that there was much glory
in being a cop. But as long as a man was a cop, he was good. Sergeant
Madden reflected with satisfaction that even if he was getting on to
retirement age, he was still a cop.

He made two more calls. One was to Records for the customary full
information on the _Cerberus_ and on the Procyron system. The other was
to the flat where Timmy lived with him. It was going to be lonely when
Timmy got married and had a home of his own. Sergeant Madden dialed for
message-recording and gruffly left word for Timmy. He, Timmy's father,
was going on ahead to make the report on the _Cerberus_. Timmy wasn't to
worry. The ship might be a few days late, but Timmy'd better make the
most of them. He'd be married a long time!

Sergeant Madden got up, grunting, from his chair. Somebody came in to
take over the desk. Sergeant Madden nodded and waved his hand. He went
out and took the slide-stair down to the tarmac where squad ship 390
waited in standard police readiness. Patrolman Willis arrived at the
stubby little craft seconds after the sergeant.

"Procyron III," said Sergeant Madden, rumbling. "I figure three days.
You told your wife?"

"I called," said Patrolman Willis resignedly.

They climbed into the squad ship. Police ships, naturally, had their
special drive, which could lift them off without rocket aid and gave
them plenty of speed, but filled up the hull with so much machinery that
it was only practical for such ships. Commercial craft were satisfied
with low-power drives, which meant that spaceport facilities lifted them
to space and pulled them down again. They carried rockets for emergency
landing, but the main thing was that they had a profitable pay load.
Squad ships didn't carry anything but two men and their equipment.

Sergeant Madden dogged the door shut. The ship fell up toward the sky.
The heavens became that blackness-studded-with-jewels which is space. A
great yellow sun flared astern. A half-bright, half-dark globe lay
below-the planet Varenga IV, on which the precinct police station for
this part of the galaxy had its location.

Patrolman Willis, frowning with care, established the squad ship's
direction, while Sergeant Madden observed without seeming to do so.
Presently Patrolman Willis pushed a button. The squad ship went into
overdrive.

It was perfectly commonplace in all its aspects.

* * * * *

The galaxy went about its business. Stars shone,