the lower cargo holds. Ross was the nearer of the two, walking like a
cat, slowly, ready to spring or fire at the slightest movement. Tom
quickly saw that if he jumped Ross, Quent would be on him in seconds.
His only chance lay in their passing him, giving him the opportunity to
return to the control deck and search for a ray gun for himself. And if
that failed, at least he could call Commander Walters.

Ross crept closer. Tom crouched tensely. Should Ross see him, Tom would
have to make an attempt to knock him out and get the ray gun before
Quent could do anything.

"Careful, Quent!" called Ross as he moved toward the open hatch.

"You too," replied his brother. "This kid is plenty smart."

Tom breathed a silent prayer. Ross was now opposite the door. Should the
black-suited spaceman decide to look behind it, Tom would be at his
mercy.

Ross stopped beside the door and hesitated a moment.

"Hey, Ross!" Quent called, and Ross turned away from the door. "I think
I hear something down inside the hold. Slip down the ladder a little way
and cover me. I'll go down inside and look around. He must be down here
somewhere, and if you guard the door, he can't get out."

Ross grinned. "Like flushing quail in Venus jungles," he said, moving
away from the door and down into the hold where the lead boxes filled
with uranium pitchblende were stored.

Tom could scarcely suppress a loud sigh of relief at his narrow escape.
After a moment he peered cautiously around the edge of the door, and
seeing the way clear to the control deck, ran back to the ladder. He
paused at Roger's inert form and bent over, his lips close to the
paralyzed cadet's ear.

"I'm going to try and find a ray gun," he whispered quickly. "If I
can't, then I'm going to try and get in touch with Commander Walters or
the Solar Guard patrols."

He patted the blond-haired cadet on the shoulder and raced up the
ladder to the control deck. Once inside, he barred the door to the rest
of the ship and began a frantic search of the many lockers and drawers.
But it was fruitless. He could find no ray gun or weapon of any kind.
Desperate, knowing that Ross and Quent would return to the control deck
when they had searched the rest of the ship, Tom turned and scrambled up
the ladder to the radar deck.

Again, barring the door behind him, he sat before the audioceiver and
began calling the _Polaris_.

"This is Cadet Corbett aboard rocket ship _Space Knight_ in quadrant