Click waved his hand.
“Whoa there! You’re getting too deep for me. I’ve seen the thing run, and the fact that we’re up here’s proof enough that it works. What I want to know is, when I’m going to get back on my job, and what we’re going to do with his nibs over there. I don’t mind tying up a man to accommodate him; but I don’t want to get mixed up in a kidnaping charge.”
She frowned thoughtfully for a minute, then moved closer, lowered her voice.
“I’ll tell you this much. This man is a dreadful menace; and he’s a murderer.”
Click glanced at the man on the floor.
“He doesn’t look so bad. Those gimlet eyes of his are a little disquieting; but I wouldn’t take him for such a hard case. Looks a little too thoughtful to be a crook type.”
She gave her head an impatient shake, placed a hand on his arm in an earnest attempt at conviction, realized what she had done, and jerked the hand away.
“He’s a scientist. That is, he’d call himself one. He worked in a laboratory, has a good grasp of magnetic sciences and astro-physics. But he’s unscrupulous, a fanatic — and... and... and a murderer.”
“Yes? That’s twice you’ve used that term.”
“Well, it’s not my secret to tell. But his name’s Badger. He worked in one of the laboratories where Father had certain parts of his equipment manufactured. He was shrewd enough to find out what Father was up to. And he realized something of the possibilities of this thing, which is more than many people did. Father had a partner, a young assistant, a frightfully keen chap. He had tuberculosis; but he wouldn’t take any sort of care of himself. He got so worked up over this idea he worked on it night and day. Father trusted him, told him a lot. Badger kidnaped this man, held him out all one night, threatening all sorts of dire things if the man wouldn’t talk. As a result he caught cold and died.”
The man on the floor raised his voice.
“I don’t know what she’s telling you, but I know it’s false. I’m merely an innocent stowaway, searching for a thrill. I demand that I be given my liberty.”
The girl paid no attention to him.
“You have no idea what this invention means commercially. Father is interested in it purely from a standpoint of scientific investigations. Commercially it’s worth millions and millions.
“You saw the three men who tried to kidnap me. When they knew Father had achieved success they would have stopped at nothing. They planned to hold me captive, and force Father to ransom me by giving them a share of the profits, or else to force Father to divulge his secret to them.
“I tell you, there’s so much potential wealth in this thing that murder becomes a mere nothing to the men who want to solve the secret.”
Click turned her words over in his mind.
“What’ll you do with this chap? Drop down and turn him loose?”
“Certainly not! He knows too much now. He had an opportunity to study the mechanism. He’d ask for nothing better than to be put out. By the time we returned he’d have the whole invention exploited for all it was worth.”
“Well, what, then? Will your father call off his trip of interstellar exploration?”
“You should know Dad better than that. He warned me not to give him an opiate, but I did it just the same. He’ll sleep a few hours. When he awakes, no power on earth can keep him from starting on his journey. You understand that money and glory mean but little to him. He’s after scientific data.”
“But,” protested Click, “this man Badger will be a menace to him when your father returns.”
“We’ll handle that when the time comes. But you must remember the chances are about a hundred to one against our returning. And if we do not, we aren’t going to leave our secret behind us, in the hands of an unscrupulous scoundrel.”
Click Kendall rubbed his chin.
“Well, then, how about me?”
“Why, you’re going, too, of course. We couldn’t leave you behind to publish what you’ve found out.”
“And I’m not to be allowed back on earth, not even to send messages?”
She smiled, and shook her head.
“Of course not, silly! That’s just what we don’t want you to do — send messages.”
Badger stirred, attempted to sit up.
“You’ll pay for this,” he croaked.
The girl paid no attention whatever to him, but glanced at the terrain below.
“This is a good place,” she remarked, and manipulated the lever and slide. Instantly the car slowed to a stop, wobbled back and forth like a gob of wax on the end of some invisible string.
Then it slowly settled.
Below was a wild, wooded country. There was no sign of habitation. The level rays of the setting sun showed dark green foliage, winding rivers, occasional meadows. There was no sign of any road, no house, no fence.
Dorothy Wagner flung open the door, thrust out her head.
“Come and look at it. It’s delightful. We’re only about a thousand feet up. You can even smell the pines.”
Click joined her at the door. The balmy air was soothing to his nostrils. Over the country lay the calm hush of a warm twilight.
“What do we do now?”
“Wait.”
“For what?”
“For Father to wake up.”
“And then?”
She did not answer in words, but pointed her finger up at the darkening sky.
Badger struggled with his cords, flung himself about on the floor, but was unable to gain his freedom. At length he subsided, muttering rumbled threats.
The last rays of the sun were swallowed up by the golden horizon. Dusk gave place to darkness. In wordless silence the two in the doorway drank in the scenery.
Each engrossed with thoughts, they watched the stars silently appear, swing upward. Below, the world lay black and mysterious. Once there was the flicker of a light. Far to the north a camper built a small camp fire which sent its red light flickering over the tree tops. Away to the east a glow in the sky marked the location of a city.
After an hour the eastern horizon glowed, lighted, and the rim of a moon climbed into dazzling sight. Within a few minutes it hung suspended, clear of the mountain rims.
Chapter 5
Into Space
There was the sound of a door opening. Abruptly, lights came on, flooding the place with eye-aching brilliance. Professor Wagner stood in the doorway of the cone, his eyes glittering with hectic intensity.
“Dot, you gave me an opiate.”
She met his accusing gaze.
“I did what I thought was best, Father.”
He pointed toward the circle of the moon.
“Do you want us to get tangled up in the gravitational field of that moon?”
“What would it do, Father?”
“Do? It would delay us hours, days, perhaps trap us in the cold clutch of a dead satellite! No moons for me! I want to get out and see something of the solar system. I want planets, life, atmosphere. Quick! Let’s go!”
Badger again flopped about in struggling panic.
“It’s kidnaping, murder!” he cried.
“Close that door, hold everything!” snapped Professor Wagner, and placed his thumb upon the sliding button.
The lights clicked off. There was a sensation of sudden motion, and then the scientist’s exulting voice pealed forth a cry of triumph.
“We’re off!”
Click looked through the window in the floor, then recoiled in surprise.