"I'll take you on as my protege. Make a decent gambler out of you. Set you up. We can go travelling together, see the world again. You've been to space; you can tell me what it's like out there. And----" "Hold on," Alan said sharply. "You've got things mixed up a little bit. I'm going to Procyon on the _Valhalla_ at the end of this week. I appreciate everything you've done for me, but if you think I'm going to jump ship permanently and spend the rest of my life----" "You'll stay on Earth, all right," Hawkes said confidently. "You're in love with the place. You know yourself you don't want to spend the next seven decades of your life shuttling around in your old man's starship. You'll check out and stay here. I know you will." "I'll bet you I don't!" "That bet is herewith covered," Hawkes drawled. "I never pass up a sure thing. Is ten to one okay--your hundred against my thousand that you'll stay?" Alan scowled angrily. "I don't want to bet with you, Max. I'm going back on the _Valhalla_. I----" "Go ahead. Take my money, if you're so sure." "All right, I will! A thousand credits won't hurt me!" Suddenly he had no further desire to listen to Hawkes talk; he rose abruptly and gulped down the remainder of his drink. "I'm tired. Let's get some sleep." "Fair enough," Hawkes said. He got up, touched a button in the wall, and a panel slid back, exposing a bed. "You sack out here. I'll wake you in the morning and we'll go looking for your brother Steve." _Chapter Ten_ Alan woke early the next morning, but it was Rat, not Hawkes, who pulled him out of sleep. The little extra-terrestrial was nibbling on his ear. Bleary-eyed, Alan sat up and blinked. "Oh--it's you. I thought you were on a silence strike." "There wasn't anything I wanted to say, so I kept quiet. But I want to say some things now, before your new friend wakes up." The Bellatrician had been silent all the past evening, tagging along behind Alan and Hawkes like a faithful pet, but keeping his mouth closed. "Go ahead and say them, then," Alan told him. "I don't like this fellow Hawkes. I think you're in for trouble if you stick with him." "He's going to take me to the Atlas to get Steve." "You can get to the Atlas yourself. He's given you all the help you'll need." Alan shook his head. "I'm no baby. I can take care of myself, without _your_ help." The little alien creature shrugged. "Suit yourself. But I'll tell you one thing, Alan: I'm going back to the _Valhalla_, whether you are or not. I don't like Earth, or Hawkes either. Remember that." "Who said I was staying here? Didn't you hear me bet Max that I'd go back?" "I heard you. I say you're going to lose that bet. I say this Hawkes is going to fast-talk you into staying here--and if I had any need for money I'd put down a side-bet on Hawkes' side." Alan laughed. "You think you know me better than I know myself. I never for a minute thought of jumping ship."