Danger in Deep Space

by Carey Rockwell

  CHAPTER 6

  "There goes the jet liner to Mars," said Al Mason wistfully. "Sure wishwe wuz on her." His eyes followed the beautiful slim passenger ship justblasting off from Venus.

  "Why?" demanded Loring.

  "Anything to get away from Venusport. What a stinking hole!" snorted theshorter of the two spacemen.

  "For what we want to do," said Loring, "there ain't another city in thesystem that's got the advantages this place has!"

  "Don't talk to me about advantages," whined Mason. "Be darned if I cansee any. All we been doing is hang around the spaceport, talk to thespacemen, and watch the ships blast off. Maybe you're up to somethingbut I'm blasted if I see what it can be."

  "I've been looking for the right break to come along."

  "What kind of break?" growled Mason.

  "That kind," said Loring. He pointed to a distant figure emerging from aspace freighter. "There's our answer!" said Loring, a note of triumph inhis voice. "Come on. Let's get outta here. I don't want to berecognized."

  "But--but--what's up? What's that guy and the space freighter _AnnieJones_ got to do with us?"

  Loring didn't answer but stepped quickly to the nearest jet cab andhopped into the back seat. Mason tumbled in after him.

  "Spaceman's Row," Loring directed, "and make it quick!"

  The driver stepped on the accelerator and the red teardrop-shapedvehicle shot away from the curb into the crowd of cars racing alongPremier Highway Number One. In the back seat of the jet cab, Loringturned to his spacemate and slapped him on the back.

  "Soon's we get into the Row, you go and pack our gear, see! Then meet meat the Cafe Cosmos in half an hour."

  "Pack our gear?" asked Mason with alarm. "Are we going some place?"

  Loring shot a glance at the driver. "Just do as I tell you!" he growled."In a few hours we'll be on our way to Tara, and then--" He dropped hisvoice to a whisper. Mason listened and smiled.

  The jet cab slid along the arrow-straight highway toward the heart ofthe city of Venusport. Soon it reached the outskirts. On both sides ofthe highway rose low, flat-roofed dwellings, built on a revolving wheelto follow the precious sun, and constructed of pure Titan crystal.Farther ahead and looming magnificent in the late afternoon sun was thefirst and largest of Venusian cities, Venusport. Like a fantasticallylarge diamond, the startling towers of the young city shot upward intothe misty atmosphere, catching the light and reflecting it in everycolor of the spectrum.

  Loring and Mason did not appreciate the beauty of the city as they rodeswiftly through the busy streets. Loring, in particular, thought as hehad never thought before. He was busily putting a plot together in hismind--a plot as dangerous as it was criminal.

  _The jet cab raced along the highway to Venusport_]

  The jet cab slammed to a stop at a busy intersection of the city. Thiswas Spaceman's Row, and it dated back to Venusport's first rough andtough pioneering days.

  For two blocks on either side of the street, in building after building,cafes, pawnshops, cheap restaurants above and below the street level,supplied the needs of countless shadowy figures who came and went assilently as ghosts. Spaceman's Row was where suspended spacemen andspace rats, prospectors of the asteroids for uranium and pitchblende,gathered and found short-lived and rowdy fun. Here, skippers of rocketships, bound for destinations in deep space, could find hands willing tosign on their dirty freighters despite low pay and poor workingconditions. No questions were asked here. Along Spaceman's Row, hard menplayed a grim game of survival.

  Loring and Mason paid the driver, got out, and walked down the busystreet. Here and there, nuaniam signs began to flick on, their garishblues, reds, and whites bathing the street in a glow of synthetic light.It was early evening, but already Spaceman's Row was getting ready forthe coming night.

  Presently, Mason left Loring, climbing up a long narrow flight of stairsleading to a dingy back hall bedroom to pack their few remaining bits ofgear.

  Loring walked on amid the noise and laughter that echoed from cheaprestaurants and saloons. Stopping before Cafe Cosmos, he surveyed thestreet quickly before entering the wide doors. Many years before, theCosmos had been a sedate dining spot, a place where respectable familyparties came to enjoy good food and the gentle breezes of a near-bylake. Now, with the lake polluted by industry and with the gradualinflux of shiftless spacemen, the Cosmos had been given over to the mostbasic, simple need of its new patrons--rocket juice!

  The large room that Loring entered still retained some of the featuresof its more genteel beginnings, but the huge blaring teleceiver screenwas filled with the pouting face of a popular singer. He advanced to thebar that occupied one entire wall.

  "Rocket juice!" he said, slamming down his fist on the wooden bar."Double!" He was served a glass of the harsh bluish liquid, paid hiscredits, and downed the drink. Then he turned slowly and glanced aroundthe half-filled room. Almost immediately he spotted a small wizened manlimping toward him.

  "Been waiting for you," said the man.

  "Well," demanded Loring, "did'ja get anything set up, Shinny?"

  "_Mr._ Shinny!" growled the little man, with surprising vigor. "I'm oldenough to be your father!"

  "Awright--awright--_Mr._ Shinny!" sneered Loring. "Did'ja get it?"

  The little man shook his head. "Nothing on the market, Billy boy." Hepaused and aimed a stream of tobacco juice at a near-by cuspidor.

  Loring looked relieved. "Just as well. I've got something else lined up,anyway."

  Shinny's eyes sharpened. "You must have a pretty big strike, Billy boy,if you're so hot to buy a spaceship!"

  "Only want to take a little ride upstairs, _Mr._ Shinny," said Loring.

  "Don't hand me that space gas!" snapped Shinny. "A man who's lost hisspace papers ain't going to take a chance at getting caught by the SolarGuard, busting the void with a rocket ship and no papers." He stopped,and his small gray eyes twinkled. "_Unless_," he added, "you've gotquite a strike lined up!"

  "Hey, Loring!" yelled Mason, entering the cafe. He carried twospaceman's traveling bags, small black plastic containers with glasszippers.

  "So you've got Al Mason in with you," mused Shinny. "Pretty good man,Al. Let's see now, I saw you two just before you blasted off for Tara!"He paused. "Couldn't be that you've got anything lined up in deep space,now could it?"

  "You're an old fool!" snarled Loring.

  "Heh--heh--heh," chuckled Shinny. A toothless smile spread across hiswrinkled face. "Coming close, am I?"

  Al Mason looked at Shinny and back at Loring. "Say! What is this?" hedemanded.

  "O.K., O.K.," said Loring between clenched teeth. "So we've got a strikeout in the deep, but one word outta line from you and I'll blast youwith my heater!"

  "Not a word," said Shinny, "not a word. I'll only charge you a little tokeep your secret."

  Mason looked at Loring. "How much?" he demanded.

  "A twentieth of the take," said Shinny. "And that's dirt cheap."

  "It's robbery," said Loring, "but O.K. We've got no choice!"

  "Loring, wait a minute!" objected Mason. "One twentieth! Why, that couldadd up to a million credits!"

  Shinny's eyes opened wide. "Twenty million! Hey, there hasn't been auranium strike that big since the old seventeenth moon of Jupiter backin 2294!"

  Loring motioned to them to sit down at a table. He ordered a bottle ofrocket juice and filled three glasses.

  "This ain't uranium, _Mr._ Shinny!" he said.

  Shinny's eyes opened wider still. "What then?"

  "What's the most precious metal in the system today?" Loring asked.

  "Why--gold, I guess."

  "Next to gold?"

  Shinny thought for a moment. "Couldn't be silver any more, sincethey're making the artificial stuff cheaper'n it costs to mine it." Thelittle man's jaw dropped and he stared at Loring. "You mean--?"

  "That's right," said Loring, "copper!"

  Shinny's mind raced. In this year of 2353, all major copper depo
sits hadlong since been exhausted and only small new deposits were being found,not nearly enough for the needs of the expanding system. In an age ofelectronics, lack of copper had become a serious bottleneck in theproduction of electrical and scientific equipment. Search parties wereout constantly, all over the solar system, trying to find more of theprecious stuff. So a deposit of the kind Loring and Mason were talkingabout was a prize indeed.

  Shinny's greedy fingers twitched with anticipation.

  "So that's why you want to buy a spaceship, eh?"

  "Wanted," replied Loring. "I don't want to buy one now. The way thingslook, we'll get what we want for nothing!"

  Mason, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly jumped up. "So that's yourangle! Well, I don't want any part of it," he shouted.

  Loring and Shinny looked up in surprise.

  "What're you talking about?" demanded Loring.

  "All of a sudden it's come to me. Now I know why you've been hangingaround the spaceport for the last two weeks. And what you meant when yousaw the spaceman get out of that freighter today!"

  "Sit down!" barked Loring. "If you weren't so dumb, you'd have caught onlong ago." He eyed the shorter man from between half-closed lids. "It'sthe only way we can get out of here!"

  "Not me. I ain't pulling anything like that!" whined Mason.

  "What's going on here?" demanded Shinny. "What're you two space bumstalking about?"

  "I'll tell you what! He's going to try--"

  Loring suddenly stood up and slapped the shorter spaceman across themouth. Mason sat down, a dazed look on his face.

  "You space-crawling rat!" hissed Loring. "You'll do what I tell you todo, see?"

  "Yeah--yeah, sure," bleated Mason. "O.K. Anything you say. Anything."

  "What is this?" demanded Shinny.

  "You shut up!" growled Loring.

  "I won't!" said Shinny, as he also rose from the table. "You may betough, Billy Loring, but not as tough as me!"

  The two men stared at each other for a moment. Finally Loring smiled andpatted Mason's shoulder. "Sorry, Al. I guess I got a little hot for amoment."

  "Quit talking riddles," pleaded Shinny. "What's this all about?"

  "Sit down," said Loring.

  They sank back into their chairs.

  "It's simple," said Mason fearfully. "Loring wants to steal aspaceship."

  "A pirate job!" said Shinny. He drew in his breath sharply. "You must beoutta your mind!"

  "You've called yourself in on this," Loring reminded him. "And you'restaying in."

  "Oh, no!" Shinny's voice dropped to a husky, frightened whisper. "Deal'soff. I ain't gonna spend the rest of my life on a prison asteroid!"

  "Shinny, you know too much!" Loring's hand darted toward the blaster hewore at his belt.

  "Your secret's safe with me. I give you my spaceman's word on it," saidShinny, pushing back his chair. Abruptly getting to his feet, hescrambled rapidly out the door of the Cafe Cosmos.

  "Loring," said Mason, "get him. You can't let him ..."

  "Forget it," shot back the other. "He won't break his spaceman's oath.Not Shinny." He got up. "Come on, Mason. We haven't got much time beforethe _Annie Jones_ blasts off."

  "What are we gonna do?" the shorter man wanted to know.

  "Stow away on the cargo deck. Then, when we get out into space, we dumpthe pilots and head for Tara, for our first load of copper."

  "But a job like this'll take money!"

  "We'll make enough to go ahead on the first load."

  Mason began to get up, hesitated, and then sat down again.

  "Come on," snapped Loring. His hand dropped toward his belt. "I'm goingto make you rich, Mason," he said quietly. "I'm going to make you one ofthe richest men in the universe--even if I have to kill you first."