‘No just stay out of my line of fire.’
Slowly the door swung open. A spacesuited figure crouched in the frame, its features indistinct in its helmet. It looked around, saw the guns trained on it, and spread both its hands open in front of it. ‘What’s the matter?’ a muffled voice said plaintively. ‘I haven’t done anything.’
Captain Stone could see that the man, besides being empty-handed, carried no gun at his belt. He put his own away. ‘Sorry. Let me give you a hand with that helmet’
The helmet revealed a middle-aged, sandy-haired man with mild eyes. ‘What was the matter?’ he repeated.
‘Nothing. Nothing at all. We didn’t know who was boarding us and we were a bit nervous. My name’s Stone, by the way. I’m master.’
‘Glad to know you, Captain Stone. I’m Shorty Devine.’
‘I’m glad to know you, Mr Devine. Welcome aboard.’
‘Just Shorty.’ He looked around. ‘Uh, excuse me for bursting in on you and scaring you but I heard you had a doctor aboard. A real doctor, I mean — not one of those science johnnies.’
‘We have.’
‘Gee, that’s wonderful! The town hasn’t had a real doctor since old Doc Schultz died. And I need one, bad.’
‘Sorry! Pol, get your mother.’
‘I heard, dear,’ the speaker horn answered. ‘Coming.’ The hatch opened and Dr Stone came in. ‘I’m the doctor, Mr Devine. Dear, I’ll use this room, I think. If you will all go somewhere else, please?’
The visitor said hastily, ‘Oh, they needn’t’
‘I prefer to make examinations without an audience,’ she said firmly.
‘But I didn’t explain, ma’am — Doctor. It isn’t me; it’s my partner.’
‘Oh?’
‘He broke his leg. Got careless with two big pieces of core material and got his leg nipped between ’em. Broke it. I guess I didn’t do too well by him for he’s a powerfully sick man. Could you come over right away, Doctor?’
‘Certainly.’
‘Now, Edith!’
‘Castor, get my surgical kit — the black one. Will you help me suit up, dear?’
‘But Edith, you —’
‘It’s all right, Captain; I’ve got my scooter right outside. We’re only eight-five, ninety miles away; we won’t be gone long.’
Captain Stone sighed. ‘I’m going with you. Will your scooter take three?’
‘Sure, sure! It’s got Reynolds saddles; set any balance you need.’
‘Take command, Hazel’
‘Aye aye, sir!’
They were gone all night, ship’s time, rather than a short while. Hazel sat at the control board, tracking them all the way out — then watched and waited until she spotted them leaving, and tracked them back. Devine, profuse with thanks, had breakfast with them. Just before he left Lowell came into the saloon earrying Fuzzy Britches. Devine stopped with a bite on the way to his mouth and stared. ‘A flat cat! Or am I seeing things?’
‘Of course it is. Its name is Fuzzy Britches. It’s a Martian.’
‘You bet it is! Say, do you mind if I pet her for a moment?’
Lowell looked him over suspiciously, granted the boon. The prospector held it like one who knows flat cats, cooed to it, and stroked it. ‘Now ain’t that nice! Almost makes me wish I had never left Mars — not but what its better here.’ He handed it back reluctantly, thanked them all around again, and left.
Dr Stone flexed her fingers. ‘That’s the first time I’ve done surgery in free fall since the old clinic days. I must review my techniques.’
‘My dear, you were magnificent. And Jock Donaher is mighty lucky that you were near by.’
‘Was he pretty bad, Mummy?’ asked Meade.
‘Quite,’ answered her father. ‘You wouldn’t enjoy the details. But your Mother knew what to do and did it. And I was a pretty fair scrub nurse myself, if I do say so as shouldn’t.’
‘You do say so and shouldn’t,’ agreed Hazel.
‘Roger,’ asked Dr Stone, ‘that thing they were living in could it be operated as a ship?’
‘I doubt it, not the way they’ve got it rigged now. I wouldn’t call it a ship; I’d call it a raft’
‘What do they do when they want to leave?’
‘They probably don’t want to leave. They’ll probably die within hailing distance of Rock City — as Jock nearly did. I suppose they sell their high grade at Ceres, by scooter — circum Ceres, that is. Or maybe they sell it here.’