Badge of Infamy

cut

nd left him gasping with the need to scream and beat his cell walls. There were also times w

s all fear and resentment on him. Maybe it was working. There were screaming crowds outside the jail, and the noise of their hatred was strong enough to carr

ed him up to the roof of the jail, where a rocket was waiting. The landing space was too small for one of the station shuttles, but a little Northpor

s also a young pilot, looking nervous and unhappy. He was muttering

Chris order

e pilot protested. "The only thing that will get this into orbit with the station i

ld him firmly. "You've got your

had never been afraid to do what she felt she should. The pilot stared a

see that there was even some fuel remaining when they slipped into the tube

shoved him through the airlock into the station. Fifteen minutes later he was locke

as a human fiend, he was installed in a luxury cabin of the finest ship of the fleet, with

p on that and plugged it in. It seemed a shame that good equipment should be wasted along with

There was a long wait, as if the procedure were being checked with some autho

ance of getti

on first

much, considering the distance he was going. "Bring me tw

icide that way, you're wrong. You may be si

ologies. Until you reach your destination, you are my passenger and entitled to every consideration of any o

heard of such men. But he'd

chastened manner. He managed to find space fo

m, though there was no proper nourishment in it. He squeezed some of the gravy and bits of meat into one of his bottles, sticking to his purpose; then he fell

t to work. It was better than wasting his time in dre

finished with his bottles, put them into the incubator, and piled into

en he awoke. There was also a red flashing light over the cal

speaker said. "May I j

switch and glanced at the clock on the wall.

riendliness nor hostility in his glance. His words were courteous as Doc

s greatly worried about this plague. I violate no confidence in telling you there is considerable unease, even on Earth, according to messages I

his patients above anything else, though he was probably meticulous about obey

ve Selznik's mig

t together, shortly after having our metabol

n's skull; the swelling was there. He asked

ptain, though it won't mature

no hope

life. "Nothing that I've found, Captain. I have a clue, but I'm still w

ave orders to burn out your cabin when you leave. But thank you." H

es lingered on the little bottle of cultures. At times the fear grew in him, but he mastered

the hall, but he was reasonably sure of his resul

suit to him. The other two began gathering up everything in the cabin and stowin

for the helmet, but the man shook his head, pointing to the oxygen gauge. There would be exactly

when they reached the airlock, with its inner door already open. The spacesuited man climbed into it and

ed. Now he raised it to his

haled deeply. Fear was thick in every muscle, and he

normal, Captain Everts," he said, and his voi

ly. The man bowed faintly.

curious relief at the formality of it. It was like

snap down. A hiss of oxygen reached him and the suit ballooned out. There was no gravity; t

nometer that had been installed in the lock. The spaceman us

held him against the outer seal. The red lig

the Iroquois seemed to jerk sideways slightly

blinked and st

s, and Doc went with it. He was alone in space, gliding away from the shi