ft and pleasant. Voronoff completely
misinterpreted it.

"Include me out!" he snapped. "I'm not going."

"No?"

"No! You can't make me volunteer if I don't want to."

"But we need you, Voronoff," Craig pleaded. "We need all the strength we
can muster."

"You can go to hell!" Voronoff said sullenly.

"You won't go?"

"I won't go!"

Craig glanced over the side of the ship. Dusk had already fallen but
there was still enough light for him to see the triangular fins cutting
the surface. He nodded toward the water. "Either you go with us,
Voronoff," he said evenly, "Or I, personally, am going to throw you
overboard."

Voronoff looked like a man who did not believe his own ears. A low growl
of approval came from the sailors. They remembered how they had found
this man hiding in the lowest depths of the ship when they had come
aboard. While their kidnapped comrades had fought, he had gone to hide.

"You--you don't mean it," Voronoff whispered.

"I never meant anything more," Craig answered. "We can't have any
slackers here. Either you go with us or you go overboard and take your
chances of swimming ashore."

His voice was hard and flat and there was not the slightest trace of
sympathy in it. There was no mistaking his meaning. Voronoff turned
pale. He looked quickly around as though seeking a place to hide.

"You've got no hole to pull in after you now," Craig said. "What is your
answer."

Voronoff gulped. "I'll--I'll go with you," he said.

"Good," Craig said. He gave swift orders for the preparation of the
attacking party. The sailors scurried to do his bidding. He was aware
that Michaelson was plucking at his sleeve.

"Weren't you being rather hard on him?" the scientist questioned.

"Maybe," Craig answered. "The truth is, I don't like him. There is
something furtive about him. He impresses me as being pretty much of a
rat. Besides, we need every man we can get."

"I know we do," Michaelson said slowly. "But would you honestly have
thrown him overboard if he had refused to go?"

Craig shrugged. "Don't ask me such questions. I don't know the answers.
Maybe I would and maybe I wouldn't."

"I see," the scientist smiled. "You're a hard man, Craig. All I can say
is that in this situation we need a hard man and I'm glad we have you to
lead us."

"Thank you," Craig said.

* * * * *

Hours later Craig stood on the side of a mountain looking down at an
incredible scene. G