st.

He rolled over and sat up. He was not alone.

"Cobber?" he called.

"Yeah," said Cobber. He was very close, but Jadiver couldn't see him.

"The police got them," Jadiver said, reaching for the tangle gun. It was
gone. He'd expected that.

"I heard. I was waiting for them and they didn't come." He was silent
for a moment. "It had to be you, didn't it?"

"It was," Jadiver said. "When I found out, I tried to tell them. But it
was too late."

"Glad you tried," said Cobber. At that instant, so was Jadiver.
"I checked you myself. I couldn't find anything," Cobber added
thoughtfully. "They must have something new."

"It is new," Jadiver wearily confirmed. "I can't get rid of it."

"Mind telling me? I figure I ought to know."

Hunched up in the darkness, Jadiver told him what he could. At present,
he was defenseless. Cobber was a little man, but he was no stranger to
violence and he had the weapons. Perhaps that was what the police
counted on--that Cobber would save them an arrest.

"Bad," said Cobber after an interval. It sounded like a reprieve.

Jadiver waited.

"I liked Burlingame," continued Cobber. "Emily, too."

Burlingame was a decent fellow. Emily he had seen only once, twice if he
counted last night. She deserved better than she got.

"I don't know who it was," Jadiver said. "Some big policeman."

"I know a lot of people--I'll find out," Cobber promised. "I liked
Emily."

It wouldn't do any good, though Jadiver approved. For a while there'd be
one less sadist on the force, and after that they'd hire another.

"You'd better leave while you can," said Jadiver.

Cobber laughed. "I'll get away. I know Venus and I don't have a spy
inside." He got up, turned on the lights and tossed the tangle gun on
the bed. "Here. You need this worse than I do."

Jadiver blinked gratefully and took it. Cobber believed him. If the
police wanted to eliminate him, they'd have to come for him, after all.

He stood up. "Breakfast?"

"No breakfast," said Cobber. "I'm going to take your advice and get out
of here." He went to the door, opened it a fraction and listened.
Satisfied, he closed it and turned back to Jadiver. "Tell that cop I
know a few tricks with a tangle gun he never heard of. I'll show him
what they are."

"I won't see him, I hope."

"You don't have to. They're taking everything down. They'll tell him.
That is, I hope they do."

He slipped out the door and was gone.

* * *