depend on what we do or don't find there."
"Yes, we need a few days' rest on firm ground before we start back to Terra, at least. We want to freshen our air, if we can, and maybe get some fresh food. Besides, we ought to try to get all the necessary data to prove Pop's discovery, if the planets are uninhabited but worth colonizing."
"I agree," seconded Jak, "even if we have to land in some secluded spot and just rest."
"I'll leave it up to you, then." Their mother appeared more like her usual happy self than the boys had seen her since the accident. "I'll keep house like I always have, and you boys do whatever else you think best."
Jak laughed. "We'll be like those Musketeers in that old book I read some time ago. 'All for one and one for all.'" He held out his hand dramatically. "Put your hands on mine, and we'll all swear to it."
Laughing, they did as he suggested, although their mother pretended severity. "You know I don't like swearing, Boys."
Jak grinned. "But I meant this in the sense of 'taking an oath,' not of 'cussing.'"
"Oh," she krinkled her nose at him, grinning with her old-time impishness, "that's different."