When I did look I saw that the Rumi had finished taking the spacesuit off the prisoner and had gotten her--for the survivor of the Terran yacht was a girl--to her feet. Behind them I could see clearly the wreck of the Crossley with the name _Star Lady_ on her bow. Even I had heard of the yacht _Star Lady_ and her owner Charles Thomson, millionaire explorer. Without a doubt the girl was Thomson’s daughter. The Rumi hadn’t killed her immediately so they probably intended to hold her for ransom as they did so many of their prisoners. The girl was fighting and kicking as two of the raiders dragged her back toward their ship. I knew that if I didn’t act quickly they would have her aboard and far beyond any help I could give her. There was only one thing I could do and that was to delay them until I could think of some way of getting her out of their hands. If they thought there was someone else on the satellite, they might make an attempt to get me too before they left. I shoved with my foot and sent a small avalanche of rocks and gravel down into the river bed. They were after me instantly, three of them bounding along in my direction with their flamers out. By the time they had scrambled up the bank, I was crashing away into the undergrowth and out of sight. Now I knew they wouldn’t leave, not without tracking me down first and I had an idea it would turn out to be quite a job. Even with their catlike ability for following a spoor, I intended to give them a run for their money and if they caught me at least one or two of them might regret it. I knew my satellite and I was confident that my training would give me an advantage over them on its rugged surface. If I could get them to split up, the odds against me might even come down a little. Running, climbing, crawling, I kept them always upwind of me and always the sickening big cat odor warned me that they weren’t far behind, that big cat odor that anyone who has ever visited a zoo or lion farm is familiar with. Occasionally when I stopped to catch a few breaths I would hear them pounding along tirelessly and I would be on my feet again and plunging ahead.