by Random, Alex
“What does the Governor have in mind now?” Alston demanded. “I have the feeling you’re going to say the original plan has been changed.”
“That’s right!” Anders nodded grimly. “It won’t be the hunting lodge, I’m afraid. “I’ve got orders to get you to the cosmodrome and smuggle you aboard the Governor’s private spaceship. You and Carmel are to go to Cules.”
“But there’s nothing on Cules!” the girl protested angrily. “I don’t fancy spending my honeymoon under one of those plastic domes. It wouldn’t be so bad if they had an atmosphere on Gules. You can tell my father that I won’t go, Frank, and that’s final.”
“We’d better be reasonable,” Alston said quietly. “You’ve got a scheme boiling, haven’t you, Frank?”
“I’m afraid it’s the very simple but dangerous one of using Carmel as live bait.”
“I don’t like it. I think it’s too dangerous.” Alston spoke firmly. “I don’t see how you can trap Graham into anything by using Carmel. Now if he thought I was alive and aboard the spaceship then it might start something interesting.”
“He will be informed by an anonymous call on the official communicator,” Anders said, smiling grimly.
“I’ll go along with that and take my chance in the hope that Graham will overstep himself, but Carmel isn’t going to be mixed up in it. Let her go aboard the ship by all means, but get her off again before Graham can do anything.”
“That can be arranged.” There was a note of eagerness in Anders’s voice. “If she is seen to board the craft then so much the better, but we don’t have to risk her life as well as yours.”
“We are not going to risk Rex’s life,” Carmel said sharply. “Frank, it might be your duty to prove something against Quill Graham, but it has nothing to do with Rex. He’s an exile, and a dead one at that. Leave him out of your calculations and plans.”
“It’s not as simple as that, Carmel,” Alston said before Anders could think of a reply. “While Graham is there in the background with the power he wields we’ll never be safe, and I’ll always have the fear that he’ll drop on to me when I least expect it and either have me killed or transported to one of the penal stars. Now you don’t want that to happen, do you?”
The girl shook her head slowly and shrugged, and Alston nodded. He didn’t like the prospect that faced him, but he wanted to do what was necessary, and fight Graham on his own terms, knowing that was the only way to stand a chance.
“As soon as it is dark we’ll take off from the roof park in the official hovercar and make for the cosmodrome,” Anders said, satisfied that Carmel was now agreeable to his plans. “As soon as you get aboard the starship it will take off for Cules.”
“What about the crew?” Alston demanded.
“There will be the normal crew, and I don’t have to tell you that the ship is fully armed and able to defend herself, do I? As soon as it reaches orbit Carmel can be put out in a lifeboat, and I’ll arrange for it to be picked up. Then I’ll let Graham know what’s going on and we’ll wait for him to strike at you, Rex. There will be a starship of Space Patrol standing by, so don’t worry if you get into a tight corner.”
“I’ll agree to this so long as I am permitted to remain aboard the ship with Rex,” Carmel said with a dogged note' in her tones.
“Don’t be awkward,” Alston said easily. “It won’t take long. Then we can be together. Do as Frank suggests, Carmel. It will be easier for all of us then.”
“I’ll think about it,” she retorted. “But I don’t like it, Rex, and you’d better know it.”
“I’m not keen myself,” he retorted smiling wryly.
“Well stand-by for departure,” Anders said. He looked into Alston’s eyes for a moment. “A great deal is depending on this venture. If it comes off then you’ll be a free man again, Rex!”
“I’ll do anything to make that possible,” Alston said fervently and with great determination.
Anders departed hurriedly, and Alston could understand that there was much to do. He stared at Carmel for a moment, and the girl came to his side, her face showing her fears and concern.
“Rex, I don’t care what happens to us so long as we remain together,” she said. “Can’t you see that? If anything should happen to you while we are apart then I’d have to spend the rest of my life without you, grieving for you. For the past two days I have been grieving over you, thinking you were dead, and I’m not going to face that sort of thing again. If you die then I want to die with you.”
He sighed heavily as he shook his head. “I can understand how you feel,” he said softly. “But if I died you would get over your grief, and you could find someone else to love. The world doesn’t end and life isn’t finished because one man dies, Carmel.”
“I’d rather face your troubles with you,” she said stubbornly. “What does Frank expect to happen when you’re alone on that spaceship?”
“When Graham learns that I am still alive he may take illegal steps to get rid of me.”
“By attacking the Governor’s spaceship with you aboard?” She shook her head. “According to the record you are an exile with murder to your name. I don’t know what is being played here, Rex, but even though my father is behind it, I think there could be trouble for you without Graham’s interference.”
He considered that, shaking his head slowly. “I’ve put my life in Frank Anders’s hands many times in the past,” he said thoughtfully. “He’s never let me down.”
“That was when you were his Captain. Now you’re only an exile, and you’re causing this department a lot of trouble. I don’t like to think it is so, Rex, but I fear that this is an elaborate way of getting rid of you.”
“If you are right then there’s nothing I can do about it,” he retorted bitterly. “I’ve got to trust someone. I can’t get out of this alone. If Frank is planning something nasty for me to clear the way for your father then I’m afraid I’m lost. There is nothing I can do about it. You know what would happen to me if Graham caught me!”
“Only too well! That’s why I’m saying be very careful now. Let’s try to ensure that no matter what happens, and if the worst does come, we can get out of trouble.”
“I’m listening,” he said tightly.
“If my father is planning to have Graham kill you and to have Graham taken for it, then they would be killing two birds with one stone, wouldn’t they?” Alston nodded. “That could be it,” he said urgently. “I wonder if you have got it, Carmel? If Graham killed me I’d be well and truly out of the way, and Graham could be arrested for murder. It’s neat and simple, and that type of plan always comes off best.”
“So what can we do about it?” the girl demanded. “Frank was keen to accept my idea for getting you off the ship as soon as it left the ground,” Alston said you aboard?”
“I’ve been trying to get you to see the sense in that from the start,” she retorted.
“But if your father is playing this straight with me and Graham does attack, you would be caught along with me, and that is what must be avoided.”
“You can’t have it both ways, Rex,” she said. “If you want to insure against my father’s treachery then you’ll have to take a chance on saving me from Graham. Graham will attack you no matter what the circumstances. That’s the only thing we can be sure of. But if this is my father’s way of getting you out of my hair then we’ve got to take measures to prevent him succeeding. If you’re willing to risk your life for our future then I can do no less, Rex!”
“Let me think about it, but not a word of it to Frank,” he warned. “Now you’d better check that you have everything you need for blast off. We’ll be on our way pretty soon.”
“I’m quite ready now,” Carmel replied, and they sat side by side, holding hands, each concerned about their future.
When full dark came Frank Anders returned, and Alston took a deep breath as the Lieutenant announced that it was time to leave. They followed Anders to the elevator that took the
m up to the roof, and a security guard was on duty, armed with a Blinder. Alston began to feel the feathery sensation of anticipation filling him, and he wished Carmel was not going along.
There were no lights on the roof and they had to feel their way to the hovercar.
“We’re keeping it dark to avoid details being seen by the agents now apparently watching the palace,” Anders said quietly from the shadows. “No interior lights in the hovercar, please.”
They boarded the vehicle and Anders himself piloted it. Alston stared at the dark head and shoulders of the man as the craft lifted from the rooftop and went skimming away through the darkness. Their headlights cut twin paths of brilliance through the night, and Alston gazed around, still holding Carmel’s hand tightly, as if afraid that these would be the last moments they would ever spend together.
He wondered about Anders. Was this all part of a tricky plot to get rid of an unwanted exile? He could quite believe it! Strange things happened in high places. Trickery and sharp practice abounded in a society where power was everything.
They sped across town, high enough to be clear of the general traffic, and in a few minutes their little craft was descending over the cosmodrome, angling for the close proximity of the Governor’s private spaceship. The area was in darkness, and Alston had a nasty feeling in the back of his mind as Anders landed and switched off.
“Stay put while I check on the guards,” Anders said. “When I do call you then come running. I’ll take your bags, Carmel. We want anyone watching to think that you are going along.”
Alston waited until Anders had departed, and then he leaned towards Carmel, whispering in her ear.
“I don’t like this at all,” he said sibilantly. “I’ve got a tiny shiver along my spine, and I used to get it a lot in the old days when I was on active service with Starfleet. It never let me down in the past, and I’m going to rely on it now, Carmel. I think this is a trap that’s going to see the end of me if I’m not careful.”
“Then don’t let’s go aboard the spaceship,” the girl said instantly. “I’ll drive this hovercar. We can get away in the darkness.”
“No.” Alston shook his head, thinking of his trip through the forest. “We’ve got to think of the future. Sure we could get away now, but where would we go, where could we hide? What would we do tomorrow with the whole of Graham’s army of police and spies out looking for us.”
“Have you got a better idea?” she demanded.
“We could make a run for it with the starship, get out of this star cluster and make for some spot where they’ll never find us. But it would mean never seeing your father again, Carmel!”
“What a marvellous idea!” There was joy in her tones. She took his face between her hands and kissed him tenderly. “But what about the crew aboard the ship?”
“We could send them off in the lifeboat!” His tones were husky, and now the tiny shiver of warning had left him. He fancied he was making the right choice.
“I’ll do whatever you think is right, Rex,” she said. “I plan to live with you for the rest of my life, accepting all the decisions you will have to make, so let us begin as we mean to go on.”
He nodded, still not quite easy about the whole affair, but he had decided what to do, and now his determination would carry him through.
Anders appeared below and in front of the hovercar, beckoning them urgently, and Alston alighted, then turned to help Carmel to the ground. They ran across to the big spaceship waiting nearby and hurried through the airlock. Anders was standing on the inside of the airlock, waiting for them.
“I’m not going with you,” he said quickly. “No time for goodbyes or any explanations. When you get into orbit, put Carmel in the lifeboat and set her adrift, Rex. She’ll be picked up safely. Now goodbye and good luck!” He held out his hand.
Alston shook hands with him, staring into Anders’s face, but he could see nothing significant in his friend’s expression, and Anders’s handshake was firm and steady.
“Everything is taken care of, Rex,” Anders said as he moved towards the airlock. “This ship is under computer control. You have no crew aboard. We thought it would be safer this way. Now Goodbye! Strap yourselves in your seats in the control cabin and when you’re ready, Rex, switch in the computer and it will do the rest. Just make sure Carmel gets out in the lifeboat before you leave orbit. You’ll do a circuit of the planet before blasting off. I’ll be seeing you.”
When Anders had gone, Alston sealed the airlock, and he sighed heavily in relief as he led Carmel forward to the control room. For a moment he stood in the doorway, staring around, feeling quite at home despite the long time he had been away from a flight deck. He smiled when he saw that Carmel was watching his reactions.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get away before something comes up to stop us. Strap yourself onto that bunk over there, Carmel. I’ll take the command one. Once we’re in orbit we can get up!”
The girl nodded and went obediently to the bunk, and Alston looked around the bridge, switching on scanners and checking the area surrounding the craft. He saw Anders and a couple of security guards standing by the hovercar that had brought them, and he tightened his lips as he wondered if Anders had been playing a straight game. But he and Carmel were on their own now, and no one could get in at them with the airlock sealed. It was time to go, and Alston went to his bunk and strapped himself in.
Carmel smiled at him when he glanced in her direction, and he lifted a hand to her.
“Just relax now and I’ll activate the computer,” he said. When she nodded he stabbed a forefinger at the control button, then lay back and relaxed.
The next moment he felt a quivering sensation, and when he looked at the scanners he saw the cosmodrome was no longer around them. They were already lifting up through the atmosphere, making for their orbit, and all Alston’s cares seemed to drain away from him. He was not aware of the tremendous stresses being applied to his body, but he could not move on the bunk, and a thrill went through him as he recalled his past service with the Starfleet.
When the pressure left him he got up off the bunk, and found Carmel releasing herself. She came to him, pushing herself into his arms, and he kissed her before turning away. His mind was on the next stage, and he knew he had to alter the computer programme before they blasted out of orbit.
“Will you release the lifeboat?” she demanded.
“Without you?” He stared at her for a moment, considering. “I don’t think it matters much, and we may need that lifeboat before this trip is over. I have the feeling the only reason they let you come this far was to have a good excuse for taking the lifeboat away from the ship.”
Her face showed fear as she considered his words, and then she nodded. “All right, Rex. You’re calling the shots now. Tell me, what happens next?”
“Where do you want to go?” There was a thin smile on his lips. “I’ve got to wipe out the programme on the computer and set up my own flight plan.”
“I wouldn’t know where to go,” she retorted, shrugging her slim shoulders. “You’re the ex-starship captain. You think of somewhere suitable and make the necessary alterations. I’ll go along to the living quarters and check on food supplies and the other necessaries. I’m hoping they haven’t sold us short on supplies.”
He nodded, his mind already filling with the responsibility that lay upon him. He was rusty! It was almost five years since he had commanded a spaceship! In the meanwhile, he had been an exile, with an exile’s attitude and outlook. Now he had to dig into his mind to try and bring back all the experiences and lessons of his training and active service. He had to familiarise himself with the ship.
Carmel departed, leaving him to figure out his plans. He checked over the computer, finding it a model he knew and understood. He looked in the chart cupboard and found it well stocked, and some of his confidence returned. If he had been tricked into this trip and it was planned to kill him somewhere out in deep space they had at l
east left the Governor’s ship intact, probably to deceive him into thinking everything was normal. But their attention to detail could be the difference between life and death for him.
He racked his brains for a suitable starfall! They needed to go at least halfway across the Universe before he would feel safe. When it was discovered what he and Carmel had done there would be a hue and cry! But he intended being far from possible pursuit before that eventuality came about.
Peering through the charts, he soon discovered one which covered a section of space he knew well, and there were several promising planets in that area where a man and a woman might lose themselves for the rest of time. He smiled as he began to plot a course. In a little under two hours the control computer would take them out of orbit, and he had to have his alternative programme ready before then. It all came back to him as he worked, and he felt easier in his mind as his subconscious opened and permitted the necessary information to return to him.
Then Carmel returned and stood at his elbow. He did not look up at her, concentrating upon his calculations. She put a hand upon his arm, tugging at him, distracting him, and he tightened his lips as he looked up at her.
“What’s the trouble?” he demanded.
“Look what I found in the living quarters,” she said in stiff tones, pointing over one shoulder.
Alston twisted in his seat and stared towards the door, and a frown touched his face when he saw the security guard standing there, a Blinder in his hands. There was a tight grin on the man’s face, and it widened when he saw that Alston had spotted him.
“I’m here to make sure Miss Paine gets off in the lifeboat before we reach the end of orbit,” he said, his grin widening. “With me, that is! You’ll be on your own out there in space, Alston, and that will be the end of you.”
Alston exhaled heavily, and dull despair filtered into his mind. So this was a trick to get rid of him, and now he had the proof and it was too late to do anything about it!