‘Coming.’ He hurried forward and took the call. ‘Rolling Stone, Captain Stone speaking.’
‘War God, commanding officer speaking. Captain, can you —
‘Just a moment. This does not sound like Captain Vandenbergh.’
‘It isn’t. This is Rowley, Second Officer. I —’
‘I understand that your captain wanted me, officially. Let me speak with him.’
‘I’m trying to explain, Captain.’ The officer sounded strained and irritable. ‘I am the commanding officer. Both Captain Vandenbergh and Mr O’Flynn are on the binnacle list.’
‘Eh? Sorry. Nothing serious, I hope?’
‘I’m afraid it is, sir. Thirty-seven cases on the sick list this morning — and four deaths.’
‘Great Scott, man! What is it?’
‘I don’t know, sir.’
‘Well, what does your medical officer say it is?’
‘That’s it, sir. The Surgeon died during the midwatch.’
‘Oh—’
‘Captain, can you possibly match with us? Do you have enough maneuvering margin?’
‘What? Why?’
‘You have a medical officer aboard. Haven’t you?’
‘Huh? But she’s my wife!’
‘She’s an M.D., is she not?’
Roger Stone remained silent for a long moment. Then he said, ‘I’ll call you back shortly, sir.’
It was a top level conference, limited to Captain Stone, Dr Stone, and Hazel. First, Dr Stone insisted on calling the War God and getting a full report on symptoms and progress of the disease. When she switched off her husband said, ‘Well, Edith, what is it?’
‘I don’t know. I’ll have to see it.’
‘Now, see here, I’m not going to have you risking —’
‘I’m a doctor, Roger.’
‘You’re not in practice, not now. And you are the mother of a family. It’s quite out of the ques—’
‘I am a doctor, Roger.’
He sighed heavily. ‘Yes, dear.’
‘The only thing to be determined is whether or not you can match in with the War God. Have you two reached an answer?’
‘We’ll start computing.’
‘I’m going aft and check over my supplies.’ She frowned. ‘1 didn’t expect to have to cope with an epidemic.’
When she was gone Roger turned his face, twisted with indecision, to Hazel. ‘What do you think, Mother?’
‘Son, you don’t stand a chance. She takes her oath seriously. You’ve known that a long time.’
‘I haven’t taken the Hippocratic oath! If I won’t move the ship, there’s nothing she can do about it.’
‘You’re not a doctor, true. But you’re a master in space. I guess the “succour & rescue” rule might apply.’
‘The devil with rules! This is Edith.’
‘Well,’ Hazel said slowly, ‘I guess I might stack the Stone family up against the welfare of the entire human race in a pinch, myself. But I can’t decide it for you.’
‘I won’t let her do it! It’s not me. There’s Buster — he’s no more than a baby still; he needs his mother.’
‘Yes, he does.’
‘That settles it. I’m going aft and tell her.’
‘Wait a minute! If that’s your decision, Captain, you won’t mind me saying that’s the wrong way to do it.’
‘Eh?’
‘The only way you’ll get it past your wife is to get on that computer and come out with the answer you’re looking for… an answer that says it’s physically impossible for us to match with them and still reach Mars.’
‘Oh. You’re right. Look, will you help me fake it?’
‘I suppose so.’
‘Then let’s get busy.’
‘As you say, sir. You know, Roger, if the War God comes in with an unidentified and uncontrolled disease aboard, they’ll never let her make port at Mars. They’ll swing her in a parking orbit, fuel her up again, and send her back at next optimum.’
‘What of it? It’s nothing to me if fat tourists and a bunch of immigrants are disappointed.’
‘Check. But I was thinking of something else. With Van and the first officer sick, maybe about to check in, if the second officer comes down with it, too, the War God might not even get as far as a parking orbit.’
Roger Stone did not have to have the thought elaborated; a ship approaching a planet, unless manoeuvred at the last by a skilled pilot, can do one of only two things — crash, or swing on past and out endlessly into empty space to take up a comet-like orbit which arrives nowhere ever.