Part 3 (1/2)

”Good, Paul,” Doc Stone smiled thinly. ”I've told you he's a good boy.”

”Hm-m-m,” said Cleary. ”He says his tests can't prove what went wrong with the switching gate on the satellites, and in effect that the telemetry doesn't make it plain whether we have design or a.s.sembly trouble.”

”Well, _well_!” said Fred Stone. I decided to start shopping for a marker for my grave.

”Yes,” Cleary said. ”He made quite a suggestion, that we send a man out in s.p.a.ce to look over the Telstars and find out what went wrong.

Even better, he says it might be possible to make a repair at the same time and get the bird working. You can see the advantages of doing that, the way they are orbiting.”

”Yes, indeed,” Doc Stone said, looking at me with slitted eyes. ”Quite a unique adventure for some technician.”

”Just what I was thinking,” Cleary said. ”The problem resolves into: Who do we send? Now Mike, here, says we should take a man from his lab who knows the bird and its a.s.sembly and teach him how to get around in a s.p.a.cesuit--that, he claims, would be quicker than taking one of these s.p.a.ce jockeys and making a technician out of him.”

”I think he's right.”

”So--there we are. Who do we send?”

”There can hardly be any choice,” Dr. Stone said, looking at me with eyes like granite.

”Hardly,” Cleary agreed. ”The head of the lab is the best man, beyond a doubt.”

They were talking about me! Try to get out of taking sides, would I?

Cleary wanted me back in the middle. Stone wanted me dead. They were both likely to get their way, unless I told them off.

I opened my mouth. Cleary cleared his throat loudly.

”Oh, Dr. Seaman!” Sylvia cut in, breaking her careful silence. ”What a thrilling opportunity for you!”

I gaped at her. Well, Cleary had said it. She only went out with astronauts. She was s.p.a.ce-happy.

”There are men in the shop who deserve the chance....” I started.

”Nonsense!” she said quickly. ”It's your idea, doctor, and you deserve the fame!”

”And the promotion this will undoubtedly earn--if you can bring it off,” Cleary added.

”Yes!” Dr. Stone said with relish. He didn't think I could, either.

Well, that made three of us, unless Sylvia made four.

”Thank you very much,” I started, as a prelude to backing out.

”Good, that's settled,” Cleary said. ”That's all, Sylvia.”

She got up and left. She had done her dirty work. If I hadn't been so sick at my stomach, I would have had to admire really great teamwork.

Stone shook my hand with an evil kind of relish and followed her out.

That left Paul Cleary and me alone. ”This is a great thing, young man,” he said.