nt would never condone the deal Lawrence was
contemplating--the Applied Atomics Corporation was nearly insolvent,
the BEB psis were investigating it....

Black tossed fitfully on the bed, seeking sleep desperately, seeking
to escape the black night pressing in, to evade the imagined--or was
it real?--probing minds of service psis.

Six A.M. He almost forgot the fears that had assailed him an hour
before. He realized then that in the last few minutes or seconds or
however long the latest transient phantasm had been in his mind he had
dreamt of his broker pacing a dimly-lighted chamber, muttering, "The
man's out of his mind. Economic instability, that's certain. Thinking
of selling good stock to invest in Lawrence Applied Atomics! Not that
Lawrence stock isn't fairly good, but he'll never make enough out of
the corporation's piles; the returns are not that great!"

8 A.M. Black stretched, felt strangely relaxed. He realized then that
as he had slept and, despite the fitfulness of his sleeping, his mind
had apparently gone on analyzing the possible reactions to the big
deal.

He arose, took a shower, shaved, ate breakfast. Then he went to the
visiphone and buttoned Charles Wythe, his broker, at his office.

"Charlie," Black said to the cadaverous looking man who answered.
"Where's the boss?"

"Went to see a psychiatrist."

"Why?"

"I don't know. What's on your mind?"

"I want you to do some selling and buying for me. Sell whatever you
like, but buy Lawrence Applied Atomics."

"Look, Marty, let's not go off half-cocked. Last year you had a sudden
brainstorm and remember what happened. Lawrence may be a good stock,
but it won't help you to build up to that thirty percent you need. Not
in the time you have to do it in. It's bad enough for you to take a
big licking once. Let's not be stupid again."

"Now, Charlie, don't be nasty. I want you to buy Lawrence as quietly
as you can. I want six thousand shares at the current price. Get them
for me."

"Are you shaken loose from your psyche or id or whatever?" Wythe
cried. "Do it quietly, the man says, do it quietly! You can do it
about as quietly as they launched the space station. Where do you
think I can get six thousand shares of Lawrence?"

"Why, you buy them!" Black answered innocently. "Isn't that what you
do down at the Stock Exchange?"

The broker groaned. "Sure, that's all I do. Buy, that is. But not
Lawrence. Look, Marty, see this chart? Yesterday was a