Dorothy De Courcy

“ Better Gartland's life than no life at all. She was too young, too much alive to die.
He kicked the hatch closed, shutting out the light from beneath, and they stood alone, a man and a woman amid the stars.
Women are funny, Brace thought. They know things. She knows what I have to do. She isn't fighting. ”

“ Perhaps that deep essence of woman had told her that time had run out. Maybe men knew it too. Maybe everybody knew when their time came to die.
He thrust these thoughts aside and stepped into the cabin. The girl was still on the bunk. Its free floating gimbals had swung it back.
"The acceleration bother you?" Brace asked.
"No," she replied, quietly.
He walked over and stood by the bunk. The girl rose slowly and sat, staring up at him. "You're going to do it now?"
Brace looked down at his gnarled hands, clenched his fingers and studied them. "Would you like anything?" he asked slowly. ”

“ Brace's paw reached down and jerked him into the portal by the front of his tunic. They stood there as the portal closed, face to face, Brace's eyes burning into the livid terror of the other man.
"You aren't going to talk to anybody," Brace muttered, throwing him into the companionway.
"I got friends who are watching!" the little man yelped. He slithered away. "It won't do any good to kill me!"
Barrows came around the corner. He took one look at the cringing figure and disgustedly tucked the atoblast back into his tunic. Then he reached for the thin-faced man. ”

“ That just leaves Gartland—and he wouldn't do any talking. He rammed the lever home and with a shock, the tiny craft swung away from the mother ship.
Viciously, Brace slammed the acceleration lever wide open and stared ahead through the transparent port at the stars. "The night has a thousand eyes," he murmured. His lips clamped tight over his bulging teeth. As his ship circled, the sun came into view, big, hot, and glaring, yet small against the backdrop, and the little ship screamed toward it. ”

“ When the coffee was half gone, he felt the thump of a lifeboat going free and he laughed softly. What would Barrows think when he felt a second thump?
He rose then, leaving his coffee, and walked swiftly down the companionway to an escape hatch. In a moment, he had sealed himself in a life craft and then he hesitated, his finger on the release lever.
No, he decided. The case was only against him, no one else. The girl would tell them she'd never seen anyone but him. She couldn't give them a description of Barrows or the others even if they tried to trick her. ”

“ Barrows nodded and started in the direction of the Captain's cabin.
"Come on!" Brace grunted when Barrows was out of sight. He led the thin-faced man forward to the tiny chart room, let him in, then closed the door. "All right, what have you got to say?"
"Well—ah—first of all, Captain, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Gartland. I'm a trader."
Brace studied him. "I've heard of you."
"Well, in that case, you know I'm an honest man—always seeking good business—both for a little profit and—to give others a helping hand." ”

“ Brace motioned toward the companionway. "Do you want to search it or not?"
"Captain Brace," the S.P. man said stiffly, "it's only a routine search. We're quite convinced that a man of your standing wouldn't jeopardize his ship and, if you'll consider the incident closed, I'll be glad to see that no further trouble is given you."
The S.P. men had made a mistake by stepping in the ship of course, and Brace could make much out of it. He grinned to let them know that he'd like nothing better than to make much of it. ”

“ It's much better to die quickly, instantly—than—to drag it out. Nobody wants to die—but when you have to—maybe it's not so bad."
"Yeah, I knew you'd want it that way." Brace turned and opened the door. "You're a nice kid," he murmured. "Wish I'd never seen you."
In the control room, Brace waited by his acceleration chair until the pilot and the mate entered. The signal man closed and dogged the entrance, then settled into his chair. He threw some switches and droned into a microphone, "Gorgon III, Clearance No. 13749. Out of Titan, Sullivan City to Mars. ”

“ Brace didn't feel good about it. She was just a kid. He'd have felt much better if she was a man. What was a girl like her doing in Titan anyway? She had no business being in this hole. There was never anything but trouble on Titan. ”

“ A pair of stained curtains suddenly separated on a little raised platform and all eyes turned toward it, including Brace's bloodshot ones, still jumping from the effect of the drugging Borl. A girl came out, scantily clad, and a spotlight from somewhere centered on her. Two Ionians played rhythmic melodies on a heavy stringed instrument and the girl began to dance.
Men yelled the age-old cry, "Take it off!" ”

“ If he could only get—He realized abruptly that the mate was standing in the companionway, staring at him.
"Barrows!" Brace grunted. "Get the men together in the mess room."
Tableware lay in mute rows and the only sound was the humming ventilator. Brace sat down in a chair to wait until the men had all filed in. They were cast in the same mold, and forged to the same temper as their Captain, brittle, hard, unyielding. When they had assembled around the table, Barrows closed the door.
"The ship's locked, Captain," Barrows said. "The girl can't escape." ”

“ He raised the glass to his lips and poured the contents down. The men who were watching drew in their breath but not all of the spectators were men. Some were aliens who expressed surprise or tension in other ways. ”