Burke's frown deepened. Carefully, he checked every detail again and again. And then, in the position of her hands, he found the key. For the fingers of the left were turned up and twisted at an awkward angle ... yet still they stayed there, minute after minute after minute. Burke sucked in air. "Catatonic!" he exclaimed aloud. The woman gave no indication that she'd heard him. Dropping from the ledge, he came close to her: passed his hand before her eyes. Still she gave no sign of awareness. Burke shivered. "Pasiphae ..." he whispered. "Pasiphae!" No answer. Burke tried again: "Pasiphae, tell me about your son, the Minotaur." Nothing. "About Minos, Pasiphae. About Ariadne." Blank, staring eyes. Burke paused, considered. Then, leaning close, he whispered, "The thing, Pasiphae; the mind-thing. The creature that comes into your brain--" Without warning, Pasiphae screamed. Then, before Burke could stop her, she was on her feet and darting past him--fleeing like a woman possessed down a long corridor. Burke raced after her. Then, just when he thought that he would catch her, she came up short; whirled on him, eyes suddenly wild and wide. "You! Are you one of them?" "One of them--?" "No, you're not! You don't make my head hurt like they did! They always hurt. Always ... always...." * * * * * She sagged back against the wall. Once again, her eyes began to glaze. Burke said, "Minos, your husband ... is Minos one of them?" Startlement. "Don't take him! Don't take my baby! I won't let them have him! I'll get him back! I will--" The woman struck out at Burke, then ran. Sickness in him, he followed. Only this time, she turned sharply; plunged down a narrow flight of stairs. Cursing, Burke half-fell down the steps. It was dark at the bottom. He could see nothing of Pasiphae. But her footsteps still sounded so, groping, he tried to follow. The next instant he stepped off into hip-deep water. Floundering, he fought for balance. Something clutched at his legs. Burke bellowed aloud from sheer shock. Desperately, he tried to scramble out of the pool. The thing holding him let go. Shaking, Burke dragged himself onto the footwalk, flicked on his lighter, and stared down into the water. An octopus with a head nearly double the size of his own met his gaze coldly. Shivering, Burke closed the lighter and felt his way, an uneasy step at a time, along the edge of the tank. Then at last he met a blank wall ... found another flight of stairs ... groped his way down them. Close at hand, Pasiphae screamed shrilly and ran on again. Abruptly, then, light, as a distant door opened. Burke sprinted towards it. Beyond, when he reached the entry, lay the strangest room he'd ever seen.