Tom Swift and the Cosmic Astronauts (16 page)

BOOK: Tom Swift and the Cosmic Astronauts
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"Tom’s great at explanations," Bud noted.

It turned out that about half the
Charger
’s crew were confined in the set of cabins off this corridor, the rest in a separate area. They crowded into the corridor, astonished and confused. Bob Jeffers and Nina Kimberley were among them.

"Is it all over, boss?" Jeffers asked. "Or are you and Bud prisoners too?"

The young inventor smiled. "I suppose we’re all prisoners as long as we’re here below deck, but only for as long as it takes the
Sky Queen
to arrive at these coordinates. They’re scheduled to take off from Alaska right about now. We’ve got a couple hours or so to wait."

"Swift, you may be getting a big kick out of all this, but I think we’re owed that explanation!" snapped Praggler. "I take it you disarmed the bomb somehow before you arrived."

Tom shook his head. "No, Colonel. The bomb is still armed and dangerous."

"You removed it from the ship?"

"No. There was no time."

"Then I presume you had people up on the deck to take out Li before he pressed his button, is that it?"

"No way to sneak them into the area without alerting him—not a big group, anyway."

"Then
what,
Tom?" asked Nina.

Tom glanced in Bud’s direction. "You tell ’em, flyboy."

Bud chuckled in glee. "Achilles heel! Tom ripped off a big long strip of that netting that covers the whole top of the ship. We worked the piece around the antenna pod casing underneath the fuselage of Li’s escape jet, knotted it firmly to the pull-rings on the access panels to keep it in place. Took about thirty seconds!"

Praggler gazed at Bud skeptically. "What good did that do?"

"What good? It blocked the signal to the bomb!" Bud laughed. "Didn’t anyone tell you guys about Li Ching’s wonderful anti-energy coating?
It blocks anything, outside going in, inside going out!"

"We knew the netting would be sufficient," added Tom. "After all, it totally blocked radar from seeing the ship."

"I... see," said Colonel Praggler. "When we’re all together, all in one place—please let me lead a cheer or two!"

"It’s a deal," Tom said, offering his hand.

The arrival of the
Sky Queen
brought the end of the group’s below-deck confinement, as well as those held captive in the other parts of the ship. All were healthy and accounted for—except for the single turncoat who had taken over the bridge during the test run.

"Did he leave with Li Ching?" Tom inquired of a crew member, an observer from NASA.

"Well, Mr. Swift, I guess you could say he
left.
But not
with
anybody. Li Ching was looking for an illustration of his, mm, forceful character. He told us afterwards that he
hated
traitors—called it a moral vice!"

Despite the general looting, the
Sea Charger
was in good enough condition to limp to the nearest port, most of her crew loyally remaining aboard.

Some days later, the Swift home played host to a large dinner party. The dining room table was cramped elbow to elbow, as Bud, Bashalli, Chow, and Harlan Ames had been invited over to join the family.

"Still no sign of Li and his invisible jet. Or sub. Or rocket," Harlan Ames remarked over salad. "But Hobell and Olin Whaley have provided quite a bouquet of clues, and the FBI has been able to round up a real platoon of Li’s agents here in this country."

"I’m relieved to hear that," Mrs. Swift said happily. "We’ll celebrate with broiled lobster."

"Somehow that seems appropriate," Bud gibed.

In spite of the delicious meal and the gay conversation at the table, Tom felt slightly glum, and showed it on his face. He turned even glummer when Bud asked Mr. Swift if Tom had satisfied their friendly "challenge."

"Not quite, pal," Tom remarked before his father could answer. "Sure, the Space Kite’s system will make space travel a lot less expensive and more convenient—in principle."

"Was that not the point, Thomas?" asked Bashalli.

"Let’s just say it won’t be down at air-ticket prices any time soon." The young inventor gulped. "We ran some numbers on the cost of producing the neutron matter we use in the cosmic reactor."

"And?"

"And Enterprises won’t go bankrupt—as long as we don’t manufacture more than three!"

"Oh, stop brooding about your old cosmic-ray kite," Sandy scolded her brother teasingly. "Just be happy you and Buddo got back to earth safe and sound!"

Chow had something to add. "Brand my space steers, that’s right, son! Your kite contraption took you halfway t’ the blame moon and saved a whole ship—what more do ya want her to do, cook for you?"

Everyone laughed. "Guess you’re right, all of you," Tom said wryly. "It’s just that I had high hopes for that kite."

"Son, as far as I’m concerned, you more than beat my little ‘challenge’," Mr. Swift declared. "We’re in this for science, not commerce."

Mrs. Swift added comfortingly, "At least your invention worked for a hundred thousand miles out in space. Surely that’s a marvelous
scientific
achievement."

Tom smiled gratefully. "When you put it like that, Mom, it doesn’t sound so bad. You always have the right slant on my work!"

"I’ve been thinking about something," Bud said presently, "something Li said about having another superior source for future inventions. Tom, you said the anti-energy stuff was beyond Earth’s technology... Do you think—?"

"I’d rather
not
think about
that
possibility!" Tom protested. But some such possibilities could not be so easily dismissed, as the young inventor would discover soon, when he encountered
The Visitor from Planet X!

"What you need, Tomonomo, is a good rest," Sandy advised. She added mischievously, "And maybe a few dates, too—both of you! That means you, Budworth Barclay! Something to clear the cobwebs from your brains!"

Mr. Swift grinned. "Sandy may be right, son."

"Okay, I’ll think about it," Tom promised.

"Now Sandra," said Bashalli sweetly, "we must understand the way it is with men. They do not care to be pushed. It makes them surly and irritable."

"I’ll say!" grumped Bud humorously as he reached for the bowl of mashed potatoes. "If I weren’t such a gentleman, San, I woulda told you to go fly a—"

"Er—Bud—" Tom warned with a wink.

"Sorry, genius boy."

But he silently mouthed the last word:
kite!

 

 

 

BOOK: Tom Swift and the Cosmic Astronauts
12.02Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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