these are special orders: no one is to let the man with whom he is paired out of his sight."

He would not tell them more than that now; he hoped to trap the spy when they approached The Egg.

The spaceship slid up orbit, overtaking the shining ovoid from which antennae sprouted like pins from a pin-cushion. The captured G-boat was lashed to the spaceship's side.

"You'd think they'd have some defenses, anyhow," grumbled Tyruss, watching the ovoid on the screen.

"Why?" countered Jonner. "They knew we didn't have any G-boats left, and they didn't know we had any spaceships left, either. Of course, they don't know this is our target, but I'll bet they have some ships from Phobos on the way here now, anyhow."

Their timing was just right. Thirty minutes later The Egg would swing around the limb of Mars, in line of sight with Marsport. But so far there had been no chance for The Egg to receive a radio warning of the stolen G-boat.

The spaceship pulled abreast of The Egg and Jonner and Tyruss went across to it in spacesuits. They passed through the airlock to find The Egg's crew of three waiting with welcoming smiles. The smiles faded at the sight of their levelled heat-guns.

"Sorry you weren't expecting us," said Jonner, opening the face-plate of his spacesuit with his left hand. "You'll have to get into spacesuits."

They sent their captives through the airlock and across the intervening space to the spaceship, where the others would be awaiting them. Then Jonner and Tyruss searched The Egg for other Marscorp personnel. They found none.

"We'd better get a line on her and get under way before those ships from Phobos can get here," said Tyruss.

"Right," agreed Jonner, and they got busy.

A towline secured between the two vessels, Jonner and Tyruss returned to the spaceship. The three Marscorp captives had been secured by chains to stanchions on the storage deck, just above the engine deck. Stein and Farlan, the engineers, were standing by.

"We're getting under way," Tyruss told them.

Stein and Farlan descended to the engine deck, and Tyruss and Jonner climbed to the control deck. On the centerdeck, Aron and Wessfeld, the astrogators, were asleep.

 Prev. P 7/17 next