"Well, hell!" the big man exploded. "Why didn't you holler sooner? Look, Tam--we've been friends for a long time. You know better than to hesitate." He fished for his wallet. "Here, I can let you have as much as you need--couple hundred?" "No, no--That's not what I'm getting at." Tam felt his face flush with embarrassment. "I need a job, Dave. I need one bad." Dave sat back, and his feet came off the desk abruptly. He didn't look at Tam. "I see," he said softly. "A job--" He stared at the ceiling for a moment. "Tell you what," he said. "The government's opening a new uranium mine in a month or so--going to be a big project, they'll need lots of men--on Mercury--" Tam's eyes fell, a lump growing in his throat. "Mercury," he repeated dully. "Why, sure, Tam--good pay, chance for promotion." "I'd be dead in six months on Mercury." Tam's eyes met Dave's, trying to conceal the pain. "You know that as well as I do, Dave--" Dave looked away. "Oh, the docs don't know what they're talking about--" "You know perfectly well that they do. I couldn't even stand Venus very long. I need a job on Mars, Dave--or on Earth." "Yes," said Dave Hawke sadly, "I guess you're right." He looked straight at Tam, his eyes sorrowful. "The truth is, I can't help you. I'd like to, but I can't. There's nothing I can do." Tam stared, the pain of disillusionment sweeping through him. "Nothing you can do!" he exploded. "But you're the _director_ of this bureau! You know every job open on every one of the planets--" "I know. And I have to help get them filled. But I can't make anyone hire, Tam. I can send applicants, and recommendations, until I'm blue in the face, but I can't make a company hire--" He paused, staring at Tam. "Oh, hell," he snarled, suddenly, his face darkening. "Let's face it, Tam. They won't hire you. Nobody will hire you. You're a Sharkie, and that's all there is to it, they aren't hiring Sharkies. And there's nothing I can do to make them." Tam sat as if he had been struck, the color draining from his face. "But the law--Dave, you know there's a law. They _have_ to hire us, if we apply first, and have the necessary qualifications." The big man shrugged, uneasily. "Sure, there's a law, but who's going to enforce it?" Tam looked at him, a desperate tightness in his throat. "_You_ could enforce it. You could if you wanted to." * * * * * The big man stared at him for a moment, then dropped his eyes, looked down at the desk. Somehow this big body seemed smaller, less impressive. "I can't do it, Tam. I just can't." "They'd have to listen to you!" Tam's face was eager. "You've got enough power to put it across--the court would _have_ to stick to the law--" "I can't do it." Dave drew nervously on his cigar, and the light in his eyes seemed duller, now. "If it were just me, I wouldn't hesitate a minute. But I've got a wife, a family. I can't jeopardize them--" "Dave, you know it would be the right thing."