"We'll watch him! You'd better hurry!"
He headed for the administration building at a lumbering trot.
We waved wildly to Freddie. He pounced, with uncontrollable joy, on
the door release. Celia plunged into the car, and then I. Out of the
corner of my eye I could see that the policeman had stopped. He was
viewing us with uncertainty. Then he yelled and started to run toward
us, unlimbering his gun from its holster.
[illus]
My trembling fingers fitted the key into the ignition. I heard a shot
and a thudding sound. Then another, and a hole appeared in my side and
front windows. I gunned our car like fury and we rocketed into the air
so fast that Celia, holding Freddie tightly in her arms, moaned at the
terrible acceleration.
We were far above Chicago's islands. Nothing, not even a police car,
could catch our Cad Super.
I turned to my son. "You're a bright boy, Freddie. I'm proud of you." A
real competitor at heart.
Then my eye caught the great municipal sign, with its motto I WILL
COMPETE. And I realized for the first time the seriousness of what we
had done.
* * * * *
"The alarm will be out any minute," I told Celia. "I must land."
I nosed our ship down to the lowest air line, merging with slow local
traffic above the city. For once I was not pleased to be driving such
a conspicuous car. Where to land? Certainly not my usual parking lot.
They'd check there as a matter of routine.