ollowed, their voices filled with
excitement now that the moment had come.

Trent followed along with them, but felt a peculiar tenseness within
him. He had been watching for Gaddon to make his appearance. But as yet
the Englishman had not showed up. Was it possible that he wasn't going
to watch the rocket launching? As Trent followed the others out into the
gathering night, he frowned to himself. It was certainly strange. And
entirely unlike the blustering manner Gaddon had displayed on the drive
back from Tucson. Or had the man suddenly realized that he had made a
fool of himself and was taking this easy way out?

But that too didn't seem natural. And Trent found himself edging
forward through the ranks of the newsmen, until he had reached the side
of Mathieson.

The scientist was talking to one of the journalists as they rounded the
corner of the Administration building. Now the rockets were in sight,
standing tall and immense in the shadows.

Mathieson held his hand up in a gesture of halt, and the men behind him
drew into a compact circle.

Fred turned to Mathieson.

"Dr. Mathieson, isn't Dr. Gaddon going to be here for the launching?"

The head of the rocket project turned to Trent. Fred could see a
suddenly puzzled look in his eyes.

"Yes, that is strange ..." Then he laughed. "I suppose Gaddon is in the
laboratory supervising the firing controls. Well, if he wants to miss
the show, that's his fault. He knows the schedule."

Trent accepted the scientist's words without replying. But he still
wasn't satisfied. What was it that Gaddon had said in the car about the
biggest story of the year? What had the man meant? Question after
question arose in Trent's mind as he stood there, and always the queer
feeling inside him grew in intensity. He could not place his finger on
it, but somehow, he knew that something was wrong.

But then his suspicions were put aside for the moment as he heard
Mathieson say:

"All right, gentlemen, the time is nearly here. In precisely one minute
the rocket will be fired."

The statement was made with a quiet eagerness, and then suddenly the
gathered witnesses grew silent.

Trent's eyes, along with the others, fastened on the looming bulk of the
waiting rocket.

And the seconds ticked off in Fred's mind.

As he counted them, he thought that it seemed impossible that within a
very few moments that gigantic hulk of smooth, tapered metal would
dislodge itself from the cradle