ulled me into it, played me like an
accordion. I fell in love with her, hating myself and happy at the same
time. Well--I'm glad now it's over. At least I gave her a chance to get
away, I owe her that much. Though I thought I would explode when she
went into that innocence act!"

The cold feeling was now a ball of ice that threatened to paralyze me.
"You're lying," I said hoarsely, and even I didn't believe it.

"Sorry. That's the way it is. Your brain-boys will pick my skull to
pieces and find out the truth anyway. There's no point in lying now."

"We'll search the ship, she can't hide for long."

"She won't have to," Pepe said. "There's a fast scout we picked up,
stowed in one of the holds. That must be it leaving now." We could feel
the vibration, distantly through the floor.

"The Navy will get her," I told him, with far more conviction than I
felt.

"Maybe," he said, suddenly slumped and tired, no longer laughing. "Maybe
they will. But I gave her her chance. It is all over for me now, but she
knows that I loved her to the end." He bared his teeth in sudden pain.
"Not that she will care in the slightest."

I kept the gun on him and neither of us moved while the Navy ships
pulled up and their boots stamped outside. I had captured my battleship
and the raids were over. And I couldn't be blamed if the girl had
slipped away. If she evaded the Navy ships, that was their fault, not
mine.

I had my victory all right.

Then why did it taste like ashes in my mouth?

It's a big galaxy, but it wasn't going to be big enough to hide Angelina
now. I can be conned once--but only once. The next time we met things
were going to be _very_ different.

THE END

Transcriber's Note

This etext was produced from _Astounding Science Fiction_ April 1960.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright
on this publication was renewed. Minor spelling and typographical errors
have been corrected without note.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Misplaced Battleship, by
Harry Harrison (AKA Henry Maxwell Dempsey)

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