"I will not! Why should I not say it? I will tell you something else,
George Prince. It was not Anita I shot at, but you! I meant nothing
for her but love. If you had not interfered--"
This was different from what we had figured. George Prince had come in
from his own room, had tried to rescue his sister, and in the scuffle,
Anita had taken the shot instead of George.
"I did not even know I had hit her," Miko was saying. "Not until I
heard she was dead." He added sardonically, "I hoped it was you I had
hit, George. And I will tell you this: you hate me no more than I hate
you. If it were not for your knowledge of ores--"
"Is this to be a personal wrangle?" Rankin interrupted. "I thought we
were here to plan--"
"It is planned," Miko said shortly. "I give orders, I do not plan. I
am waiting now for the moment--" He checked himself.
Moa said, "Does Rankin understand that no harm is to come to Gregg
Haljan?"
"Yes," Rankin said. "And Dean. We need them, of course. But you cannot
make Dean send messages if he refuses, nor make Haljan navigate."
"I know enough to check on them," Miko said grimly. "They will not
fool me. And they will obey me, have no fear. A little touch of
sulphuric--" His laugh was gruesome. "It makes the most stubborn, very
willing."
"I wish," said Moa, "we had Haljan safely hidden. If he is
hurt--killed--"
So that was why Miko had tried to capture me? To keep me safe so that
I might navigate the ship.
It occurred to me that I should get Carter at once. A plot to seize
the _Planetara_--but when?