Which, as you might imagine, drew our instant attention.

“I know what Chaise is up to and what is behind this entire affair.”

Attention squared now.

“My brief but interesting career as a banker has now reached its zenith. And shall be put to a good use before I return to lunar research. The pieces are all falling into place. To understand just what is happening we must go right back to the beginning, when Chaise made the Stainless Steel Rat an offer he couldn’t refuse.”

“I could have refused it if I had wanted to.”

Angelina raised one quizzical and lovely eyebrow at that. “You? Refuse four million credits a day?”

“Well, you must admit, it had certain attractions.”

“Chaise knew exactly what he was doing-he is an interstellar conman of the first degree. Good conmen always let the suckers talk themselves into doing what the confidence trickster wants them to do. First the money, then the data bank searches, then the discovery that all evidence pointed to Bolshoi’s Big Top circus and the strongman Puissanto.”

I nodded rueful agreement. “A perfect con job. We discovered all the facts on our own, things that we thought Chaise could not have known about. We thought that, by ourselves, we had uncovered all the links that pointed to the circus. When in reality he had really planted all these facts himself. He did a rush job and a really detailed search, on the spot, would have revealed that. But of course by the time we discovered that we were being conned I was already on this planet, and skidding down a greasy slope. But why me? What did he have against me, us, the family?”

“Nothing. But you were essential to the fruition of his plans. Which goes back to the time when he discovered that Bolshoi’s Big Top was coming to Fetorr. The businessmen on this planet are most provincial. They are happy enough to make their profits here and enjoy the bucolic luxuries of life. But not Chaise. He really does have interstellar interests and knows what is going on in the big galaxy out there. I’ll bet that he had some banks or corporations on another planet when the circus came to town there.”

“Interstellar interests? Planets?” I asked. I still couldn’t understand how the pieces fit together.

“He knew that the circus was a cover for interstellar investigators. I have the strong feeling that he has tangled with them once before on another planet. So he knew that Puissanto is a Galactic Inspector of Taxes. And Gar Goyle an organizer for GUU, the Galactic Union Union. I did a little digging and uncovered that Belissima, the dancing acrobat, is with FBI. The Forensic Bureau of Investigation. So Chaise knew that bad times were on the way for tax evaders, nonunion businesses, profit skimmers, crooks, privileged information investors-in short any company with dodgy bookkeeping, or any individuals who kept double sets of books. Trouble was coming-and he was going to profit by that information. The first thing he had to do was make things worse. That’s where the Stainless Steel Rat came in. First you had to be there to be blamed for the crimes that Chaise did on his own—“

“And then I was forced to go on and commit more crimes myself. A conman conned,” I said with some bitterness. And blinked. “But I still don’t see how he profited by all this. Yes, he got to keep the money he stole from his own bank. But the rest-“

“Just look at the financial pages,” Bolivar said, smoothing out the crinkled sheets. “Read these headlines. ‘STOCK FALLS AS UNION LOCKOUT CONTINUES.’ And this ‘INVESTORS FEAR SHARP DROP IN GILTS’-those are government bonds. ‘DERIVATIVE MARKET BOOMING.’ And this I particularly like, ‘FEARING RUN BANK CLOSES FOR LONG WEEKEND.’ And that’s Kaia’s own bank. By doing that he started a panic and a run, not stopped it.”

“I used to know what a run on a bank was,” I admitted. “But …”

“But they don’t happen much any more because of galactic interbank controls-which apparently don’t exist here. You must remember that banks do not keep all of their assets in cash. Usually only a fixed percentage. The rest is out on loan to earn the interest that keeps banks in business. So if people get feeling insecure and they go to their bank in large numbers to take out their deposits-the bank doesn’t have enough cash for them all. If the run continues the bank goes bust.”

I still didn’t see it. “What can he gain by starting a run on his own bank? What if it goes bust?”

“It won’t. I imagine he has transferred all the cash he will need from his other holdings. But panic spreads like the plague. Other banks will have runs on them as well, and won’t be able to bail themselves out. Next thing will be that the stock market will start getting worried, investors will begin to get hysterical, and all of that will lead to a single and inescapable event. Read this.” He passed me the paper, tapped the headline in question.

“‘WEAKENED FETORR CREDIT HITS NEW LOW.’ New low against what?”

“The Interstellar Credit. When we first came to this planet they were at par, that is they were worth exactly the same amount. Now, with all the financial upsets, the Fetorr credit is down seventeen points. Which means you can buy a hundred of the local credits with eighty-three Galactic Credits.”

The lightbulb finally lit. “You told me something that meant nothing to me at the time. Not only does he own banksbut he has a brokerage firm as well!”

“I hear the words,” Angelina said, “but I am afraid that I don’t see the results that you financial geniuses seem to be so excited about.”

“It is so simple it is almost too simple,” James said. “He watched the economy start on the downhill course-and helped it along by giving it a push. More than once. First the disastrous robberies, then the power failure, which might have been the final straw. Now he will sell short and buy the credits back at a lower price.”

“He’s buying fixtures!” Angelina said as we all nodded like crazy, like puppets all strung together. “He is betting all of his money that the Fetorr Credit will fall further still. And when it does, it may wreck the economy-but he will make billions!”

“Exactly so,” Bolivar our financial genius said, wiping his hands together with glee. “So now that we know his gamewe outplay him. Clean him out. Hit him where it really hurts.”

“In his wallet,” Angelina said. “But while we are cleaning out his assets let us not leave sight of some personal grudges.” She lightly touched my bandaged face. “You boys get the money. I’ll get the man.”

There was a new excitement in the air as we drove back to the copter, took wing to Fetorrscoria. Even Gloriana seemed to be enjoying her first-ever flight. As the others elated, made plans, counted soon-to-be-acquired riches, planned vengeance, I began to be depressed. The boys didn’t notice my silence but Angelina did. She look worried.

“Do you want some painkiller? Are those bruises acting up?

“No-but I could really use some liquid painkiller to dispel depression. I have been tracking down a single convoluted train of thought, and have reluctantly arrived at a single repellent conclusion. Bolivar?” He turned his head. “How long will it take you to put together your monetary trap for Chaise?”

“A day, two days at the most. Why?”

“Because, unhappily, it means that I am going to have to return to my incarceration in the warehouse. If he finds that I have escaped, and can pin him for robbery and murder, there is a good chance he will cut and run.”

No one had a ready answer for this one.

“I can’t let you,” Angelina finally said.

“I am afraid that I must do it. But there will be no danger. I’ll eat and drink well before I go there, only put on the cuffs when he comes to the warehouse. In fact I think that I am going to enjoy this. The biter bit, the conman conned. If we do this right he won’t have a clue as to what is going down.”