Empire

CHAPTER NINE

Ludwig Stutsman pressed his thin, straight lips together. “So that's the setup,” he said.

Across the desk Spencer Chambers studied the man. Stutsman was like a wolf, lean and cruel and vicious. He even looked like a wolf, with his long, thin face, his small, beady eyes, the thin, bloodless lips. But he was the kind of man who didn't always wait for instructions, but went ahead and used his own judgment. And in a ruthless sort of way, his judgment was always right.

"Only as a last resort,” cautioned Chambers, “do I want you to use the extreme measures you are so fond of using. If they should prove necessary, we can always use them. But not yet. I want to settle this thing in the quietest way possible. Page and Manning are two men who can't simply disappear. There'd be a hunt, an investigation, an ugly situation."

"I understand,” agreed Stutsman. “If something should happen to their notes, if somebody could find them. Perhaps you. If you found them on your desk one morning."

The two men measured one another with their eyes, more like enemies than men working for the same ends.

"Not my desk,” snapped Chambers, “Craven's. So that Craven could discover this new energy. Whatever Craven discovers belongs to Interplanetary."

Chambers rose from his chair and walked to the window, looked out. After a moment's time, he turned and walked back again, sat down in his chair. Leaning back, he matched his fingertips, his teeth flashing in a grin under his mustache.

"I don't know anything about what's going on,” he said. “I don't even know someone has discovered material energy. That's up to Craven. He has to find it. Both you and Craven work alone. I know nothing about either of you."

Stutsman's jaw closed like a steel trap. “I've always worked alone."

"By the way,” said Chambers, the edge suddenly off his voice, “how are things going in the Jovian confederacy? I trust you left everything in good shape."

"As good as could be expected,” Stutsman replied. “The people are still uneasy, half angry. They still remember Mallory."

"But Mallory,” objected Chambers, “is on a prison ship. In near Mercury now, I believe."

Stutsman shook his head.

"They still remember him. “We'll have trouble out there one of these days."

"I would hate to have that happen,” remarked Chambers softly. “I would regret it very much. I sent you out there to see that nothing happened."

"The trouble out there won't be a flash to this thing you were telling me about,” snapped Stutsman.

"I'm leaving that in your hands, too,” Chambers told him. “I know you can take care of it."

Stutsman rose. “I can take care of it."

"I'm sure you can,” Chambers said.

He remained standing after Stutsman left, looking at the door through which the man had gone. Maybe it had been a mistake to call Stutsman in from Callisto. Maybe it was a mistake to use Stutsman at all. He didn't like a lot of things the man did… or the way he did them. Brutal things.

Slowly Chambers sat down again and his face grew hard.

He had built an empire of many worlds. That couldn't be done with gentle methods and no sure goal. Fighting every inch from planet to planet, he had used power to gain power. And now that empire was threatened by two men who had found a greater power. That threat had to be smashed! It would be smashed!

Chambers leaned forward and pressed a buzzer.

"Yes, Mr. Chambers?” said a voice in the communicator.

"Send Dr. Craven in,” commanded Chambers.

Craven came in, slouchily, his hair standing on end, his eyes peering through the thick-lensed glasses.

"You sent for me,” he growled, taking a chair.

"Yes, I did,” said Chambers. “Have a drink?"

"No. And no smoke either."

Chambers took a long cigar from the box on his desk, clipped off the end and rolled it in his mouth.

"I'M a busy man,” Craven reminded him.

Puckering lines of amusement wrinkled Chambers’ eyes as he lit up, watching Craven.

"You do seem to be busy, Doctor.” he said. “I only wish you had something concrete to report."

The scientist bristled. “I may have in a few days, if you leave me alone and let me work."

"I presume that you are still working on your radiation collector. Any progress?"

"Not too much. You can't expect a man to turn out discoveries to order, I'm working almost night and day now. If the thing can be solved, I'll solve it."

Chambers glowed. “Keep up the good work. But I wanted to talk to you about something else. You heard, I suppose, that I lost a barrel of money on the Ranthoor exchange."

Craven smiled, a sardonic twisting of his lips. “I heard something about it."

"I thought you had,” said Chambers sourly. “If not, you would have been the only one who hadn't heard how Ben Wrail took Chambers for a ride."

"He really took you then,” commented Craven. “I thought maybe it was just one of those stories."

"He took me, but that's not what's worrying me. I want to know how he did it. No man, not even the most astute student of the market, could have foretold the trend of the market the way he did. And Wrail isn't the most astute. It isn't natural when a man who has always played the safe side suddenly turns the market upside down. Even less natural when he never makes a mistake."

"Well,” demanded Craven, “what do you want me to do about it? I'm a scientist. I've never owned a share of stock in my life."

"There's an angle to it that might interest you,” said Chambers smoothly, leaning back, puffing at the cigar. “Wrail is a close friend of Manning. And Wrail himself didn't have the money it took to swing those deals. Somebody furnished that money."

"Manning?” asked Craven.

"What do you think?"

"If Manning's mixed up in it,” said Craven acidly, “there isn't anything any of us can do about it. You're bucking money and genius together. This Manning is no slouch of a scientist himself and Page is better. They're a combination."

"You think they're good?” asked Chambers.

"Good? Didn't they discover material energy?” The scientist glowered at his employer. “That ought to be answer enough."

"Yes, I know,” Chambers agreed irritably. “But can you tell me how they worked this market deal?"

Craven grimaced. “I can guess. Those boys didn't stop with just finding how to harness material energy. They probably have more things than you can even suspect. They were working with force fields, you remember, when they stumbled onto the energy. Force fields are something we don't know much about. A man monkeying around with them is apt to find almost anything."

"What are you getting at?"

"My guess would be that they have a new kind of television working in the fourth dimension, using time as a factor. It would penetrate anything. Nothing could stop it. It could go anywhere, at a speed many times the speed of light… almost instantaneously."

Chambers sat upright in his chair. “Are you sure about this?"

Craven shook his head. “Just a guess. I tried to figure out what I would do if I were Page and Manning and had the things they had. That's all."

"And what would you do?"

Craven smiled dourly. “I'd be using that television right in this office,” he said. “I'd keep you and me under observation all the time. If what I think is true, Manning is watching us now and has heard every word we said."

Chambers’ face was a harsh mask of anger. “I don't believe it could be done!"

"Doctor Craven is right,” said a quiet voice.

Chambers swung around in his chair and gasped. Greg Manning stood inside the room, just in front of the desk.

"I hope you don't mind,” said Greg. “I've been wanting to have a talk with you."

Craven leaped to his feet, his eyes shining. “Three dimensions!” he whispered. “How did you do it?” Greg chuckled. “I haven't patented the idea, Doctor. I'd rather not tell you just now."

"You will accept my congratulations, however?” asked Craven.

"That's generous of you. I really hadn't expected this much."

"I mean it,” said Craven. “Damned if I don't.” Chambers was on his feet, leaning across the desk, with his hand held out. Greg's right hand came out slowly.

"Sorry I really can't shake hands,” he said. “I'm not here, you know. Just my image."

Chambers’ hand dropped to the desk. “Stupid of me not to realize that. You looked so natural.” He sat back in his chair again, brushed his gray mustache. A smile twisted his lips. “So you've been watching me?"

"Off and on,” Greg said.

"And what is the occasion of this visit?” asked Chambers. “You could have held a distinct advantage by remaining unseen. I didn't entirely believe what Craven told me, you know."

"That isn't the point at all,” declared Greg. “Maybe we can get to understand one another."

"So you're ready to talk business."

"Not in the sense you mean,” Greg said. “I'm not willing to make concessions, but there's no reason why we have to fight one another."

"Why, no,” said Chambers, “there's no reason for that. I'll be willing to buy your discovery."

"I wouldn't sell it to you,” Greg told him.

"You wouldn't? Why not? I'm prepared to pay for it.” “You'd pay the price, all right. Anything I asked… even if it bankrupted you. Then you'd mark it down to loss, and scrap material energy. And I'll tell you why."

A TERRIBLE silence hung in the room as the two men eyed one another across the table.

"You wouldn't use it,” Greg went on, “because it would remove the stranglehold you have on the planets. It would make power too cheap. It would eliminate the necessity of your rented accumulators. The Jovian moons and Mars could stand on their feet without the power you ship to them. You could make billions in legitimate profits selling the apparatus to manufacture the energy… but you wouldn't want that. You want to be dictator of the Solar System. And that is what I intend to stop."

"Listen, Manning,” said Chambers, “you're a reasonable man. Let's talk this thing over without anger What do you plan to do?"

"I could put my material engines on the market,” said Greg. “That would ruin you. You wouldn't move an accumulator after that. Your Interplanetary stock wouldn't be worth the paper it is written on. Material energy would wipe you out."

"You forget I have franchises on those planets,” Chambers reminded him. “I'd fight you in the courts until hell froze over."

"I'd prove convenience, economy and necessity. Any court in any land, on any planet, would rule for me."

Chambers shook his head. “Not Martian or Jovian courts. I'd tell them to rule for me and the courts outside of Earth do what I tell them to."

Greg straightened and backed from the desk. “I hate to ruin a man. You've worked hard. You've built a great company. I would be willing, in return for a hands-off policy on your part, to hold up any announcement of my material energy until you had time to get out, to save what you could."

Hard fury masked Chambers’ face. “You'll never build a material energy engine outside your laboratory. Don't worry about ruining me. I won't allow you to stand in my way. I hope you understand."

"I understand too well. But even if you are a dictator out on Mars and Venus, even if you do own Mercury and boss the Jovian confederacy, you're just a man to me. A man who stands for things that I don't like."

Greg stopped and his eyes were like ice crystals.

"You talked to Stutsman today” he said. “If I were you, I wouldn't let Stutsman do anything rash. Russ Page and I might have to fight back."

Mockery tinged Chambers’ voice “Am I to take this as a declaration of war, Mr. Manning?"

"Take it any way you like,” Greg said. “I came here to give you a proposition, and you tell me you're going to smash me. All I have to say to you, Chambers, is this — when you get ready to smash me, you'd better have a deep, dark hole all picked out for yourself to hide in. Because I'll hand you back just double anything you hand out."