mped.

"_Anyway?_" he repeated huskily. His mouth suddenly seemed dry.

Chairman Diamond smiled out of the telescreen, so broadly that Gibson
was unpleasantly affected by the sight of his small, gleaming, white
teeth.

"Put it this way," he suggested suavely. "Your highly trained mind
observed, correlated, and memorized the most intricate data and
mathematics, meanwhile guiding your social relations with your former
colleagues so as to remain unsuspected while stealing their most
cherished secret. Such a feat demonstrates ability and intelligence."

Gibson tried to lick his lips, and could not, despite the seeming
fairness of the words. He sensed a pulsing undercurrent of cruelty and
cynicism.

"On the other hand," the mellow voice flowed on, "having received the
information, being able to use it effectively now without you, and
knowing that you betrayed _once_--I shall simply discard you like an old
message blank. _That_ is an act of wisdom.

"Had you chosen your course more wisely," he added, "your position might
be stronger."

By the time Arnold Gibson regained his voice, the Centaurian autocrat
was already giving instructions to Colonel Korman. The scientist strove
to interrupt, to attract the ruler's attention even momentarily.

Neither paid him any heed, until he shouted and tried frenziedly to
shove the soldier from in front of the telescreen. Korman backhanded him
across the throat without looking around, with such force that Gibson
staggered back and fell.

He lay, half-choking, grasping his throat with both hands until he could
breathe. The colonel continued discussing his extinction without
emotion.

"... so if Your Excellency agrees, I would prefer taking him back to
Nessus first, for the sake of the morale factor here. Some of them are
so addled now at having been caught chasing up wrong alleys that they
can hardly work."

Apparently the Chairman agreed, for the screen was blank when the
colonel reached down and hauled Gibson to his feet.

"Now, listen to me carefully!" he said, emphasizing his order with a
ringing slap across Gibson's face. "I shall walk behind you with my
blaster drawn. If you make a false move, I shall not kill you."

Gibson stared at him, holding his bleeding mouth.

"It will be much worse," Korman went on woodenly. "Imagine what it will
be like to have both feet charred to the bone. You would have to crawl
the rest of the way to the ship; _I_ certainly would not consi