Part 26 (1/2)

”By the craters of Luna,” exploded the skipper of the pa.s.senger s.h.i.+p, ”what's the meaning of this? There are women and children aboard this vessel.”

c.o.xine smiled thinly. ”My name's Bull c.o.xine, master of the vessel _Avenger_. One funny move out of you and I'll blast your s.h.i.+p into protons! Stand by for a boarding party!”

”Captain! Captain!” the radar operator's voice screamed over the control-deck loud-speaker, ”they're trying to send out a signal to the Solar Guard!”

”They are, huh?” roared c.o.xine. ”Forward turret, check in!”

”Turret, aye!” reported Tom. He had been left alone while Gaillard issued small arms to the boarding parties.

”Listen, Kid!” roared c.o.xine. ”You said you're a good shot. Right now is the time to prove it. Blast away her audio antenna!”

Tom gulped. At a range of fifty thousand yards, the antenna, a thick piece of steel cable, might as well have been a needle to hit.

”Right, skipper,” he finally replied. ”I'll show you some of the fanciest shooting you'll ever see in your life!”

He turned back to the range finder, his mind racing like a calculating machine. He figured the angles of the two s.h.i.+ps, considering that the jet liner was a dead s.h.i.+p in s.p.a.ce and the _Avenger_ still under way, but slowing down at a specific rate of deceleration. He rechecked his figure a third and fourth time, correcting his calculations each time with the forward movement of the _Avenger_. If he misjudged a fraction of a degree, he might kill or injure hundreds of people aboard the pa.s.senger vessel.

”Well?” roared c.o.xine. ”Are you going to fire or not?”

”Coming right up, skipper!” shouted Tom. ”Watch this!”

Steeling himself, lest he should hit the ill-fated s.h.i.+p, he fired. For a brief moment he felt sick and then heard the roar of the pirate captain from the control deck.

”By the rings of Saturn,” roared c.o.xine, ”that was the best shot I've ever seen! Well done, Kid! All right, boarding crews! Man your boats and stand by to blast off!”

While c.o.xine vocally lashed the members of the murderous crew into action, Tom tried to figure out some way to get to the radar deck unseen. Being a.s.signed to the jet boat with c.o.xine, instead of Wallace, had been a lucky break and Tom wished for a little more of the same.

Lining up with his boarding crew, he received his paralo-ray pistol and rifle from Gaillard, deftly stealing a second pistol while the gunnery officer's back was turned.

After hurriedly hiding the stolen gun, he slipped stealthily topside to the radar bridge. Reaching the hatch, he was about to open it, when he heard footsteps. He turned and saw a man walking toward him. It was Simms!

”Where in the blasted universe is the jet-boat deck?” snarled Tom. He dropped his rifle on the deck and bent over to pick it up, hiding his face.

”You're on the wrong deck,” said Simms. ”Two decks below. Get moving!”

The pirate lieutenant hardly gave the cadet a glance as he brushed past and entered the radar bridge. Tom caught a fleeting glimpse of the interior. His heart jumped. The bridge was exactly like the one on the _Polaris_! Though annoyed that his chance had slipped past, Tom was thankful to learn that the communications equipment was thoroughly familiar.

”s.p.a.ce Kid! Report to the jet-boat deck on the double!” c.o.xine's voice rumbled through the empty pa.s.sageway. Tom dashed down the nearest ladder and hurried to the jet-boat deck where the pirate captain waited impatiently.

”I was checking the range and setting up to blast the liner in case they try anything funny,” explained Tom. ”I don't trust anyone on that range finder but me!”

c.o.xine chuckled. ”Good work, Kid. I like a man that thinks ahead. Maybe I made the wrong man gunnery chief.” He climbed into the jet boat. ”All right, take the controls, Kid. Sh.e.l.ly and Martin, get in the stern.” The men climbed in and Tom slid under the controls and waited for the order to blast off.

Wallace and his crew were on the opposite side of the s.h.i.+p, so Tom had no fear of being recognized until they were all on the pa.s.senger s.h.i.+p.

At his side, c.o.xine spoke to Wallace in the other jet boat over the audioceiver.

”We'll split up. I'll handle the control deck and you go aft to the supply lockers. Dump everything out in s.p.a.ce and we can pick it up later. Search the pa.s.sengers, but no rough stuff. The first man that puts his hands on anyone will never know what hit him!”

Tom listened to the pirate captain's orders and was forced to give the man credit for his tight control over his murderous crew. However rebellious he might be against the Solar Guard, and whatever it was that made the man become the system's most notorious criminal, his orders spoke for themselves.