complete android through
whatever means possible. Therefore, meeting and teaming up with Dennis
had been a big break.

The rationalization wasn't too comforting, though, because he knew he
could never have gone ahead on his own. Also, he realized he and Dennis
weren't a team at all. Dennis ordered; he obeyed. Still, the sense of
excitement Dennis generated in him had its effect on the other part of
his mind, and this was the stronger; this held sway. Somehow, there was
the certainty that Dennis did not make mistakes; that everything would
work out.

This conviction was jarred a little when he got past the lobby man in
the Washington building--a feat easily accomplished--climbed ten flights
of stairs, and found room ten twenty-eight empty. Obviously, Dennis had
goofed.

King's first instinct was to retreat as quietly as he'd advanced; to get
away from the place and report failure to Dennis. But as he went back
downstairs, the thought of Dennis' disapproval began weighing more
heavily. Maybe something unforeseen had happened. Maybe he could still
pull this one out of the fire.

With this hope foremost in his mind, he went into the lobby, assumed a
bold front, and demanded: "Where in the hell did the people in ten
twenty-eight go?"

And the front worked. The lobby man, a big Irishman, was so impressed he
didn't even ask King how he'd gotten into the building. He blinked
politely and said, "Blessed if I'm not new here myself. This is my first
day. What room was it?"

Then the big Irishman went to a phone to check, and came back with a
Georgetown address written out on a slip of paper. Georgetown seemed
like an unlikely place to find cadavers and, under normal conditions,
King would have been highly suspicious of the whole thing. But what the
hell? Nothing was normal about this project, so why not follow through?

_King, you're crazy. You're out of your stupid mind._

He raised his hand and a cab cut in toward the curb.

When he arrived at the address, he found himself standing on the walk in
front of a large, imposing house. The place still seemed unlikely but
you never could tell. The way things were these days, any house in
whatever neighborhood was a potential location for almost anything. The
way this one was laid out, there could possibly have been a laboratory
in the back. A narrow walk led in that direction and, instead of
climbing the front steps, King followed it around the corner and found a
basement d