Free The Road to the Rim by A. Bertram Chandler Page B

have that compartment literally sealed in a cocoon of insulation. Oh, I know it's not effective, but it will give us a second or so of grace. No more."

    "We can't use our reflective vapor," went on Grimes. "That'd be almost as bad, from our viewpoint, as loosing off a salvo of missiles. But, sir, when this ship was first attacked there must have been a considerable loss of mass when the atmosphere was expelled through the rents in the shell plating . . . the Drive was running. How was it that the ship wasn't flung into some other space-time?"

    "Come, come, Mr. Grimes. You should know the answer to that one. She was held by the powerful temporal precession fields of the drive units of the two pirates. And then, of course, when the engineers managed to set up their random precession there was no mass left to be expelled."

    "H'm. I see. Or I think I see. Then, in that case, why shouldn't I use my ALGE as soon as we're attacked?"

    "No. Better not. Something might just go wrong—and I don't want to become one of my own ancestors."

    "Then . . . ?"

    "You tell me, Mr. Grimes."

    "Cut our Drive . . . ? Break out into the normal continuum? Yes . . . it could work." He was becoming enthusiastic. "And then we shall be waiting for-them, with our missile batteries, when they break out."

    "We'll make an admiral of you yet, young Grimes."

     

    WITH WATCHKEEPING and with off-watch duties time was fully occupied. And yet there was something missing. There was, Grimes said to himself, one hell of a lot missing. Jane Pentecost had her own watch to keep, and her own jobs to do when she was not in the control room—but she and Grimes had some free time to share. But they did not share it.

    He broached the subject when he was running a test on the artificial chlorophyll in the ATREG. "Jane, I was hoping I'd see more of you."

    "You're seeing plenty of me."

    "But not enough."

    "Don't be tiresome," she snapped. Then, in a slightly softer voice, "Don't . . . "

    " . . . spoil everything?" he finished for her sardonically.

    "You know what I mean," she told him coldly.

    "Do I?" He groped for words. "Jane . . . Damn it all, I hoped . . . After what happened aboard the Delia O'Ryan . . . "

    "That," she said, "was different." Her face flushed. "I tell you this, Grimes, if I'd known that you were coming along with us it never would have happened."

    "No?"

    "NO!"

    "Even so . . . I don't see any reason why we shouldn't . . ."

    "Why we shouldn't what? Oh, all right, all right. I know what you mean. But it's out of the question. I'll tell you why, in words of one syllable. In a ship such as Delta Orionis discreet fun and games were permissible, even desirable. No shortage of women—both crew and passengers. Here, I'm the only female. Your friend Mr. Baxter has been sniffing after me. And Mr. Wolverton, the Interstellar Chief. And his Second. And even, bereaved though he is, the Bearded Bastard. He might get away with it—the privileges of rank and all that. But nobody else would—most certainly not yourself. How long would it remain a secret if we went to bed together?"

    "I suppose you're right, but . . ."

    "But what? Oh John, John, you are a stubborn cow."

    " Cow ?"

    "Sorry. Just Rimworldsese. Applicable to both sexes."

    "Talking of sex . . ."

    "Oh, shut up !"

    "I'll not." She looked desirable standing there. A small smudge of grease on her flushed cheek was like a beauty spot. "I'll not," he said again. She was close to him, and he was acutely conscious that beneath the thin uniform shirt and the short shorts there was only Jane. He had only to reach out. He did so. At first she did not resist—and then exploded into a frenzy of activity. Before he could let go of her a hard, rough hand closed on his shirt collar and yanked him backwards.

    "Keep yer dirty paws off her!" snarled a voice. It was Baxter's. "Keep yer dirty paws off her! If we didn't want yer ter let off the fireworks I'd do