The Moon Colony Page 9

  CHAPTER IX

  Start to the Moon

  Kosloff came into Joan’s room, and surveyed her with sneering eyes.

  “Get ready! Quick! There is no time to lose. You are going with us.”

  “Going with you? Where?”

  Joan felt a sudden depression creep over her. Was this man going toseparate her from her brother?

  “Ask the general, or wait and find out. I have my instructions.”

  With another sneer Kosloff turned to the door, paused, and lookedback, and added:

  “I am coming back in less than half an hour for you.”

  “I must get word to Julian or Billy,” Joan gasped. “Where can they betaking me? Once separated from my friends my life will be a constantmisery.”

  She paused in her cogitations, and began to tremble. What could beahead of her? She did not find out, and threw herself across her bed.She was still lying with her head buried in the bedspread when Kosloffreturned. This time he was accompanied by several guards, who werenone too polite. They lifted the girl in their arms, and carried heraboard a large airship. While they were taking her up a steel-likeladder Joan had an opportunity to observe the machine carefully. Itwas the biggest thing she had ever seen in the way of an aircraft,being eight hundred yards long, three hundred feet wide. In shape itwas an elongated cylinder, and she knew enough about modern metal todiscover that it was made of beryllium—a wonderful new materialimpervious to heat or cold. The walls were hollow, and heavily armoredso that it was proof against the strongest shells. The openings weresliding doors with an inner door of glass. Thus, when the outer doorwas closed, the entire ship seemed compactly built without an opening.It was propelled by rockets fired from long metal tubes located in thebow, in the stern, and on both sides.

  With rude hands her captors shoved her through an open door and alonga narrow companionway to a small cabin daintily and charminglyfurnished. Here they threw her on the floor and departed, slamming thedoor behind them. The second they were gone she sprang to her feet.When she tested the door she found that it had locked so that it wouldbe impossible to break out of the cabin. Then she began a search for awindow. There was none, and she ran around and around the smallchamber like a frightened rat without getting anywhere.

  Presently she began to beat the walls with her clenched hands. She didnot expect to gain anything by this but it gave vent to her feelings.In the rear of the room she accidentally struck a small round knobwith her thumb. The blow caused a secret panel to slide back andexpose an opening about eight inches square. The opening was above herhead but she found a stool and climbed up on it.

  Her eyes took in a large warehouse-like room full of boxes andsupplies piled from the floor to the ceiling, and extending threehundred feet toward the rear of the airship. Her mental comment was tothe effect that it was a mammoth apartment, and that it held suppliesenough to care for an army for several months.

  But the most interesting part of the room that confronted her were themen who were loading the airship. There were only three people in thewarehouse department, and two of them were Julian Epworth and BillySand. They were being herded around by a single guard who talked tothem amiably and in a friendly manner.

  Fortunately as she looked through the opening they passed very near,and the guard lagged.

  “Julian! Billy!” she whispered softly. “I have been locked up in thisplace. Can’t you get me out?”

  Epworth heard her but for some time he could not locate her. When hedid, the guard was hurrying them away. Joan saw them disappear behindsome boxes, and imagining that they had not heard her, allowed despairto fill her soul. With a deep moan she sank on a couch near by andburied her face in her hands, leaving the panel open slightly but heldfirm by the spring. She thought that she was deserted, and her eyesfilled with tears.

  Epworth, however, had no idea of deserting her. The second he heardher voice he knew that she was entrapped on the airship and that hemust devise some scheme to save her. With this end in view, he draggedslowly back of the guard. Billy, noticing this, fell behind to talk tohim.

  “Where do you suppose this ship is going?” Billy asked indolently ashe lowered his last burden to the floor. “She seems to be loading upfor a trip around the world.”

  “Worse than that,” the guard called out in an undertone. “That mightyscientist, Herman Toplinsky, is going to try to go to the moon, and,unfortunately, I have been detailed to go with the crew.”

  “Say, sonny,” Billy exclaimed enthusiastically, “that sounds good tome. I don’t care if he never gets back. Snap up, Epworth. We may finda chance to break away while he is speeding along the interplanetaryways.”

  “I’m thinking of going with him,” Epworth whispered. “He is kidnapingJoan, and taking her with him.”

  Billy gulped.

  “How’d you find out?”

  “Get a move on you, slow boys!” the guard called out. “It is abouttime you were leaving the ship.”

  As he spoke he turned his back carelessly on the two Americans.Epworth glanced at Billy; Billy nodded his head. Both edged up softlytoward the guard.

  “Out you go,” the guard shouted again. “Drop down and I will stay ontop until she starts.”

  With two bounds Epworth and Billy were on him. He was attackedunexpectedly and before he recovered the two had him on the floor ofthe airship, and his own gun sticking in his face.

  “Not a word!” Epworth hissed.

  “Not even a squeak,” Billy added.

  The guard grinned up into their faces. It was a good natured smile andhalf disarmed them.

  “I do not get the idea,” he said in a low voice. “Are you twocontemplating a trip to the moon as a pleasure jaunt? If you hold mehere ten minutes you will be on your way.”

  “We couldn’t part with you, Michael,” Billy lisped. “No indeed. Welove you too well.”

  “We have known you long enough, Michael,” Epworth explained, “to knowthat you are a good sort, and I will tell you what we are doing. Mysister has been put aboard this airship, and is now a prisoner in theroom adjoining the wareroom. We are staying to see that she is notmistreated.”

  “Toplinsky is a dirty scrub,” Michael burst out, angrily “and hispeople would not stand for this—not after he had given his word.Anyway I am not going to stand for it. Let me up—I am with you. I’lldrop aboard and leave here, and get together a bunch of men who willforce Toplinsky to leave the girl here. I am sure——”

  The airship trembled from stem to stem, a muffled explosion was heardon the outside; there came a sudden upward jerk, and then a smooth,even motion of acceleration.

  “Too late,” Michael groaned nervously. “We are off, and Toplinsky willboss you for several years longer unless we are lost in space.” Hepaused and added. “Do you know, Americans,” he spoke very plainEnglish, “that I have always thought that man was crazy. He may havebeen hitting the moon with his cylinder projectiles but I’ve alwaysdoubted it, and I don’t feel good starting out to explore space. Itgives me the shakes.”

  “Were it not for the fact that my sister is aboard this plane I wouldfeel the same way,” Epworth said. “But with her future unsettled I amnot thinking of what is in front of me.”