"Good. Circulate a report that Jack has been seen in the vicinity of the main gate to Area Four. Put it out that there's a reward of five thousand for the person who finds her. I'm going to have Quilp gather a crowd."
He didn't ask a one of the million questions that must have popped into his mind. "Right. Anything else?"
"No." I hung up.
Within ten minutes, there was a mob milling through the corridor. Everybody in the neighborhood was looking for Jaqueline Ravenhurst. Then Peter Quilp yelled.
"I've got her! I've got her! Guard!"
With a scene like that going on, the guard couldn't help but step out of his cubicle to see what was going on.
I used the key I was carrying, stepped inside, and relocked the door. No one in the crowd paid any attention.
From then on up, it was simply a matter of evading patrolling guards—a relatively easy job. Finally, I put on my vac suit and went out through the air lock.
McGuire was still sitting there, a bright blue needle that reflected the distant sun as it moved across the ebon sky. Ceres' rotation took it from horizon to horizon in less than two hours, and you could see it and the stars move against the spire of the ship.