Meanwhile, she controlled every expression of emotion. Torpeon, indeed, had no suspicion of her intention. He was employing all his energies to pass the pale of danger. From the corner of her eye Miriam saw the pursuer swing his arm for another cast. Should this fail, she would act!
Lamara, intently observing, discerned not the outward manifestations merely, but the thoughts which produced them. She knew Argon’s activity, courage, and address; but the hazard was too great. Yet to intervene now was impossible.
Keen like the note of a harp-string in the shrillest treble came again the sound of the noose. It reached its highest pitch, and the noose itself appeared above their heads, opening and descending. Every nerve in Miriam’s body was drawn tense for the outcome. Down came the shining circlet, carrying its message of defeat for Torpeon or of liberation for her. So truly had Argon estimated the distance that it seemed certain they would be taken. But Torpeon’s skill and foresight were not less than his.
Just as the shining cord settled around them, Torpeon, by a titanic effort, brought the car to a halt. It dropped straight downward, leaving the slip-knot to close empty above them. By another wrench at the guiding shaft he caused the vehicle to swerve violently to the left; then to start forward once more. The snare had been evaded!
The moment for Miriam’s attempt had come. She had been thrown on her knees by the sudden turning of the car; she steadied herself, and then sprang to her feet. The car staggered in its course; for an instant the sky seemed to reel; the ring flashed before her eyes, dipped, and vanished; the vast globe of Saturn impended above her head, and she caught a lightning glimpse of Argon halting in his flight, and watching, appalled, for the issue. She summoned all her energy, and leaped from the car.
What might be the consequence, she had not cared to consider; there was the chance that Argon might intercept her fall; there was the possibility that she might join the silent army of the ring. It was even conceivable that, at this immense distance from the planet, she might be borne away in an orbit of her own, and journey forever in an endless spiral through the fields of space. Anything would be preferable to enduring the dominion of the prince of Tor.
But Torpeon, though he had perhaps not anticipated a voluntary act on her part, was not unprepared for the event, and was ready to meet it. With a resolve as desperate as Miriam’s, he flung himself headlong after her as she leaped.
For the duration of a single pulse-beat, the twain hung in mid air, the gravitational force of Saturn, diminished by the counterpull of Tor, operating but feebly. Ere it could gather strength, he had thrown an arm around her. She felt its grasp, and struggled fiercely against it, but in vain. The car, dropping with them, was within reach of Torpeon’s other hand. He caught it, and still holding her, dragged himself aboard. Once more he sent it flying on its way. The bounds of Saturnian influence were passed, and Argon’s pursuit had failed.
Torpeon turned his head, his face so close to Miriam’s that his beard brushed her cheek, and searched her eyes with a look that pierced like a sword. In that glance was manifested the whole savage strength of the man. The car sped on, and presently became a mere speck in the mirror. The figure of Argon, descending, flashed into view, and Lamara left the dome and went forth to meet him.