ance. The
Solar Guard officer wrenched the scout around violently in his approach.
He was still boiling over the Venusian Delegate's indifference toward
his mission.

The launch skimmed the jungle treetops and glided to a perfect stop near
the largest of a group of farm buildings. Cutting the motors, Connel sat
and waited for someone to appear. He sat there for ten minutes but no
one came out to greet him. Finally he climbed out of the launch and
stood by the hatch, peering intently at the buildings around him, his
eyes squinting against the glare of the fiery sun overhead. The
plantation seemed deserted. Reaching back into the launch and pulling
out a paralo-ray gun, he strapped its reassuring bulk to his side and
stepped toward the building that was obviously the main house. Nothing
else moved in the hot noon sun.

As he strode purposefully toward the house, eyes alert for any sign of
life, he thought for a moment everyone might be taking a midday nap.
Many of the Venusian colonists adapted the age-old custom of the tropics
to escape the intense heat of midday. But he dismissed the thought
immediately, realizing that his approach in the jet would have awakened
the deepest of sleepers.

Entering the house, he stopped in the spacious front hall and called:

"Hello! Anybody home? Halloo!"

The only answer was the echo of his own voice, vibrating through the
large rooms.

"Funny," muttered the spaceman. "Why is this place deserted?"

He walked slowly through the house, opening doors and looking into all
the rooms, searching the whole place thoroughly before returning to the
clearing. Going to the nearest of the outbuildings, he opened one of the
wide doors and stared into the gloomy interior. With his experienced eye
he saw immediately that the building had been used to house a large jet
craft. There was the slightly pungent odor of jet fuel, and on the floor
the tire marks of a dolly used to roll the craft out to the launching
strip. He followed the tracks outside and around to the side of the
building where he saw the dolly. It was empty.

Shaking his head grimly, Connel made a quick tour of the remaining
buildings. They were all deserted but the last one, which seemed to be
built a little more sturdily than the others. Unlike the others, it was
locked. He looked for a window and discovered that the walls were solid.
There were no openings except the locked door. He hesitated in front of
the door, looking down