Bemmelman's face went purple. He kicked Cosmo viciously in the ribs. "Where's the feeding ground? Where is it? Where is it?" Mia regained consciousness, sat up. She stared wide-eyed at the berserk planter. Bemmelman glanced at her, paused. He rubbed his nose, a fiendish light shining in his pig-like eyes. He said in a sudden altered tone: "I'm still willing to bargain, Cosmo." "What do you mean?" "Either you reveal the location of the feeding grounds, or I hand Miss MacIver over to the Dawn Men. Yes sir, I'm anxious to repeat that experiment." He pointed to the Blue Venus who was just coming out from under the effects of the gas. Cosmo's features were inscrutable. He asked: "What happens to Miss MacIver if I give you that information?" "I'll release her in Venusport with her fare back to Earth. I'm holding personal notes on the MacIver plantation anyway." "Notes?" echoed Mia blankly. "Father never mentioned any notes. I--I don't believe it!" A veil dropped before Bemmelman's eyes. "I haven't told you before. I didn't like to so soon after your father's death. But I lent him considerable money. Yes sir, considerable." Cosmo laughed without humor. "Up to your old tricks, eh Bemmelman?" "What d'you mean?" The red-faced planter looked faintly rattled. He took a threatening step. "You kick me again," said Cosmo, "and I'll kill you if I have to bite you to death." Mia giggled nervously. "Well?" said Bemmelman. "That's my proposition. Take it or leave it." "What about me?" asked Cosmo. "You're worth fifty thousand monad on the hoof, Cosmo. Yes sir. I'm going to turn you and your men over to the Security Patrol." "Suppose I talk?" "Talk?" Bemmelman threw back his head and roared. "Talk d'you say? Who'll believe anything the Renegade says?" "A nice point," Cosmo conceded dryly. "But what about Mia?" "Miss MacIver? What can she tell? Aren't you forgetting, Cosmo, that I rescued her from you. Yes sir. What's more, I've captured you, and I'm turning you over to the officials." His eyes twinkled. "Who's she going to tell, anyway?" Cosmo's lean visage was unreadable. So that, he thought, was the line Bemmelman planned to take. Only Mia MacIver would never be released. He wondered if the planter really considered him such a fool. He said: "You don't give me much choice," and twisted to his feet. He hobbled to the desk, dropped awkwardly into the chair. "Give me pen and paper." Bemmelman produced writing material, spread them before him. "Here's the Cloud Mountains." Hindered by the manacles, Cosmo sketched a chain of hills, indicated north with a crude compass. He placed a dot halfway into the mountains, then laid off a line from the dot running diagonally into the most rugged sector. He shoved the paper across to Bemmelman. "The first dot's the Ormoo's nest. You know where it is?" Bemmelman nodded, wrote "Ormoo's nest" on the map.