igger, unmollified, pointed out that the methods he'd used not to
worry her hardly had been soothing.

"I know that, too," said the Commissioner. "But if I'd told you
everything immediately, you would have had reason enough to be worried
for the past two months, rather than just for a day or so. The situation
has improved now, very considerably. In fact, in another few days you
shouldn't have any more reason to worry at all." He smiled briefly. "At
least, no more than the rest of us."

Trigger felt a bit dry-lipped suddenly. "I do at present?" she asked.

"You did till today. There's been some pretty heavy heat on you, Trigger
girl. We're switching most of it off tonight. For good, I think."

"You mean some heat will be left?"

"In a way," he said. "But that should be cleared up too in the next
three or four days. Anyway we can drop most of the mystery act tonight."

Trigger shook her head. "It isn't being dropped very fast!" she
observed.

"I told you I couldn't tell it backwards," the Commissioner said
patiently. "All right if we start filling in the background now?"

"I guess we'd better," she admitted.

"Fine," said Commissioner Tate. He got to his feet. "Then let's go join
Mantelish."

"Why the professor?"

"He could help a lot with the explaining. If he's in the mood. Anyway
he's got a kind of pet I'd like you to look at."

"A pet!" cried Trigger. She shook her head again and stood up
resignedly. "Lead on, Commissioner!"

They joined Mantelish and his plasmoid weirdie in what looked like the
dining room of what had looked like an old-fashioned hunting lodge when
the aircar came diving down on it between two ice-sheeted mountain
peaks. Trigger wasn't sure in just what section of the main continent
they were; but there were only two or three alternatives--it was high in
the mountains, and night came a lot faster here than it did around
Ceyce.

She greeted Mantelish and sat down at the table. Then the Commissioner
locked the doors and introduced her to the professor's pet.

"It's labelled 113-A," he said now. "Even the professor isn't certain he
could distinguish between the two. Right, Mantelish?"

"That is true," said Mantelish, "at present." He was a very big, rather
fat but healthy-looking old man with a thick thatch of white hair and a
ruddy face. "Without a physical comparison--" He shrugged.

"What's so important about the critter?" Trigger asked, eyeing the leech
again. One good thing abo