The warm voice waves lapping at Bryce's mind suddenly receded and left
a chill. With instinctive wariness he thought of hypnotics and
single-shot addictors.

Pierce couldn't have missed the emotionless freeze on the other's
face. Still twirling the vial casually, he began to explain. It was a
new drug, he said, found being used by a tribe in Central Africa.
"I've heard of it for some time and what you mentioned a little while
back reminded me of it."

Bryce caught the hidden reference. Central Africa--and the Manoba
group. So Pierce had not dismissed the mind hunter from his thoughts
as a problem to be easily dealt with.

"It's still in the testing stage," Pierce added. "But some of it is
circulating among medical students. The tests have interesting
effects. And, as I say, tonight's a good night to experiment, it's
called B'nyab i'io."

The chill in Bryce's head and spine was thawing out. "You're not
conning me?" He said it with a grin, but there was an edge to the
question which demanded an answer.

Pierce gave it to him, for a brief moment deadly serious. "You
couldn't get addicted if you swam in it."

Bryce believed him. He stared at the glass. "What does it do to the
I.Q.? We've got to collect some information here and there this
evening. I want to be able to read and talk." He smiled crookedly. "No
worse than usual, that is."

"Either raises the I.Q. or leaves it alone."

"What's the effect?"

"It affects different people different ways. After hearing the reports
I'd like to see how it hits us." Pierce pushed it towards him,
grinning. "Leave half for me."

Bryce's wary thoughts touched poison and immunity and murder, but
inwardly he began to scoff at his own habits of suspicion. However,
before he could reach for the glass, Pierce had given a short snort as
though in recognition of his presumptuousness and drank his own share
first.

Then Bryce raised the cold glass to his lips.

As he put it down he could feel the change beginning to spread through
his blood, warming and relaxing, bringing closer the memories of
pleasure and good times. The restaurant was now completely seductive,
with the surf of voices pleasant in his ears, calling to him to join
the world and its offers of uncomplicated pleasures. He felt himself
blending with the ethereal background mixture of light and sound.

"I like this," he decided.

"We should take notes." Pierce was smiling as he stuffed the empty
vial back in hi