nter the
city without being captured.

He had only one alternative: the Martians, in the Icaria Desert, halfway
around Mars. They would remember him and shelter him, and he was sure he
could find the spot.

He looked at his fuel gauge. The tank was full. It would not take him
quite there, but he could chance refueling at Solis Lacus, some 20,000
kilometers from Mars City. He could take the highway, turning out into
the desert to go around Edom, Aram and Ophir.

He put the groundcar in drive again, and made a U-turn in the highway.
He entered the cloverleaf and was halfway through it when he saw the
copter.

It was a red-and-white government copter, and it was descending at a
shallow angle toward him from the direction of Mars City. Dark switched
his radio to the official channel.

" ... await check. Repeat: groundcar in cloverleaf, stop at once and
await check."

Dark braked the groundcar to a stop. As soon as the copter grounded, he
could accelerate and escape.

But the copter did not ground. It hovered, directly over him. Then Dark
realized it was awaiting a patrol car from Mars City to check and take
him in custody if necessary.

Immediately, he put the groundcar in drive and whipped out of the
cloverleaf under full acceleration. If he could only achieve top speed,
350 kilometers-an-hour, the copter couldn't match it.

But the copter was on his tail at once as he swerved out of the tight
curve. Its guns spat fire.

There was a terrific impact, and the groundcar dome shattered above him.
Unprotected, he felt the air explode from the groundcar, from his
lungs. Oxygenless death poured in through the broken dome.

It all happened in an instant. Even as the dome shattered under the
copter's shell and Dark recognized the imminence of death, the groundcar
twisted out of control and careened from the highway. He felt it
spinning over and over, and then blackness closed in around him.

7

Maya had never seen Nuwell in such a state of sustained rage.

He strode back and forth in the private dining room of the Syrtis Major
Club, near the western edge of Mars City, slapping his fist into his
hand. His face usually was engaging and boyish, the wave of his dark
hair setting it off handsomely, but now it was flushed like that of a
petulant child and the lock of hair hung down over his forehead. Maya,
the only other person in the room, sat quietly and watched him pace.

"They had plenty of time and all th