hand seized the glass.
Penger shrugged and sighed as if this was what he expected. He took upthe Josmian. "The deal is closed, Latham! I'd better put this away inmy safe."
He walked to the end of the bar. When he came back, the glass inLatham's hand was empty.
Penger met George Elston's gaze. "You'll have to keep looking, Elston.You'll have to look for a man, not a--"
The tall man smiled, stopping the words. He pointed to the mirrorwhere a splash of blue, glutinous tsith was dripping.
Latham threw the empty glass at Penger's head. It missed him andstruck the mirror, bringing it down in shattering fragments. He seizedthe bundle of credits and sent them flying.
"Keep these too, Penger! Keep them all, damn you! I won't need themwhere I'm going!" Tottering and pale, a fury still upon his lips, heseized Elston's arm. "Come on! Make it quick--"
Elston hurried with him. At the door, he pointed across the compound."The black cruiser, there beside the freighter. Get aboard. I'll bewith you in five minutes--"
Penger was at the door too. They watched Latham hurrying, stumbling,not looking back.
Then Penger did an amazing thing. He opened his fist and he still heldthe Josmian. He placed it on the floor, put a heavy heel on it andcame down with all his weight. There was an absurd little pop as theJosmian shattered.
Elston stared at him, bewildered.
"Not a Josmian," Penger grinned at him. "Glass. One of the cheap glassbaubles that sometimes come here on the trade freighters." He grippedElston's arm. "But don't tell him! Don't ever tell him, at least notfor three years."
"But I thought he found it in the swamp!"
"He found it in his boot, where I placed it when I found him lying outthere this morning in a stupor. An experiment, a whim--" Pengershrugged. "I didn't know what would come of it."
Joel Latham had almost reached the cruiser. They saw him pause, andthen he turned. Joel Latham raised a fist and shook it straight atPenger.
"Damn you, Penger! Damn you, damn you!"
With that he stumbled up into the waiting lock as Elston hurried afterhim.
* * * * *
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