CHAPTER XV
_The Masquerader_
A moment when beyond all thought of the nearby brigand--or thepossibility of an eavesdropping ray trained now upon my little cubby--amoment while Anita and I held each other; and whispered those thingswhich could mean nothing to the world, but which were all the world tous.
Then it was she whose wits brought us back from the shining fairyland ofour love, into the sinister reality of the _Planetara_.
"Gregg, if they are listening--"
I pushed her away. This brave little masquerader! Not for my life, orfor all the lives on the ship, would I consciously have endangered her.
"But the ore," I said aloud. "There was, in Grantline's message--Seehere, Prince."
Coniston was too far away on the deck to hear us. Anita went to my dooragain and waved at him reassuringly. I put my ear to the door opening,and listened at the space across the grid of the ventilator over mybunk. The hum of a vibration would have been audible at those twopoints. But there was nothing.
"It's all right," I whispered. "Anita--not you who was killed! I canhardly realize it now. Not you whom they buried yesterday morning."
We stood and whispered, and she clung to me--so small beside me. Withthe black robe thrown aside, it seemed that I could not miss the curvesof her woman's figure. A dangerous game she was playing. Her hair hadbeen cut short to the base of her neck, in the fashion of her deadbrother. Her eyelashes had been clipped; the line of her brows altered.And now, in the light of my ray tube as it shone upon her earnest face,I could remark other changes. Glutz, the little beauty specialist, wasin this secret. With plastic skill he had altered the set of her jawwith his wax--put masculinity there.
She was whispering: "It was--was poor George whom Miko shot."
* * * * *
I had now the true version of what had occurred. Miko had been forcinghis wooing upon Anita. George Prince was a weakling whose only goodquality was a love for his sister. Some years ago he had fallen intoevil ways. Been arrested, and then discharged from his position with theFederated Radium Corporation. He had taken up with evil companions inGreat-New York. Mostly Martians. And Miko had met him. His technicalknowledge, his training with the Federated Corporation, made himvaluable to Miko's enterprise. And so Prince had joined the brigands.
Of all this, Anita had been unaware. She had never liked Miko. Fearedhim. And it seemed that the Martian had some hold upon her brother,which puzzled and frightened Anita.
Then Miko had fallen in love with her. George had not liked it. And thatnight on the _Planetara_, Miko had come and knocked upon Anita's door.Incautiously she opened it; he forced himself in. And when she repulsedhim, struggled with him, George had been awakened.
She was whispering to me now. "My room was dark. We were all threestruggling. George was holding me--the shot came--and I screamed."
And Miko had fled, not knowing whom his shot had hit in the darkness.
"And when George died, Captain Carter wanted me to impersonate him. Weplanned it with Dr. Frank, to try and learn what Miko and the otherswere doing. Because I never knew that poor George had fallen into suchevil things."
* * * * *
I could only hold her thankfully in my arms. The lostwhat-might-have-been seemed coming back to us.
"And they cut my hair, Gregg, and Glutz altered my face a little, and Idid my best. But there was no time--it came upon us so quickly."
And she whispered, "But I love you, Gregg. I want to be the first to sayit: I love you--I love you."
But we had the sanity to try and plan.
"Anita, when you go back, tell Miko we discussed radium ores. You'llhave to be careful, clever. Don't say too much. Tell him we estimate thetreasure at a hundred and thirty millions."
I told her what Miko had vouchsafed me of his plans. She knew all that.And Snap knew it. She had had a few moments alone with Snap. Gave me nowa message from him:
"We'll pull out of this, Gregg."
With Snap she had worked out a plan. There were Snap and I; and Shac andDud Ardley, upon whom we could doubtless depend. And Dr. Frank. Againstus were Miko and his sister; and Coniston and Hahn. Of course there werethe members of the crew. But we were numerically the stronger when itcame to true leadership. Unarmed and guarded now. But if we could breakloose--recapture the ship....
I sat listening to Anita's eager whispers. It seemed feasible. Miko didnot altogether trust George Prince; Anita was now unarmed.
"But I can make opportunity! I can get one of their ray cylinders, andan invisible cloak equipment."
That cloak--it had been hidden in Miko's room when Carter searched forit in A20--was now in the chart-room by Johnson's body. It had beenrepaired now; Anita thought she could get possession of it.
* * * * *
We worked out the details of the plan. Anita would arm herself, and comeand release me. Together, with a paralyzing ray, we could creep aboardthe ship, overcome these brigands one by one. There were so few of theleaders. With them felled, and with us in control of the turret and thehelio-room we could force the crew to stay at their posts. There were,Anita said, no navigators among Miko's crew. They would not dare opposeus.
"But it should be done at once, Anita. In a few hours we will be at theasteroid."
"Yes. I will go now--try and get the weapons."
"Where is Snap?"
"Still in the helio-room. One of the crew guards him."
Coniston was roaming the ship; he was still loitering on the deck,watching our door. Hahn was in the turret. The morning watch of the crewwere at their posts in the hull-corridors; the stewards were preparing amorning meal. There were nine members of subordinates altogether, Anitahad calculated. Six of them were in Miko's pay; the other three--our ownmen who had not been killed in the fighting--had joined the brigands.
"And Dr. Frank, Anita?"
He was in the lounge. All the passengers were herded there, with Mikoand Moa alternating on guard.
"I will arrange it with Venza," Anita whispered swiftly. "She will tellthe others. Dr. Frank knows about it now. He thinks it can be done."
* * * * *
The possibility of it swept me anew. The brigands were of necessityscattered singly about the ship. One by one, creeping under cover of aninvisible cloak, I could fell them, and replace them without alarmingthe others. My thoughts leaped to it. We would strike down the guard inthe helio-room. Release Snap. At the turret we could assail Hahn, andreplace him with Snap.
Coniston's voice outside broke in upon us. "Prince."
He was coming forward. Anita stood in the doorway. "I have the figures,Coniston. By God, this Haljan is with us! And clever! We think it willtotal a hundred and thirty millions. What a stake!"
She whispered, "Gregg, dear--I'll be back soon. We can do it--be ready."
"Anita--be careful of yourself! If they should suspect you...."
"I'll be careful. In an hour, Gregg, or less, I'll come back. All right,Coniston. Where is Miko? I want to see him. Stay where you are, Haljan!All in good time Miko will trust you with your liberty. You'll be richlike us all, never fear."
She swaggered out upon the deck, waved at the brigand, and banged mycubby door in my face.
I sat upon my bunk. Waiting. Would she come back? Would she besuccessful?