“Everyone on the ship will be at your disposal, Ben,” Captain Eaton said. “Call for anyone and anything at all that you need in order to hurry those repairs. Ben, there’s no one else I’d rather trust with the lives of us all than you. You can’t let us down.”
“That confidence means a lot, Captain,” Ben replied, his expression showing the appreciation he felt. “Mac gave his life for the ship. I’d do no less if it meant saving the Carefree and all you guys.”
“I know you mean what you say, Ben,” Captain Eaton said, “but we won’t call on you to go that far. Just get the flier in shape so that we can escape in it and not share the Carefree’s fate in crashing on the moon.”
Ben shook his head sadly. “I hadn’t thought of the Carefree plunging to her destruction. But we know that’s got to happen, don’t we, because there’s no way of saving her. Captain, this ship has become such a part of my life that I’d almost want to go down with her.”
“I feel the same way, Ben,” Captain Eaton replied. “Life will never be the same again without the Carefree. I don’t know how I’ll get along without her deck beneath my feet.”
“If we get out of this alive,” Mr. Klecker said, “we’ll just have to return to earth and spend the rest of our days there.”
“That’s true,” the captain agreed sadly. “Even a millionaire is allowed a space ship as grand as this only once in a lifetime. I couldn’t afford another.”
Ben seemed to realize that precious time was going to waste as they talked, and he began getting his tools together.
“I know everyone wants to help,” he said, “but I think that Kleck and I can work better together by ourselves just now. There’ll be less confusion. I’ll be sure to call on anyone else if he’s needed.”
Mr. Klecker had donned some old clothes, but he did not look comfortable in them.