Gibbons broke into a run.
As he reached the Harper place, the entire roof was burning. Lazarus skidded to a stop and tried to judge the situation. Like most older houses, the Harper place had no ground-floor windows and but a single door that fit tightly and opened outward-a design for a time when lopers and dragons were ubiquitous.
Opening that door would be opening the damper on a burning fire.
He did not waste an. instant debating it; that door must stay closed. He ran around the house, spotting windows of the upper floor and looking for means to reach one-a ladder or anything. Was anyone inside? Didn't the Brandons even have knotted-rope fire escapes? Probably not; good rope came from Earth and retailed at ninety dollars a meter- the Harpers would not have left any behind.
A window with its shutters open and smoke pouring out- He yelled, "Hey! Anybody home?" A figure showed at the window, and something was thrown out to him.
Automatically he made a good catch, spotting what it was while in the air, going to the ground with it to soften the impact. A small child- He looked up, saw an arm hanging over the windowsill.
The roof fell in, the arm disappeared.
Gibbons scrambled up fast, holding, the little boy-no, little girl, he corrected-and moved hastily back from the holocaust. He did not consider the possibility that someone might be alive in that raging fire; he simply hoped that they had died quickly and gave it no more thought. He cradled the child in his arms. "Are you all right, honey?"
"I guess so," she answered, then added gravely, "but Mama's awful sick."
"Mama is all right now, dear," he said gently, "and so is Papa."
"You're sure?" The child twisted in his arms, tried to see the burning house.
He interposed his shoulder. "I'm sure." He held her more firmly and started walking.
Halfway back to town they encountered Clyde Learner, mounted on Buck. Clyde reined up. "Oh, there you are! Banker, I want to talk to you."
"Stow it, Clyde." -"Huh? But you don't understand; I've got to have some money. Nothing but bad luck the whole season. Seems like everything I touch-"
"Clyde-shut your yap!"
"What?" Learner seemed to notice for the first time that the banker was carrying something. "Hey! ain't that the Brandon kid?"
"'Yes."
"Thought so. Now about this, loan-"
"I told you to shut up. The bank won't lend you another dollar."
"But you've got to listen. Seems to me the community ought to help a farmer who's had bad luck. If it weren't for the farmers-"
"You listen. If you spent as much time working as you do talking, you wouldn't need to talk about 'bad luck.' Even your stable is dirty. Mm...what price do you want for that stud brute?"
"Buck'? Why, I wouldn't sell Buck. But here's what I had in mind, Banker. You're a kindly man even if you do talk rough and I bow you won't see my kids starve. Now Buck is a valuable property, and I figure he ought to be security for about-well, about, say-"
"Clyde, the best thing you can do for your kids is to cut your throat. Then people would adopt them. No loan, Clyde-not a dollar, not a dime. But I'll buy Buck myself, right now. Name a price."
Learner gulped and hesitated. "Twenty-five thousand."
Gibbons started walking toward town. Learner said hastily, "Twenty thousand!" Gibbons did not answer.
Learner reined the mule around, turned in front of the banker, and stopped. "Banker, you've got me by the short hairs. Eighteen thousand and you're stealing him."
"Learner, I won't steal from you. Put him up for auction, and I might bid. Or might not. How much do you think he'll bring at auction?"
"Uh...fifteen thousand."
"You think so? I don't. I know how old he is without looking at his teeth, and just what you paid for him, off the ship. I know what people around here can afford and will pay. But go ahead; he's yours. Bear in mind that if you put a low-bid price against him, you owe the auctioneer ten percent even if he doesn't sell. But it's your business, Clyde. Now get out of my way; I want to get this child into town and lying down; she's had a bad time."
"Uh...what will you pay?"
"Twelve thousand."
"Why, that's robbery!"
"You don't have to take it. Suppose an auction brings fifteen thousand dollars-as you hope. Your net is thirteen five. But suppose an auction brings only ten thousand, which I find more likely. You net nine thousand. G'bye, Clyde; I'm in a hurry."
"Well-thirteen thousand?"
"Clyde, I named my top price. You've dealt with me often enough to know that when I say it's top dollar, then it's top dollar. But-throw in that saddle and bridle and answer one question and I'll sweeten it by five hundred dollars."
"What question?"
"How did you happen to migrate?"
Learner looked startled, then laughed unmirthfully. "Because I was crazy, if you want to know the truth."
"Aren't we all? That's hardly an answer, Clyde."
"Well...my old man is a banker-and as hard-nosed, as you are! I was doing all right, I had a proper, respectable job, teaching. College. But the pay wasn't much, and my old man was always snotty about it when I ran a little short. Snoopy. Disparaging Finally I got so sick of it that I asked him what he would think of paying Yvonne s fare and mine in the 'Andy'J.'? Migrate. Be rid of us.
To my surprise he agreed But I didn't back out. I knew that a man with a fine education like mine could get ahead anywhere and it wasn't like we was being dumped on some wild planet; we were second wave you may remember.
Only it was a wild planet and I've had to do things that no gentleman ought to have to touch. But you just wait Banker, kids around here are growing up and there will be a place for higher education, not the trivia Mrs. Mayberry teaches in that so-called school of hers. That's where I come in- you'll be calling me 'Professor' yet, and speaking respectfully.
'You'll see."
"Good luck to you. Are you accepting my offer? Twelve thousand five hundred, net, including bridle and saddle."
"Uh...I said I was, didn't I?"
"You didn't say. You still have not."
"I accept."
The girl child had listened quietly, face serious. Gibbons said to her, "Can you stand up a moment, dear?"
He put her down; she trembled and held onto his kilt. Gibbons dug into his sporran-, then using Buck's broad rump as a desk, wrote a draft and a bill of sale. He handed them to Learner. "Take that to Hilda at the bank. Sign the bill of sale and give it back to me."
Silently Learner signed, looked at the draft and pocketed it, handed over the bill of sale. "Thanks; Banker-you old skinflint. Where do you want him delivered?"
"You've delivered him. Dismount."
"Huh? How do I get to the bank? How am I supposed to get home?"
"You walk."
"What? Well, of all the sneaky, underhanded tricks! You get the mule when I get the cash. At the bank."
"Learner, I paid top dollar for that mule because I need him now. But I see that we did not have a meeting of minds. Okay, hand back my draft and here's your bill of sale."
'Learner looked startled. "Oh, no, you don't! You made a deal."
"Then get off my mule at once"-Gibbons just happened to rest his hand on the handle of the all-purpose knife every man carried-"and dogtrot into town and you'll be there before Hilda closes,. Now move." His eyes, cold and blank, held Learner's.
"Can't you take a joke?' Learner grumbled as he swung down. He started walking rather fast toward town.
"Oh, Clyde!"
Learner stopped; "What do you want now?"
"If you see the Volunteer Fire Team headed this way, tell them it's too late; the Harper place is gone. But tell McCarthy I said it wouldn't hurt to send a couple of men to check."
"Okay, okay!"
"And, Clyde-what was it you used to teach?'
"Teach'? I taught 'Creative Writing.' I told you I had a good education."