u at dawn."

The Tappan departure-stage was only a few miles up the Hudson; we
could get there in half an hour. It was now nearly trinight, halfway
between midnight and dawn. I had my portable audiphone and got Halsey
at once.

"You Gregg?"

"Yes. They're through with us at the Conclave. Where is Anita?"

"We heard from her twice. I'm expecting...."

We could hear someone interrupting him. Then he came back. "Gregg?
Molo took them somewhere. I didn't dare fling after them. He had his
detector going, and Anita warned me not to try it. She had to stop
connection herself. God knows how she was able to whisper to me at
all."

His voice, like Brayley's, had the ring of a man strained to the
breaking point. I could appreciate how Halsey must feel, forced to
remain at his desk with its encircling banks of instruments; holding
all the network of his farflung activities centralized; his
decisions, his commands in a hundred places almost simultaneously,
while his body sat there inactive.

"Gregg, the girls must have arrived at Molo's place by now. If only
they know where they are! I have lookouts throughout the city with
intricate and complete connecting equipment. Gregg, I must
disconnect."

"Colonel, give me Anita's frequency. Maybe Snap or I can pick up the
message."

He named the oscillating frequency, then disconnected.

"Try that frequency," Snap suggested. "We've got to do something."

The door-slide opened suddenly and an orderly appeared. "Haljan?"

"Get the hell away," roared Snap. "We've had our orders; we don't want
any from you."

"Gregg Haljan and Daniel Dean are paged on the mirrors."

Someone in the city wanted us; our names were appearing on the various
mirror-grids publicly displayed throughout the city in the hope that
we would answer.

"That's different," said Snap. "Answer it for us, that's a good
fellow. We're busy."

"It must be important," the orderly insisted. "The caller registered a
fee at the Search Bureau; that's how they located you here. He paid
the highest fee to search you. An emergency call."

It was against the law to invoke the services of the Search Bureau
unless based upon actual impending danger. "We'll take it," I said.

"Come with me." He turned to the left and down the corridor.

We hastened with him to a corridor cubby. Upon the audiphone there I
was at once connected with a voice, and an anxious man's face with a
two-day growth upon it.

"Haljan! Thank God yo