uple of days? How
the devil could you have missed them?" Hennessey was scowling sourly
at him.

Hank Kuran didn't know what the other was talking about. "Two days ago
I was in the town of Machu Picchu in the Andes trying to peddle some
mining equipment to the Peruvians. Peddle it, hell. I was practically
trying to give it away, but it was still even-steven that the
Hungarians would undersell me. Then I got a hurry-up wire from Morton
Twombly to return to Washington soonest. I flew here in an Air Force
jet. I haven't heard any news for two days or more."

"I'll have the major get you all the material we have to date and you
can read it on the plane to England."

"Plane to England?" Hank said blankly. "Look, I'm in the Department of
Economic Development of Neutral Nations, specializing in South
America. What would I be doing in England?" He had an uneasy feeling
of being crowded, and a suspicion that this was far from the first
time Sheridan Hennessey had ridden roughshod over subordinates.

"First step on the way to Moscow," Hennessey snapped. "The major will
give you details later. Let me brief you. The extraterrestrials landed
a couple of days ago on Red Square in some sort of spaceship. Our
Russkie friends clamped down a censorship on news. No photos at all as
yet and all news releases have come from Tass."

Hank Kuran was bug-eying him.

Hennessey said, "I know. Most of the time I don't believe it myself.
The extraterrestrials represent what the Russkies are calling a
Galactic Confederation. So far as we can figure out, there is some
sort of league, United Planets, or whatever you want to call it, of
other star systems which have achieved a certain level of scientific
development."

"Well ... well, why haven't they shown up before?"

"Possibly they have, through the ages. If so, they kept their presence
secret, checked on our development and left." Hennessey snorted his
indignation. "See here, Kuran, I have no details. All of our
information comes from Tass, and you can imagine how inadequate that
is. Now shut up while I tell you what little I do know."

Henry Kuran settled back into his chair, feeling limp. He'd had too
many curves thrown at him in the past few minutes to assimilate.

"They evidently keep hands off until a planet develops interplanetary
exploration and atomic power. And, of course, during the past few
years our Russkie pals have not only set up a base on the Moon but
have sent off their