"But listen, boss." This was Stella Wing. "About this mind-reading
business. If Laro could read your mind, he'd know you were bluffing and
... Oh, that 'Omans can read only what Masters wish Omans to read', eh?
But d'you think that applies to us?"

"I'm sure it does, and I was thinking some pretty savage thoughts. And I
want to caution all of you: whenever you're near any Oman, start
thinking that you're beginning to agree with me that they're useless to
us, and let them know it. Now get out on the job, all of you. Scat!"

"Just a minute," Poynter said. "We're going to have to keep on using the
Omans and their cars, aren't we?"

"Of course. Just be superior and distant. They're on probation--we
haven't decided yet what to do about them. Since that happens to be
true, it'll be easy."

* * * * *

Hilton and Sandra went to their tiny office. There wasn't room to pace
the floor, but Hilton tried to pace it anyway.

"Now don't say again that you want to _do_ something," Sandra said,
brightly. "Look what happened when you said that yesterday."

"I've got a job, but I don't know enough to do it. The creche--there's
probably only one on the planet. So I want you to help me think. The
Masters were very sensitive to radiation. Right?"

"Right. That city on Fuel Bin was kept deconned to zero, just in case
some Master wanted to visit it."

"And the Masters had to work in the creche whenever anything really new
had to be put into the prototype brain."

"I'd say so, yes."

"So they had armor. Probably as much better than our radiation suits as
the rest of their stuff is. Now. Did they or did they not have thought
screens?"

"Ouch! You think of the _damnedest_ things, chief." She caught her lower
lip between her teeth and concentrated. "... I don't know. There are at
least fifty vectors, all pointing in different directions."

"I know it. The key one in my opinion is that the Masters gave 'em
_both_ telepathy and speech."

"I considered that and weighted it. Even so, the probability is only
about point sixty-five. Can you take that much of a chance?"

"Yes. I can make one or two mistakes. Next, about finding that creche.
Any spot of radiation on the planet would be it, but the search might
take ..."

"Hold on. They'd have it heavily shielded--there'll be no leakage at
all. Laro will have to take you."

"That's right. Want to come along? Nothing much will happen here today."

"U