like this, when I haven't had
three nights' sleep in the last three basic weeks, you come around looking
for Tommy Paine?"

Ronny was taken aback. "Sid Jakes seemed to think this might be one of
Paine's jobs."

Tog said mildly, "What better place to look for Tommy Paine, than in a
situation like this, Agent Hassan?" Her eyebrows went up. "Or don't you
think the quest for Paine is an important one?"

The other subsided somewhat. "I suppose you're right," he said. "I'm
deathly tired. Do whatever you want. But don't expect much from me."

Tog said, just a trifle tartly, Ronny thought, "We'll have to call on you,
as usual, Agent Hassan. There's probably no single job in Section G more
important than the pursuit of Tommy Paine."

"All right, all right," Mouley Hassan admitted. "I'll co-operate. How long
have you been away from Earth?" he said to Ronny.

"About one basic week."

"Oh," he grunted. "This is your first stop, eh? Well, I don't envy you
your job." He brought a cool bottle from a delivery drawer in the desk
along with two glasses. "Here's the wine."

Ronny leaned forward to accept the glass. "This situation here," he said,
"do you think it can be laid to Paine?"

Mouley Hassan shrugged wearily. "I don't know."

Ronny sipped the drink, looking at the tired agent over the glass rim.
"From what we understand, check has been kept on all persons leaving the
planet since the bombing."

"Check is right. There's only one ship that took off and it carried nobody
except my assistants. If you ask me, I still needed them, but some brass
hat back on Earth decided they were more necessary over on Avalon." He was
disgusted.

Ronny put the glass down. "You mean only one ship's left this planet since
the God-King was killed?"

"That's right. It was like pulling teeth to get the visas."

"How many men aboard?"

Mouley Hassan looked at him speculatively. "Four-man crew and six Section
G operatives."

Tog said brightly, "Why, that means, then, that either Tommy Paine is
still on this planet, or he's one of the passengers or crew members of
that ship." She added, "That is, of course, unless he had a private craft,
hidden away somewhere."

Ronny slumped back into his chair as some of the ramifications came home
to him. "If it was Tommy Paine at all," he said.

Mouley Hassan nodded. "That's always a point." He finished his glass and
looked pleadingly at Tog. "Look, I have work. If I can finish some of it,
I might