The Stainless Steel Rat eBook Collection (127 page)

‘What is the name of home, of the cold world?’ I whispered.

‘The name … the name …’

The transformation was
immediate. Kraj began to writhe on the bed, his face twisted and working, his eyes wide and staring. Dr. Mutfak was shouting at him to forget the question,
to lie still, while he tried to get a hypodermic needle into his thrashing arm. But it was too late. The reaction I had triggered went on and, just for an instant, I swear there was the light of intelligence and hatred in his eyes as the conscious Kraj became aware of what was happening.

But only for that moment. An instant later his back arched in a silent spasm and he collapsed, still and unmoving.

‘Dead,’ Dr. Mutfak pronounced, looking at his telltale instruments.

‘That was useful,’ Angelina said, walking to the window and throwing open the curtains. ‘Time for a swim if you feel up to it, darling. Then we’ll have to think of a way to get another gray man for Dr. Mutfak. Now that we know the area to avoid we can make him last longer while he is questioned.’

The doctor recoiled. ‘I couldn’t,
not again. We killed him, I killed him. There was an implanted order, an irresistible order, to die rather than reveal where this planet is. It can be done, the death wish. I have seen it now. Never again.’

‘We have been raised differently, doctor,’ Angelina said, calmly and without passion. ‘I would shoot a creature like Kraj in battle and I feel no differently about his dying in this manner.
You know what he is and what he has done.’

I said nothing because I agreed with them both. Angelina who saw the galaxy as a jungle, survival as a matter of eating or being eaten. And the doctor, a humanitarian who had been raised in a matriarchy, stable and unchanging, peaceful and
at peace. They were both right. An interesting animal is man.

‘Take a rest, Doc,’ I said. ‘Take one of your own
pills. You have been up for a day and a night and that can’t be doing you any good. We’ll see you when you wake up, but have a good rest first.’

I took Angelina’s arm and guided her out, away from the sad little man who was staring, unseeing, at the floor.

‘You don’t feel sorry for that Kraj creature?’ Angelina asked, giving me her number two frown which means something like I’m not looking
for trouble, but if you are you are certainly going to get it.

‘Me? Not much chance, love. Kraj is the man who unreeled the barbed wire in my brain a while back and tried to do the same to you. I’m only sorry we couldn’t get more from him before he left us.’

‘The next one will tell more. At least we know now that your idea was right. They may not be aliens, but they certainly aren’t natives
of Cliaand. If we can root them out of there we might be able to stop the entire invasion thing.’

‘Easier visualized than accomplished. Let’s have that swim and brood about it over a drink when we come out.’

The water loosened up my muscles and made me profoundly aware of a great hunger and thirst. I called in on my sonar communicator so that a small steak and a bottle of beer were waiting at
the water’s edge when we emerged. These barely brushed the fringes of my appetite yet gave me the strength to make it back to our room for a more elaborate meal.

And elaborate it was, seven courses beginning with a fiery Burada soup, going on to fish and meat and other delicacies too numerous to mention. Angelina ate a bit then sipped at her wine while I finished most of the food in sight. Finally
replete I ordered the soiled dishes away and settled back with a sigh.

‘I have been thinking,’ I said.

‘You could have fooled me. I thought you were eating like a pig with both trotters in the trough.’

‘Just save the bucolic humor. A hard night’s work deserves a good day’s food. Cliaand, that’s our problem. Or rather the gray men who have her war economy so firmly under control. I’ll bet if
we could get rid of them the original Cliaandians would not have this same burning interest in interstellar conquest.’

‘Simple enough. A program of planned assassination. There can’t be too many of them, Kraj said as much. Polish them off. I’ll be glad to take on the assignment.’

‘Oh no you won’t. No wife of mine hires out as a contract gun. It is not that simple – physically or morally. The
gray men can guard themselves well. And that the ends justify the means is a bankrupt statement. You saw what happened to Dr. Mutfak when he worked for a good end but used means that ran counter to his moral beliefs. You and I are of tougher fabric, my love, but we would still be affected if we went in for mass slaughter …’

She went white and I was sorry I had said it. I took her hand.

‘I didn’t
mean it that way. I wasn’t talking about the past.’

‘I know, but it still stirred up some unwholesome memories. Let’s forget assassination. What else can be done?’

‘A number of things, I am sure, if we can only ask just the right questions. There must be a way to break apart the constantly expanding Cliaand empire.’

Angelina touched the wine glass to her lips and a highly attractive concentration
line appeared between her eyes.

‘What about starting
counter-revolutions or rebellions on all the conquered worlds?’ she said. ‘If we kept the Cliaandians busy fighting on the presently conquered planets they couldn’t very well go seeking for new territory.’

‘You’re nibbling close to the idea there, but it’s not quite right yet. We can’t expect much from the resistance movements on these different
worlds if the example of Burada is at all relevant. You heard what Taze said, the fighting is dying down because of the massive reaction by the Cliaand forces. If one of them is killed in a raid they slaughter twenty Buradans in return. These people, after generations of peace are not mentally equipped to fight a ruthless guerrilla war. I even doubt if the Cliaandians would react so viciously
if they weren’t forced on by the gray men who organized and order everything. The soldiers just follow orders, and following orders has always been a Cliaand strength. We’ll never stop these people by trying to incite minor revolts behind their backs. But you are right about causing them trouble on the various worlds. The entire Cliaandian economy and culture is set up on a continuing wartime basis.
It is like some demented life form that must keep expanding or die. Cliaand itself can’t possibly build or supply its fleets but must depend on the conquered worlds. These worlds are in the absolute control of the Cliaand so they take orders and turn out the goods and the invasions roll on and nothing can stop the advance.’

‘I wish the Cliaand invasion was that demented life form you talk about,
some sort of ugly green growing thing. We could tear it up by the roots, break off the limbs—’ She broke a hard roll in half to demonstrate what she meant, then nibbled at it. When she started to speak again I held up my hand.

‘Stop,’ I ordered. ‘Say nothing. I
think. I see something. It is almost there.’

Then I paced the room, putting two and two together and getting four and adding four and
getting eight and performing equally skilled problems of mathematics and logic. It was clear, all clear, and the pieces fell into place and I fell into my chair and grabbed up my drink.

‘I am a genius,’ I said.

‘I know. That’s why I married you. Physically you are very unattractive.’

‘You will soon be apologizing for that remark, woman. For the moment we will drink to my plan and to victory.’

We clinked and sipped.

‘What plan?’ she asked.

‘I cannot tell you yet. Aside from the fact that you scoffed, it is not detailed in all its ramifications and must be worked out. But the first step is clear and will begin at once or sooner. Do you think the gray men have made a public announcement of Kraj’s kidnapping?’

‘I doubt it. We’ve heard nothing on the command circuits we monitor. And
I’m sure this is not the kind of news they would want the Cliaandian man-in-the-spaceship to know about.’

‘Just my thinking. Add to this the exaggerated aloofness and self-centered attitude that they have, even towards each other. I am going to gamble on the fact that there has been no widespread announcement about Kraj.’

‘How?’

‘Get the makeup and face-lifting kit. I am going to get into the
military base disguised as Kraj. I have some important things to do there.’

She started to protest, but I raised my finger and she was silent. Just as I had been when she went to the Octagon. There was nothing she could say and she knew it.

Without a word she went for the disguise materials.

I
NEEDED
C
LIAANDIAN TRANSPORTATION
and I got it in
the simplest way possible. From the enemy. Since I wasn’t outrageously happy about the makeup job we had done I decided to operate after dark when the dim lights would help the illusion. Then, wearing Kraj’s uniform and carrying my own case, I went with Hamal to the Octagon, scene of the earlier festivities. Hamal was a member of
the auxiliary police, male that is, since the women made up most of the force. I would have preferred one of the girls, they seemed much more sure of themselves, but there were only male Cliaand troops on the planet at this time. The handful of Cliaand women stayed out of sight. Hamal looked a little nervous and I didn’t like the way he rolled his eyes from time to time, but he would have to do.

‘You understand your part?’ I asked him, pushing him into the shadowed entrance to the deep doorway.

‘I do, sir, sure I do.’

Were his teeth chattering? It was hard to tell. I took out the vial Dr. Mutfak had given me for use in case of emergency.

‘Take two of these, chew and swallow. They’re happy pills that should raise your morale without sending you dancing through the streets.’

‘I don’t
…’

‘You do now. Take.’

He took and I scuttled away towards the Octagon, keeping to the shadows, and looking carefully around the corner before I made my play. There
was a certain amount of traffic in and out of the building even at this hour of the night, but nothing that would help me. Finally a small ground car pulled up and dropped two officers off, then started away. In my direction. All
systems go. I stepped into the street in front of it and waved my hand; it squealed to a stop with the front bumper almost touching me. The driver looked frightened and I kept him that way.

‘Do you always drive like that?’

‘No, sir, but …’

‘Save your excuses, they don’t interest me.’ I climbed into the car next to him while he was still gaping. ‘Drive on, I’ll tell you where I want to go.’

‘Sir, this car, I mean …’

A single, cold, Krajian look wilted him like a spring flower in a blizzard and he shot the car forward. As soon as we were out of sight of the building I ordered him to stop and broke a sleep capsule under his nose. I’m sure he could use the rest. Then I drove him to the place where Hamal was waiting. He had pried open the door to the stationery store in which he was
hiding, and we carried the Cliaand trooper inside. He would sleep until morning after that capsule and I arranged reams of paper comfortably under his head and feet while Hamal changed into his uniform.

‘Do you know how to drive this car?’ I asked him when we emerged.

‘I should. It’s one of ours. They stole it and painted their dirty flag on it.’

‘Spoils of war regained. Now drive me to the
spaceport. And don’t stop completely at the gate, just slow down and keep rolling. It’s all bluff so keep your chin up and try not to look as scared as you are. Be a man.’

‘I am,’ he moaned. ‘But this is a
woman’s job. I don’t know how I ever got myself talked into it.’

‘Shut up and drive on. And take a couple more of these pills.’

The spaceport was ahead and I was more worried about my driver
than I was about anyone there. I had seen the way they stayed out of Kraj’s way. Perhaps that would help to explain my driver’s obvious fear. I sighed. Roll on the car. Everyone was supposed to know Kraj – and now I was putting that theory to the test. The guards snapped to attention when we appeared and the sergeant started to say something, but I talked first.

‘Stay away from that phone. I
want to talk to some people and I don’t want you telling them I’m coming. You know what will happen to you if you do.’ I had to shout the last words since, in his near panic, Hamal had not slowed enough and we zipped right by the guards. But they must have heard because they made no attempt that I could see to get near their phone. Step one.

‘I can’t do it!’ Hamal sobbed and spun the wheel on
the car until we were headed back towards the gate. ‘I’m going home. I was never cut out for the police, it was all my mother’s idea, she wanted me to be like a daughter to her and made a tom girl out of me. When all I ever wanted to be was a simple househusband like my father …’

The gate was coming up at a great rate and I cursed fluently and jumbled out a sleep capsule to crack in front of
his face, then tugged at the wheel. I had to hold him up with the other hand and we made another turn and zipped off into the night again. I hesitated to think what the guards at the gate thought about all this. Struggling with the controls I managed to guide the car to the rear of one of the big hangars before Hamal’s foot slipped off the accelerator and the engine died.

There were crates
of
some kind in the rear of the car as well as a bundle of army blankets. I heaved everything out except the blankets which I used to cover Hamal, now curled up sweetly on the floor. Perhaps I should have shot him or just dumped him out. But it really wasn’t his fault that he was born low man in a matriarchy. As long as no one came near the car we were safe, and I did not feel that anyone would show
that much interest in Kraj’s car. I drove to the nearest spacer, a great cargo transport, and parked well away from the lights around the entrance. Now for step two.

‘You know who I am?’ I said to the master at arms stationed at the foot of the gangway. My voice cold and empty.

‘Yes, sir, I do.’ He stood at attention staring directly ahead of him.

‘All right, then have the Chief Engineer meet
me on A deck.’