I palmed the hundred and slipped it out of sight. "You have rented yourself a pair of ears, Mr. Venuccio." "Very good." He kept his voice low and even. "Do you know anything of the Cronos Water Corporation?" "Sure. Cronos is one of the companies that mines the rings of Saturn. A lot of the water here in the Belt comes from the ice they ship in. Why?" "Not exactly," he said, ignoring my question. "They now have full control of their only rival, Titan Enterprises. I am a stockholder in Titan, and I am convinced that there was chicanery involved in the transfer of managership. The Cronos Corporation intends to raise the price of water in the Belt and make a lot of fast money." "Does the Government know about this?" "No. Even I can't prove it on paper. That's why I want you to go out there and get the information. It will have to be done quickly, before Cronos can file notice of new prices." "What do you mean, 'quickly'?" "You'll have to take the _Warbow_, which is leaving for Luna this evening, in order to catch the _Plunger_, which is leaving Luna for Saturn. There won't be another chance for three weeks, and that will be too late." It was all very pretty. Saturn was on the other side of the System at the time, and it would be a nice, long trip. I shook my head. "Sorry, Mr. Venuccio, but, as I told you, I'm already engaged. You'll have to get someone else." He looked suddenly desperate. "I will pay you well. I'll buy out your present contract, and I'll pay you double for the work." * * * * * We spent the rest of his bought-and-paid-for hour haggling. Or, rather, _he_ haggled. I asked a lot of questions, and he tried to answer them in order to convince me that I should go, and I just asked more questions. Exactly one hour from the time I'd been handed the hundred, I stood up. Venuccio was in the middle of a sentence, but I said: "Your hour's up, Mr. Venuccio. The answer is still no. Thank you for your business." "But--" He started to rise, started to grasp my sleeve. "Sit down." I didn't say it harshly or angrily, just firmly. He sat. "I don't want to be bothered by any more of this kind of thing. Ever again. Is that understood, Mr. Venuccio?" He nodded wordlessly, and I left him sitting there. As I moved toward the door, the headwaiter came towards me. Before he could say anything, I said: "Mr. Venuccio is taking care of the check." "I know that, Oak," he said in a low voice. "We'll have him tailed when he leaves here." I never would have recognized him; it was Colonel Harrington Brock, wearing a plexiskin mask. "Got any idea of what he wants or who he's working for?" "He wants me to leave Ceres, which would hold up the testing of McGuire. Offered me plenty for it, too. I'm pretty sure he's wearing a plexiskin mask, too; and I'm almost certain I've heard that voice before, but I can't quite place it." "We'll find out," Brock said grimly.