You'll Like It On Mars! by Tom W. Harris

Author:Tom W. Harris
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Start Publishing LLC
Published: 2023-02-01T00:00:00+00:00

*

Renn donned a look of pain. “That theory is shabby, shabby as the robot rumor. Do you really believe Martians could be disguised that well? And if they could, do you think they’d want to throw their lives away?”

“What do I know about Martians?” Lutz spluttered, but he was beat. It was a shame. There for a minute I thought he’d come up with something.

I was just about where I’d been when I’d arrived at the party—except perhaps with Arden, which wasn’t exactly what Myron sent me for. I hung around near Kettering but he didn’t say anything revealing, and finally it was time to go. Arden and I had been occupied in the kitchen, and I was the last guest.

Renn went with me to the door, slipping past the tawny which jumped at both of us.

“Goodnight, R.K.,” I said. “It was real.”

He put his hand on my shoulder, “You’re a great boy, Manny. I’ve been hearing a lot of nice things about you.”

It was coming.

“I do as well as I can,” I said modestly.

“I know that,” he said, pompous and serious as an old gibbon. “I keep an eye on people. I’d like you to have lunch with me sometime.”

In a way, I wished I could work for him. He was heading Up, but def. Myron was right, though. Renn would hire me just to get me away from Stupendous, then pigeon-hole me because he wouldn’t be able to trust me.

I let my mouth flop open for just a second. “Why—I’d be delighted. How about tomorrow?”

“Love it, but I’m leaving tomorrow. Let’s make it in about a month.”

I must have looked surprised, and he said, “We’re going back to Mars, you know. Some of the cast liked it so much—may even want to live there. I’m traveling up with them. The government has another ship going—they’ve been most accommodating.”

Him and his fancy wire-pulling.

“Oh,” said I. “Well, whenever you say. It’s been a delightful evening.” The hell it had.

“Thank you,” said Kettering. “Goodnight, now. Be careful going across the grounds, Manny. I let my little watchdog out in about ten minutes.”

“Uh,” I said expressively. “Well, goodnight.”

His big gates opened ahead of the car and shut behind it, and I drove down the road a little and parked. Would Myron want to wait a month before I could even see Kettering again? I mulled awhile, picked up the dash phone, and rang up Myron. He was sore when he answered—apparently I’d interrupted something—and sore when I got through talking. When I hung up I had received an ultimatum—get the dope, get it now, or....

Well, I did look forward to keeping my job, which financed a blonde, a brunette, and two cars. I couldn’t let all those dependents down.

I am much opposed to hard thinking, but I decided to do some. Finally I snuffed up an idea. Just to show you what hard thinking leads to, it was the idea that changed everything.

Renn was much too cool to show the secret. But the cast had to be in on it.

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