“Yes, gentlemen,” said Zimbardo, “You know what to do now. We will need to get all of our men busy and you must drive them, drive them relentlessly! I don’t want to take any longer on this work than we need to. We’ve been moving slowly out of the Asteroid Belt for almost three days.” His laser pointer made a few small red circles on a chart in the library. “This is where we were, and this is where we’re going to be.” The chart was nearly a full wall of smooth quartz, illumined from the inside and showing the nearby configuration of asteroids. The table was strewn with large books opened to star maps, note pads, a couple of small computers and calculating machines, and a huge number of crumpled balls of paper. One man reached for a pitcher of water that was on the table and slowly filled his glass. Zimbardo continued. “The manufacturing will begin tomorrow--that’ll be for Stubb to oversee. Once the sheathing device has proven effective we can begin work on restoring and disguising our fleet. After that, Crass, you’ll take care of the rest.” One of the men looked up. “What about St. George? If anyone discovers him he could put a serious crimp in our plans.” Zimbardo looked annoyed. “St. George will be dealt with, Mr. Slant. I have not forgotten him; you can leave that to me. He will never speak to the Starmen or anyone else.” Another spoke. “Is it really necessary to silence him? It will take a large number of men to make a search--men we could use on the urgent projects at hand. Since you’ve moved the asteroid from its original site, he can’t find us now or show anyone else how to find us.” “He can’t find us, but he knows how this asteroid works--almost as well as I do. If the Starmen learn what he knows, it could be disastrous for us in the unlikely chance that they ever locate us. I don’t like taking chances, and I don’t like leaving any loose ends. St. George is a loose end we can’t afford.” “Do you know where to find him? He doesn’t have any fixed place he calls home.” “Our men have quietly inquired for him on Ceres and learned that he has a good friend, another asteroid miner named Montezuma Vly. We know where Vly lives, and Vly will know where St. George is. Vly doesn’t receive visitors, but his resistance won’t keep a small fleet from landing. One way or another, Vly will tell us where to find George St. George--and soon.” 3: Montezuma’s Castle A FEW DAYS later, Lurton Zimbardo decided to take a tour of the workshops and check on progress. Where Troy Putnam’s organization had been large, easy-going, and confident, Zimbardo’s was tight, highly-organized, and ruthless. Its high degree of efficiency was dependent almost exclusively on Zimbardo himself. Once Zimbardo had asserted his control over the organization, the asteroid and its crew had rapidly become an extension of his formidable personality.