*

There were many details to consider carefully, but instead Winford found
himself thinking of Teutoberg down by the air-lock, stripped of his
clothing, ready for his last adventure with life. As much as Winford
hated the man, he was forced into an unwilling admiration for his dogged
fight in the control room. A mere word in that telephone would save him.
Winford shook his head irritably. The man deserved death. Yet again he
saw the set features, the final walk into the air-lock. Suddenly Winford
found himself at the phone and heard himself giving the order that would
save Teutoberg's life. He sat down again, surprised at his own weakness.
He was still musing when Jarl entered.

"You couldn't go through with it," observed the big Martian impassively.
"I was afraid you couldn't. It is as I have always said of you
Earthlings. You think you want revenge, good old ancient vengeance; but
when the moment comes and you sit in the high place and can have it, you
weaken. Well, you won't have to execute Teutoberg now."

"What do you mean?" exclaimed Winford.

"After I received your order and told Teutoberg he wasn't to go out
through the lock after all, he grinned. It was an insult, that grin,
just as though he knew all along you wouldn't have the nerve to kill
him. And while I stood there asking myself if I should not go ahead and
shove him out anyway, one of his men--one of the two we captured up here
in this room--caught sight of that grin. He screamed something about
treachery and Teutoberg betraying him to the pirates, and before I could
interfere he drew a knife and stabbed Teutoberg to death right there
before all of us. After that there was nothing to do but to heave his
body into the air-lock and let it go on out into space."

Far back across the Void in a tiny space sphere which Winford had given
him and his two marines to return to the distant battle sphere,
Lieutenant Commander 6666-A saw through his telescope the white speck of
Teutoberg's body leave the side of the _Golden Fleece_ and wondered what
it was.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Space Rover, by Edwin K. Sloat

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