Flinn looked up hopelessly. "I don't understand. Does this concern you? I mean—"
"It concerns all of us," Wilmer said grimly. "But I know what you're getting at. No, I'm not the man they mention. I was in charge of that particular test."
Hayes cleared his throat abruptly and Wilmer nodded.
"I want you to understand, Mr. Flinn, before we go any further, that everything you hear and see, and have heard and seen from the time Fred first contacted you, is to be held in the strictest confidence. Is that clear?"
"Yes."
"All right. How much do you know about atomic physics?"
Flinn spread his hands. "I'm somewhat past the Democritus stage, but I don't claim to be an expert."
"Well, basically, in a thermonuclear explosive device, hydrogen is transformed into helium," said Hayes. "In the process there is a loss of mass. This loss results in a tremendous and sudden release of energy. Are you familiar with the energy-mass relationship, E = MC2?"
Flinn nodded.