CHAPTER 2In ten minutes the Inspector and his men had departed with their captive by means of a rear exit, whilst Earmar and Vanita went back to their table in the café, watched intently by the dough-skinned man with tinted glasses, secluded in his corner.
“More wine, my dear?” Earmar asked genially, but the girl shook her head. She was looking reproachful.
“You’re not playing fair, Earmar. You promised that after all the hard planning and arranging we’d done nothing would stop us setting off for Jupiter tomorrow.”
Earmar poured wine for himself. “And why this desperate desire to leap into the outer deeps and endure all the dangers they contain?”
“That’s just it! The danger! The thrill of never knowing what is going to happen next. I was quite looking forward to it after long months of
