being.

It took little effort to get to his feet now. The police craft had kept on his trail and were gaining again. Automatically he reached out and snapped the rocket blasters into action to steady his space-ship. With the new propulsor disabled, he could only coast along with his newly gained momentum. The police ships were getting big again on the visor screens.

CHAPTER III AN OLD FRIEND

He reached for the flame-gun at his belt, then glanced at the pale features of the girl on the swinging couch. No, it wouldn't do. He wouldn't resist when they boarded. They'd get him in the end and it would only endanger her life foolishly.

A chattering of the space-wireless signal told him he was being contacted for communication.

Heart sinking, he plugged in, cutting in a serried bank of glowing tubes. Static rattled, and a mottled picture began to form.

"That's odd!" he told himself. "They didn't try to contact me before. And odd because those police are blue devils for radio wizardry. I've never seen their power so low!"

A pleased chuckle came from an amplifier.

"Don't worry none, Doc," the hoarse voice continued. "It ain't th' coppers! Hell, my televiz panel's not so hot, but I like 'em that way."

Murky on the reforming mirror, he saw a dark visage with keen piercing eyes, a tiny mustache over a cruel hyphen of a mouth. The features were vaguely familiar.

"Who are you?" he demanded of his mysterious caller. "And where are you calling from?"

"My name's Frenchy Logrieux!" spoke the black image. "We're up ahead of you, some fifty space-ships, and every one a battler. The police won't dare come up to us, so just head your space-flyer into our middle, Doc. Look here, Doc, remember these!" Great hamlike hands were thrust before the televisor screen. Scarred and misshapen, the flesh had obviously been grafted back to the tendons.

"Venus Colony!" exclaimed Rufus Thallin amazedly. "And the leprous fang-weeds. Now I remember you, Frenchy."

"Sure you do," grinned the slit of a mouth. "And I ain't never forgot a young doc by the name of Thallin. When I hears the police broadcast, giving out that you'd kidnapped ye a wench and made off wid her, I says, now 

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