"One alias is as good as another." The man smiled pleasantly. "X will
do for the present. Suppose you call me Mr. X. I represent a group, Mr.
Murdock, who are interested in the _Nova's_ space drive."
"Well?" said Gavin dryly. The group whom Mr. X represented weren't the
only ones interested in _Nova's_ spacedrive. The T.I.S., for one, was
particularly concerned about it. The _Nova_ made the crossing between
Jupiter and Venus with her contraband load of slaves in an impossibly
short space of time. The crack patrol ships of the Empire had neither
been able to keep the _Nova_ in sight nor trap her. Gavin's early
experience as an astro-engineer with Tri-World had been the really
important reason that he had been assigned to the job.
Mr. X put the tips of his pudgy fingers together. "As third
assistant-engineer of the _Nova_, Mr. Murdock, you will have an
unrivaled opportunity to study her drive. We're willing to pay and pay
handsomely for the secret of that drive."
"How much?"
"A million credits," replied Mr. X, without blinking an eye.
Gavin allowed his breath to escape between his teeth. He knew now who
was behind Mr. X and it didn't make him any happier. Only one of the
big corporations on Terra-United Spaceways, General Atomic, Tri-World,
or Amalgamated plastic--could offer such a sum. The Gargantuan
companies maintained their own investigation agencies, ruthless,
efficient gestapos willing to go to any length to get their hands on
valuable discoveries.