Ten minutes later, back in the office, Leah was reacting to the antidote Doc Rogers had just administered. A glance at her face had told the medico that the drug had been Venusian tragweed. Mart was still answering questions. "... Sure, Tar Norn knew that. Every ship in the system makes its trial blasts just half an hour before take-off. It's a fixed convention. Rocket captains do everything according to a rigid schedule. And we were looking for a time-bomb so we'd never think of the blasting pits. But Tar Norn couldn't have rigged a time-bomb. We didn't think of that when we found the timer was gone. He'd just thrown it away--" Someone was wringing his hand, and he saw it was Director Barrow. "Mart!" Barrow's voice wasn't cold and distant now; all the ice had melted. "I can't begin to tell you how much--If there is any reward I can possibly offer you--" Mart Wells grinned. "--unto your daughter and half of your kingdom, as they used to say in stories? Well, sir, I don't know what I'd do with half of Callisto, but as for the other part of it--" He turned back to the awakening girl. Director Barrow's answer was cinched, of course, but Leah--? Well, he'd have to ask her again. But probably she wasn't up to that just yet, even though her eyes were open now and she was smiling at him. He'd have to give her time, of course, before he asked her. Lots of time. Say, five minutes, or maybe three. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Venusian Invader, by Larry Sternig