Mrs. Brant summoned them to breakfast and they walked in to find Steve
and the scientists gathered at the big table.

"Got everything settled?" Rick asked.

"Just about," Steve replied. "We have a job for you, though."

Rick's pulse quickened. "What is it?"

"Your father and Weiss will need to pay a quick trip to Washington. I
want you to take them in the Sky Wagon."

"When?" Scotty inquired.

"Tomorrow morning. You'll come back tomorrow afternoon."

Over breakfast, Rick tried to get more information from the agent.
"Exactly what are we working on, Steve?"

Ames sipped steaming coffee thoughtfully. "Ever hear of a weapon
system?"

Rick had. "It's a weapon so complicated, with so many parts, that it's
actually a system instead of just a simple weapon. I think the term is
used mostly for missiles."

"You think right. Well, Winston, Weiss, and your father will help Dr.
Morrison do the basic design work on a system to go into a weapon
system."

Scotty had been listening, too. "How complicated can you get?" he
asked.

Dr. Morrison answered. "When it comes to missile work, you can get
fantastically complicated. In fact, some missile systems are so
complicated it's a wonder they ever work at all."

The telephone rang. Barby, who served when necessary as the island's
switchboard operator, ran to answer. In a moment she returned. "It's
for you, Steve. From Washington. I plugged it in on the library
extension."

Steve excused himself. A few moments later he returned. "Hartson, I
just took the liberty of ordering a scrambler placed on your phone
switchboard, in case we need to hold any classified conversations
between here and my offices. The phone man will install it today, if
you have no objection."

"Of course not," Hartson Brant said. "I think it's a sensible
precaution, especially with one member of the team remaining in
Washington."

"What's a scrambler?" Barby asked.

"A special device that turns phone conversations into jumbled
gibberish so no one can understand them. You talk normally, and sound
normal to the person listening. But anyone tapping in on the line gets
only sounds that mean nothing."

The agent's face turned grim. "Speaking of gibberish reminds me of the
reason for the call. The _Washington Post_ carried a story in one of
its columns this morning hinting that two scientists working on a
supersecret project had been driven insane. It also hinted that the
insanity was an effect of t