Part 64 (2/2)

It was a struggle not to go back inside and beat the woman. She was a slave, and she had forgotten her place.

But in the end, she would be sorry for what she had done. She she had gotten the better of him, but he knew more about this world than she thought. And she had given him an idea-about neutralizing the man who had been with her.

Swiftly he walked toward his supply officer and gave terse orders.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR.

TO SHOW THAT he wasn't afraid to venture out into this unfamiliar world, Falcone took two of his best men-Kenner and Shafter-and started through the woods.

He came to a road within five minutes and followed it, looking for the signs that Rinna had mentioned. He marveled at how far apart the houses were. They had no protections, and they were open to invasion from anyone who took a fancy to the contents.

But he didn't just rely on Rinna's judgment that this world was safer than his own. The men who'd reconnoitered here had given him similar reports.

The houses in this area had trees around them. But instead of natural woods, the ground under the trees had been tended by gardeners.

He had strong legs. And he was used to walking. Several automobiles pa.s.sed by, but he was sure he and his men were not conspicuous since they were dressed just like the inhabitants of this world. They all wore jeans, dress s.h.i.+rts and what were called running shoes. They also had on baseball caps which they had turned around with the bill facing the back. The idea of wearing them that way seemed peculiar, since he would have expected the bill to serve as a sunshade. But his spies had a.s.sured him that was the way it was done.

He'd ordered the men to leave their usual weapons back at the camp. Now they were all carrying handguns, which several of his spies had secretly brought back and showed him. The guns were concealed under their s.h.i.+rts.

At home, they'd taken the weapons outside the city to practice. He knew how to fire the gun. And so did Kenner and Shafter.

Every minute or so, a car pa.s.sed them as they walked along the road. But he stayed out of the way of the vehicles, and he even got used to the wind they generated in their wake.

They had walked about a mile from the campground and pa.s.sed more than a dozen houses when he saw a pile of newspapers lying on the ground.

According to Rinna, that meant that the owners of the house were away. But he didn't take her word for it, in case she was leading him into a trap. He and the men stepped off the blacktop and into the woods, approaching the house from two different angles. When he looked inside, he saw furnis.h.i.+ngs that made his eyes pop.

His spies had told him that the people of this world lived well. Through the windows he could see rich fabrics and gleaming wood. And what he took to be a cooking area with s.h.i.+ny appliances that he didn't know how to use. Maybe Rinna understood how they worked. If not, they'd cook over a fire in back of the house, since there was plenty of fuel around.

They broke in through a side door. Immediately, a loud bell began to ring.

The security system.

Rus.h.i.+ng to the bell, he used his powers to shut it off.

A minute later, he heard a jangling noise. Before he could figure out where it was, the thing stopped, and he breathed out a sigh. Quickly he and the men searched the premises. No one was home.

He walked through the rooms, picking up objects and carefully setting them down again. His heart was pounding, and he felt a kind of glee gathering inside himself as he swiveled a smooth ball of s.h.i.+mmering gla.s.s in his hand. In his world, it would be priceless.

He turned to see Kenner and Shafter looking around with dazed expressions on their faces. This place was probably richer than anything they could imagine.

”No stealing,” he ordered.

”Yes, sir.”

”You will be searched before you return to our world.”

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