"Is this him?" one of the S.P. men asked the other. The other nodded. The first man who had spoken turned back to Brace. "We're not looking into your take-off, Captain. We're investigating a killing." "What do you want me to do? Solve it for you?" The S.P. man took the insult but stiffened a little. "No, sir. We'd like to examine your ship. There's a girl missing." "Oh!" Brace shouted sarcastically. "Then she MUST be on my ship! It's just swarming with kidnapped women! It COULDN'T be any other!!" He waved his ape-like arm toward the collection of hulls. The S.P. man's lips tightened into a thin line. Brace ran his thick fingers through his hair, studying them for a moment, then asked, "Do you have a search permit?" "No sir," the S.P. man replied, "but we thought, under the circumstances, your courtesy might--" Brace snorted. "You could get one in half an hour--but--it would interrupt my breakfast." He scowled. "All right--come on!" The two S.P. men stepped into the port and Brace jabbed the closing button viciously. "Now have a good look, because it's going to be your last look at anybody's ship!" "You're going to file an objection?" the S.P. man asked. Brace threw back his head and roared with laughter. "Am I going to file an objection!" he gasped. "Why, I'm going to ground my ship and personally stay here until they yank the shields off you!!" "Well, sir, if that's the way you feel, Captain, we'll not search your ship until we have an official permit." "You're in my ship now!" Brace snapped. "So come on! Have a good look!!" "Sir, if you'll accept our apologies ... we don't wish to intrude on your legal status...." Brace motioned toward the companionway. "Do you want to search it or not?" "Captain Brace," the S.P. man said stiffly, "it's only a routine search. We're quite convinced that a man of your standing wouldn't jeopardize his ship and, if you'll consider the incident closed, I'll be glad to see that no further trouble is given you." The S.P. men had made a mistake by stepping in the ship of course, and Brace could make much out of it. He grinned to let them know that he'd like nothing better than to make much of it. "Would that be satisfactory, sir?" the S.P. man asked. Without taking his eyes off the man, Brace jabbed the opening button. His face was not distorted, yet it carried the feeling, the hint of a snarling, savage animal. In the atmosphere of such unspoken animosity, the S.P. men stepped out as the outer port opened. Brace watched them climb into the sand car and back away, then he thumbed the air-lock control, waited for the inner door to open, and entered the ship. * * * * * His mate was standing inside, a tall, heavy man with beetling brows, a man who obviously tried hard to emulate his Captain. "Well?" Brace demanded.