The Stainless Steel Rat Goes to Hell Read Online Free

stride.
    â€œProfessor Justin Slakey.”
    â€œWhere?”
    â€œUnder sixty seconds’ flight from here.”
    At least he was right about that. The copter was airborne even as we fell through its door. The military must have had the news the instant that the police did because a cover of military jets roared by above us. Even before we began our descent we could see that copcopters were already hitting the ground and unloading troops to surround the house. Rotors roaring we dropped down onto the stone-flagged patio. Collin had produced a large gun and was a fraction of a second ahead of me as we kicked open the doors.
    The house was empty, the bird flown.
    A suitcase was obviously missing, a gaping hole like a missing tooth from what had been a row of four in the bedroom closet. The garage door gaped open. A commofficer strode in, saluting as he pulled a printout from his chest pack.
    â€œGone, sir,” he said. Collin snarled as he grabbed the sheet.
    â€œProfessor J. Slakey, passenger on the stellar liner Star of Serendipity. Departed …” He looked up and his face was grim. “A little over an hour ago.”
    â€œSo they are already in warpdrive and cannot be contacted until they emerge.” I considered the possibilities. “You will of course be in touch with the authorities at their scheduled destination. Which is an operation that might work normally—but this is not a normal situation. I have a strong suspicion that this suspect is ahead of us all of the way. Contacting the ship’s destination will probably do no good at all because the spacer will
arrive instead at some unscheduled chartpoint. If you ask me you’ve lost him, Captain. But you can at least tell me who—or what—he is supposed to be.”
    â€œThat is the worst part. He really is Professor Slakey. I started a search as soon as his name appeared. I have just received a report directly from the medical authorities. He is a physicist of interstellar repute who was requested to come here by the Medical Commission, no expense was too great to acquire his services. Something to do with retarded entropy as applied to our hospital work.”
    â€œSounds reasonable. Slow down entropy and you slow down aging. Which is what this planet is all about. Was he for real?”
    â€œUndoubtedly. I had the privilege of meeting him at a function once. Everyone there, the scientists, physicists for the main part, were greatly in awe of his talents and the work that he did here. I am getting reports now,” he touched his earphone, “that they all refuse to believe he had anything to do with the Fanyimadu personality.”
    â€œDo you?”
    Before he could answer there was a shouted exchange outside, then the door was thrown open and a policeman ran in. Holding an insulated container.
    â€œThe search team found this when they were going through all the debris in the Temple of Eternal Truth, Captain—crushed under the machinery in the temple. We had no idea it was there until the wreckage was lifted. It’s a … human hand.”
    He put it on the table and, in silence, we looked through the transparent side at the crushed and mangled hand inside. I had a long moment of panic before I could see by the size, the shape, that it was certainly male.
    â€œDid anyone think to take the fingerprints of this?” I said.
    â€œYes, sir. They were sent for comparison …”
    He was interrupted by the ring of the phone. Captain Collin put it to his ear, listened, replaced it slowly.
    â€œPositive identification. This is—Professor Slakey’s hand.”
    I pointed. “If you need proof, there it is. They were one and
the same person. The blood tests, now this. Slakey was Fanyimadu. Keep me informed of everything. Understand?”
    I did not wait around for an answer. Turned on my heel and left. Called back over my shoulder. “I assume that all details on Slakey will be