"I anticipated your reluctance to sell so I purchased your lien from
Martian Bankings two hours ago. I know your reputed fondness for your
ship, and I understand too that a similar craft cannot be bought for
twice the amount of your financial obligation."
He had me cold. It was a dirty trick of Martian's to sell me out, but I
could see how it was when Shanig put the screws to them.
"You are in no position to bargain with me, you simple fool," Shanig
said, looking more than ever like a dissipated buzzard. "I shall make
you one offer before claiming forfeit--the cancellation of your debt
plus five thousand credits in cash."
He shouldn't have baited me with the _Annabelle_. I love that rusty old
tub the way some homos love their women. And after being sandbagged
with Shanig's kind of persuasion I began to figure that selling Joey to
him was as neat a revenge as I could ask. He deserved it--plus.
"All right," I said. "You've bought a smiley."
Shanig thumbed his buzzer and the redhead came in from the reception
office with a legal-looking paper in her hand. She went straight to
Shanig's desk, walking in a way to make any homo's pulse beat out of
step, but when she passed Perry Acree the two of them exchanged a
swift, secret look of complete understanding that actually made me
flinch.
Sometimes I think I'll never understand women. Here was this gorgeous
wench, five-feet-ten and built like a hermit's dream, and what did she
pick? An egregious little idiot who--
"Sign here," Shanig grunted. He fitted the paper onto a desk pad and
whipped it toward me along with a stylus.
It was a simple enough contract release giving me full title to the
_Annabelle_ plus five thousand credits in exchange for uncontested
ownership to one male Mimasan smiley answering to the name of Joey.
Something about the pad-and-stylus routine rang a warning bell at
the back of my mind but I was too mad to listen. I wrote "William X.
Bailey" in the proper blank and the deed was done.
When Perry Acree and Shanig's hired homo signed as witnesses all of us
stood up but Shanig.
"That's all," Shanig snapped, pushing a check for five thousand credits
at me. "Get out!"
I took the check and went out, so mad I could feel my ears crisping.
Entering the reception room again, it didn't soothe my mangled ego any
to get a disdainful once-over from the redhead.
"I'm taking a weekend off with this little item to see the sights," I
said, snapping the check. "Like to come along for the ride? There's a
little pleasure colony up on Phobos that's out of this universe, where
anything goes."
"Not with you, you swamp-stained wolf," she snapped. When I waited,
grinning, she bit her lip and her eyes shot green sparks. "Beat it or
I'll buzz for Perry."