Cassidy moved away to get a better view of a silvery gray screen set
in the wall and flanked by twin rows of dials and knobs.
"You got stereovision, Riva?" he asked.
Mason went over and twisted several of the controls until a soft light
began suffusing the screen.
"Ster-eo-what?" the girl asked.
"Video, television--pictures with sound."
Her face brightened. "Pictures we got--sounds too. Right in that little
window."
Just then Papa, uninhibited as ever, came storming back into the room
with a lusty "Ya-hoo!" He lost his footing and crashed against the
screen. Sparks shot out and the picture that was beginning to take
shape faded into obscurity.
"It that settles, Papa!" Riva said, exasperated. "Outside I'm going and
for what happens to you I'm not responsible!"
At the door, she paused and smiled at Cassidy. "It'll have to be out
there that we play, but no less fun will we have. Put on my best
cavorting clothes I'm going to."
Mason turned the knobs again, but produced nothing more than the smell
of burning insulation and a few snickers from Papa.
"At least," Cassidy observed, "they evidently do know something about
electronics. All we have to do now is run down one of the technicians
and we might get the parts we need for the stabilizer."
* * * * *
Outside Mason dropped down on the steps and sat with his shoulders
slumping. "Damnedest thing I've ever seen," he mumbled.
Cassidy paced to the edge of the porch and stared out over the field. A
monstrous skimmer craft appeared in the distance, floating over toward
what seemed to be a pile of trash in front of one of the estates. Twin
beams of crimson light darted from the nose of the vehicle and played
over the mound. In seconds, the heap had melted away and the skimmer
floated on.
Wolruf was still walking his octopus-spider pet. There were now two
packs of youths out chasing girls. And another skimmer car was having
no difficulty surviving the stone-throwing assault of not one, but two
dedicated pursuers. Outside of that, Cassidy noted, things appeared
quite normal.
Mason slapped his thighs and rose. "You go see if Riva knows how we can
contact the authorities. I'm going back and stay with the ship."
Cassidy watched him crawl under the fence, then went around the side of
the house. When he caught sight of the girl, she was just disappearing
into a smaller structure that might have been a guest house or garage.
Following, he knocked on the door and called out her name anxiously.
"To play are you ready?" There was an eager note in her voice as it
came through the panel. "In come on. It's all set I'll be in a jiffy."
He turned the knob, stepped half into the room, lurched back outside
and slammed the door behind him. "_Riva!_"
The door started to open, then closed again as the girl laughed. "Oh,
all right. Funny you be. It's to play you want, don't you?"
He assured her that he did and added, "But there's something we have to
talk about now, Riva."
"Talk, talk, talk. And it gets you where? Only wastes time, it does."
A moment later the door opened and she stood there smiling, with legs
apart and hands on her hips. But he hardly had time to react to the
skimpiness of her halter and skirt.
"Now," she urged as she sprang up on her toes and kissed him full on
the lips, "like a chaser make! To the races we're off!"
With that, she whirled and went streaking through the next room.
* * * * *
He surveyed his surroundings. It was an ordinary bedroom with
conventional furnishings--perhaps a bit crude even for a
culture without any space technology. But, then, it didn't seem
uncharacteristic, considering the circumstances.
Recognizing the contrast between this guest house and the manor, he
frowned as he started off in search of the girl. A worrisome suspicion
dogged his thoughts--there had to be sense to Riva and her father and
this sumptuous estate, natives who made sport of chasing skimmer craft
and voluptuous women when they weren't otherwise indiscreetly occupied.
But what?
In the kitchen, he discovered Riva's shapely leg protruding from behind
a cabinet. He suspected the exposure was not as accidental as she
wanted him to believe. He was certain of that when, as he seized her
ankle, she crawled out laughing.
Now she stood before him, unsmiling and impatient, and her slender arms
reached out for his shoulders.
"Riva, this is serious!" He forced her hands down again. "I'm in
trouble. I need help."
"It's to help you I've been trying all along."
"I've got to get in touch with the authorities--your government."
She looked blank.