They gained on that upslope, but as the road dropped, the bug started forward desperately. Another car was headed toward them; was drawn to the side of the road, in one of the occasional widenings. Pinky passed it so carelessly that, with crawling spine, Claire saw the outer wheels of the bug on the very edge of the road--the edge of a fifty-foot drop. Milt went easily past the halted car--even waved his hand to the waiting driver. This did not seem to Claire at all like the chase of a thief. She looked casually ahead at Pinky, as he whirled round an S-shaped curve on the downslope, then---- It was too quick to see what happened. The bug headed directly toward the edge of the road, shot out, went down the embankment, over and over. It lay absurdly upside-down, its muffler and brake-rods showing in place of the seat and hood. Milt quite carefully stopped the Gomez. The day was still--just a breathing of running water in the deep gully. The topsy-turvy car below them was equally still; no sight of Pinky, no sound. The gauche boy gone from him, Milt took her hand, pressed it to his cheek. "Claire! You're here! You might have gone with him, to make room---- Oh, I was bullying you because I was bullying myself! Trying to make myself tell you--but oh, you know, you know! Can you stand going down there? I hate to have you, but you may be needed." "Yes. I'll come," she whispered. Their crawl down the rock-rolling embankment seemed desperately slow. "Wait here," bade Milt, at the bottom. She looked away from the grotesque car. She had seen that one side of it was crumpled like paper in an impatient hand. Milt was stooping, looking under; seemed to be saying something. When he came back, he did not speak. He wiped his forehead. "Come. We'll climb back up. Nothing to do, now. Guess you better not try to help, anyway. You might not sleep well." He gave her his hand up the embankment, drove to the nearest house, telephoned to Dr. Beach. Later she waited while Milt and the doctor, with two other men, were raising the car. As she waited she thought of the Teal bug as a human thing--as her old friend, to which she had often turned in need. Milt returned to her. "There is one thing for you to do. Before he died, Pinky asked me to go get his wife--Dolores, I think it is. She's up in a side canyon, few miles away. She may want a woman around. Beach will take care of--of him. Can you come?" "Of course. Oh, Milt, I didn't----" "I didn't----" "--mean you were a caveman! You're my big brother!" "--mean you were a snob!"