th gaping
in dismay. He turned completely over, his great boots kicking awkwardly.
His angular elbows flapped like crow-wings. He righted himself, looked
astonished, then beatifically self-approving. He burped delicately,
patted his chest plate, then sniffed in sad protest at the leveled
pistols.

Now Nelsen and Ramos cast off the loaded nets they had been towing, and
closed in on this strange pair. Nelsen did the searching, while Ramos
pointed the guns.

"Haven't even got my shiv anymore, Frankie," Tiflin remarked, casually.
"Threw it at a guy named Fessler, once. Missed by an inch. Guess it's
still going--round and round the sun, for millions of years. Longest
knife throw there ever was."

"Fessler!" Frank snapped. "Now we're getting places, you S.O.B.! The
funny character that robbed and dumped Ramos and me, I'll bet. Probably
with your help! You know him, huh?"

"_Knew_--for a while--past tense," Tiflin chuckled wickedly. "Nope--it
wasn't me that stripped off his armor in space. He wasn't even around,
anymore, when you beauties got caught. They come and they go."

"But _you_ were around, Tiflin!"

"Maybe not. Maybe I was twenty million miles off."

"Like hell!" Nelsen gritted his teeth, grabbed Tiflin's shoulder, and
swung his gloved fist as hard as he could against the thin layer of
rubber and wire over Tiflin's stomach. He struck three times.

"Damn you!" Nelsen snarled. "I promised myself I'd get you good, Tiflin!
Now tell us what else you and your friends are cooking for us, or by the
Big Silence, you'll be a drifting, explosively decompressed mummy!"

Frank Nelsen didn't know till now, after exerting himself, how weak
privations had made him. He felt dizzy.

Tiflin's eyes had glazed slightly, as he and Frank did a slow roll,
together. He gasped. But that insulting smirk came back.

"Haven't had your Wheaties lately, have you, Frank? Go ahead--hit, knock
yourself out. You, too, Mex. I've been slugged before, by big men, in
shape...! Could be I'm not cooking anything. Except I notice that you
two have found yourselves some very interesting local objects of ancient
history, worth a little money. Also, some good, raw metal... Well, I
suppose you want to get the load and yourselves to the famous twins, Art
and Joe. That's easy--with luck. Though the region is a trifle
disturbed, right now. But I can tell you where they are. You won't have
to fiddle around, hunting."

"Here, hold these guns, Frank. Lem