"I've so much to say!" she went on; "but I daren't stay long, for fear of getting caught. What you said is where my chief hope lies: Xantra doesn't realize how intelligent we are, and how dangerous; and we mustn't let him know! I think he believes we are much like his present slaves: he gets away with murder with them. You've noticed the lumps on the back of your necks? Well, they have them, too; it's something that's attached to the spinal cord and gives him telepathic control over them; also the power to hurt them dreadfully--as you've unfortunately found out. His slaves don't understand these lumps; they don't seem to know that he would lose control if they could only in some way get rid of the things in their necks!" * * * * * For the first time since the girl started talking, Clee spoke. His voice was low and grave, and there was a tinge of suspicion in it. "Just how does it happen," he asked, "that you know so much about things here?" The girl's voice broke as she gave her answer. "I'm ashamed to tell you," she said. "Xantra--he--he admires me as a healthy animal; one close, in species, to himself. He thinks by being nice to me that he might be able to make me a willing companion to share his trip!" For a moment the girl was silent; and when she spoke again there was a hard note in her voice. "I let him have hopes," she said, "--deliberately. I planned to make him trust me, and give me the run of the ship, so I could find out all I could. So far--before you came--I saw no slightest hope of ever escaping back to Earth; but I had at least to look for a quick, sure way to death, in case--in case--" "You--and us too!" exclaimed Clee impulsively. "No Earth-man--no American, at least--is ever going to submit to slavery. If the worst comes to the worst, we'll at least die together, Vivian!" Jim added soberly: "And perhaps, if we do, no one from Xantra's planet will ever again come to Earth looking for 'docile' slaves...." * * * * * For a moment everyone was silent, affected by the thought behind what they had said. Then the girl's voice suggested, with a touch of Earth formality that was almost ludicrous under the circumstances: "But you two men have not yet introduced yourselves!" Both Clee and Jim smiled, and told her their names, and in the slight pause that followed Clee said awkwardly, almost shyly: "Miss Gray, we don't know what's in store for us here, and it--it's possible that we may never know each other any better: so would you--I mean, I wonder would you mind if I reached out and touched you. In spite of all we have said. I--I can hardly realize that you are there, somewhere, before me."