ck under
civil control--his control?

Or had someone genuinely slipped?

The command to halt, turn around, and return to base did not come until
their second hop had brought them into the Mars orbit. Then it came from
space police in charge of shipping traffic at that point.

"I am under orders from E.H.Q. to proceed," Tom answered, after a quick,
questioning look at Cal.

"The attorney general's office orders you to halt," the voice commanded.

Tom looked at Cal again, questioning. This was bucking the federal
government, his license wouldn't be worth the paper it was written on if
he ignored the order. To say nothing of any other punishment they might
choose to hand him.

"Keep going," Cal answered shortly. "And make your next jump as quickly
as you can."

"I am under orders to keep going," Tom answered the police. If he
refused the request of an E, a lifetime of work would go down the drain.

Over in his seat, Frank Norton's fingers were speeding through the
intricate pattern of setting up the next jump. He and Louie were working
as one man.

"I am under orders to disable you if you refuse," the police warned.

"We have an E on board," Tom answered. "You'd be risking a lot."

"I am advised he is a Junior E," the voice said in clipped speech. "Not
such a risk."

"Far as I'm concerned," Tom answered laconically, "he's an E. I have to
follow his orders."

He nodded to Frank who touched the jump switch. There was an instant
silence. They were at the approach to the asteroid belt.

"They can get us here," Louie spoke up. "We have to give over controls
so they can take us through. No chart can keep up to the microsecond on
these asteroid movements. They have to calculate a path in short hops,
and take us through a step at a time. I keep saying there ought to be an
expressway out of the solar system, but ..."

"What about a good long jump at right angles?" Cal asked. "Get over it
instead of through it?"

"It's illegal," Louie complained.

"Our necks are already out," Tom said quietly.

"Okay, you're the boss. But I'll have to figure it. It takes time to
figure it."

"Well, get going on it."

"There's stuff all over," Louie explained. "Not just a band, like most
people think. The asteroids have moved at right angles, too. Not so
thick, but there's a globe of stuff, not just a belt. Maybe a bunch of
little jumps."

"We can't start making them until you figure them, Louie," Frank
reminded him.

T