Yes, thought Reinhold, I know. The race is on — and we may not win it.
“Do you know who’s running their team?” he had asked, not really expecting an answer. To his surprise, Colonel Sandmeyer had pushed across a typewritten sheet — and there at its head was the name: Konrad Schneider.
“You knew a lot of these men at Peenemunde, didn’t you?” said the Colonel.
“That may give us some insight into their methods. I’d like you to let me have notes on as many of them as you can — their specialities, the bright ideas they had, and so on. I know it’s asking a lot after all this time — but see what you can do.”
“Konrad Schneider is the only one who matters,” Reinhold had answered. “He was brilliant — the others are just competent engineers. Heaven only knows what he’s done in thirty years. Remember — he’s probably seen all our results and we haven’t any of his. That gives him a decided advantage.”
He hadn’t meant this as a criticism of Intelligence, but for a moment is seemed as if Sandmeyer was going to be offended. Then the Colonel shrugged his shoulders.
“It works both ways — you’ve told me that yourself. Our free exchange of information means swifter progress, even if we do give away a few secrets. The Russian research departments probably don’t know what their own people are doing half the time. We’ll show them that Democracy can get to the moon first.”
Democracy — Nuts! thought Reinhold, but knew better than to say it. One Konrad Schneider was worth a million names on an electoral roll. And what had Konrad done by this time, with all the resources of the U.S.S.R. behind him? Perhaps, even now, his ship was already outward bound from Earth….
The sun which had deserted Taratua was still high above Lake Baikal when Konrad Schneider and the Assistant Commissar for Nuclear Science walked slowly back from the motor test rig. Their ears were still throbbing painfully, though the last thunderous echoes had died out across the lake ten minutes before.
“Why the long face?” asked Grigorievitch suddenly. “You should be happy now. In another month we’ll be on our way, and the Yankees will be choking themselves with rage.”