The Crystal Crypt Page 2

fadinginto the distance.

  A sigh of relief passed through the passengers. "What a lot of hot airthat was," one grumbled.

  "Barbarians!" a woman said.

  A few of them stood up, moving out into the aisle, toward the lounge andthe cocktail bar. Beside Thacher the girl got to her feet, pulling herjacket around her shoulders.

  "Pardon me," she said, stepping past him.

  "Going to the bar?" Thacher said. "Mind if I come along?"

  "I suppose not."

  They followed the others into the lounge, walking together up the aisle."You know," Thacher said, "I don't even know your name, yet."

  "My name is Mara Gordon."

  "Mara? That's a nice name. What part of Terra are you from? NorthAmerica? New York?"

  "I've been in New York," Mara said. "New York is very lovely." She wasslender and pretty, with a cloud of dark hair tumbling down her neck,against her leather jacket.

  They entered the lounge and stood undecided.

  "Let's sit at a table," Mara said, looking around at the people at thebar, mostly men. "Perhaps that table over there."

  "But someone's there already," Thacher said. The heavy-set business manhad sat down at the table and deposited his sample case on the floor."Do we want to sit with _him_?"

  "Oh, it's all right," Mara said, crossing to the table. "May we sithere?" she said to the man.

  The man looked up, half-rising. "It's a pleasure," he murmured. Hestudied Thacher intently. "However, a friend of mine will be joining mein a moment."

  "I'm sure there's room enough for us all," Mara said. She seated herselfand Thacher helped her with her chair. He sat down, too, glancing upsuddenly at Mara and the business man. They were looking at each otheralmost as if something had passed between them. The man was middle-aged,with a florid face and tired, grey eyes. His hands were mottled with theveins showing thickly. At the moment he was tapping nervously.

  "My name's Thacher," Thacher said to him, holding out his hand. "BobThacher. Since we're going to be together for a while we might as wellget to know each other."

  The man studied him. Slowly his hand came out. "Why not? My name'sErickson. Ralf Erickson."

  "Erickson?" Thacher smiled. "You look like a commercial man, to me." Henodded toward the sample case on the floor. "Am I right?"

  The man named Erickson started to answer, but at that moment there was astir. A thin man of about thirty had come up to the table, his eyesbright, staring down at them warmly. "Well, we're on our way," he saidto Erickson.

  "Hello, Mara." He pulled out a chair and sat down quickly, folding hishands on the table before him. He noticed Thacher and drew back alittle. "Pardon me," he murmured.

  "Bob Thacher is my name," Thacher said. "I hope I'm not intrudinghere." He glanced around at the three of them, Mara, alert, watching himintently, heavy-set Erickson, his face blank, and this person. "Say, doyou three know each other?" he asked suddenly.

  There was silence.

  The robot attendant slid over soundlessly, poised to take their orders.Erickson roused himself. "Let's see," he murmured. "What will we have?Mara?"

  "Whiskey and water."

  "You, Jan?"

  The bright slim man smiled. "The same."

  "Thacher?"

  "Gin and tonic."

  "Whiskey and water for me, also," Erickson said. The robot attendantwent off. It returned at once with the drinks, setting them on the table.Each took his own. "Well," Erickson said, holding his glass up. "To ourmutual success."

  * * * * *

  All drank, Thacher and the three of them, heavy-set Erickson, Mara, hereyes nervous and alert, Jan, who had just come. Again a look passedbetween Mara and Erickson, a look so swift that he would not have caughtit had he not been looking directly at her.

  "What line do you represent, Mr. Erickson?" Thacher asked.

  Erickson glanced at him, then down at the sample case on the floor. Hegrunted. "Well, as you can see, I'm a salesman."

  Thacher smiled. "I knew it! You get so you can always spot a salesmanright off by his sample case. A salesman always has to carry somethingto show. What are you in, sir?"

  Erickson paused. He licked his thick lips, his eyes blank and lidded,like a toad's. At last he rubbed his mouth with his hand and reacheddown, lifting up the sample case. He set it on the table in front ofhim.

  "Well?" he said. "Perhaps we might even show Mr. Thacher."

  They all stared down at the sample case. It seemed to be an ordinaryleather case, with a metal handle and a snap lock. "I'm gettingcurious," Thacher said. "What's in there? You're all so tense. Diamonds?Stolen jewels?"

  Jan laughed harshly, mirthlessly. "Erick, put it down. We're not farenough away, yet."

  "Nonsense," Erick rumbled. "We're away, Jan."

  "Please," Mara whispered. "Wait, Erick."

  "Wait? Why? What for? You're so accustomed to--"

  "Erick," Mara said. She nodded toward Thacher. "We don't know him,Erick. Please!"

  "He's a Terran, isn't he?" Erickson said. "All Terrans are together inthese times." He fumbled suddenly at the catch lock on the case. "Yes,Mr. Thacher. I'm a salesman. We're all salesmen, the three of us."

  "Then you do know each other."

  "Yes." Erickson nodded. His two companions sat rigidly, staring down."Yes, we do. Here, I'll show you our line."

  He opened the case. From it he took a letter-knife, a pencil sharpener,a glass globe paperweight, a box of thumb tacks, a stapler, some clips,a plastic ashtray, and some things Thacher could not identify. He placedthe objects in a row in front of him on the table top. Then he closedthe sample case.

  "I gather you're in office supplies," Thacher said. He touched theletter-knife with his finger. "Nice quality steel. Looks like Swedishsteel, to me."

  Erickson nodded, looking into Thacher's face. "Not really an impressivebusiness, is it? Office supplies. Ashtrays, paper clips." He smiled.

  "Oh--" Thacher shrugged. "Why not? They're a necessity in modernbusiness. The only thing I wonder--"

  "What's that?"

  "Well, I wonder how you'd ever find enough customers on Mars to make itworth your while." He paused, examining the glass paperweight. He liftedit up, holding it to the light, staring at the scene within untilErickson took it out of his hand and put it back in the sample case."And another thing. If you three know each other, why did you sit apartwhen you got on?"

  They looked at him quickly.

  "And why didn't you speak to each other until we left Deimos?" He leanedtoward Erickson, smiling at him. "Two men and a woman. Three of you.Sitting apart in the ship. Not speaking, not until the check-stationwas past. I find myself thinking over what the Martian said. Threesaboteurs. A woman and two men."

  Erickson put the things back in the sample case. He was smiling, but hisface had gone chalk white. Mara stared down, playing with a drop ofwater on the edge of her glass. Jan clenched his hands togethernervously, blinking rapidly.

  "You three are the ones the Leiter was after," Thacher said softly. "Youare the destroyers, the saboteurs. But their lie detector-- Why didn'tit trap you? How did you get by that? And now you're safe, outside thecheck-station." He grinned, staring around at them. "I'll be damned! AndI really thought you were a salesman, Erickson. You really fooled me."

  Erickson relaxed a little. "Well, Mr. Thacher, it's in a good cause. I'msure you have no love for Mars, either. No Terran does. And I see you'releaving with the rest of us."

  "True," Thacher said. "You must certainly have an interesting account togive, the three of you." He looked around the table.

  "We still have an hour or so of travel. Sometimes it gets dull, thisMars-Terra run. Nothing to see, nothing to do but sit and drink in thelounge." He raised his eyes slowly. "Any chance you'd like to spin astory to keep us awake?"

  Jan and Mara looked at Erickson. "Go on," Jan said. "He knows who weare. Tell him the rest of the story."

  "You might as well," Mara said.

 
Jan let out a sigh suddenly, a sigh of relief. "Let's put the cards onthe table, get this weight off us. I'm tired of sneaking around,slipping--"

  "Sure," Erickson said expansively. "Why not?" He settled back in hischair, unbuttoning his vest.