The car pulled up to the waiting rocket, and the Security man helped him up the steps with a perfunctory wish for good luck. Then Bruce Gordon stopped as great arms surrounded him. Mother Corey was immaculate, though not much prettier. But his old eyes were glinting. "Did you think we'd let you go without seeing you off, cobber?" he asked. "And after I took a _bath_ to celebrate? I--I--Oh, drat it, I'm getting old. Izzy, you tell him." He grabbed Gordon's hand and waddled down the landing plank. Izzy shook his head. "I can't say it, either, gov'nor--but some day, I'm going to have one of those badges myself. Like I always said, honesty sure pays, even if it kills you. Here!" He followed Mother Corey, leaving behind his favorite knife and a brand-new deck of reader cards, marked exactly as the ones Gordon had first used. Gordon dropped into his seat, while the sounds outside indicated take-off time. He had less than a hundred credits, a knife, a deck of phony cards, and a yellow ticket. Mars was leaving him what he'd brought.... She dropped into the seat very quietly, but her blouse touched his arm. In her hand was a punched ticket with the orange of Mars on top and the black of Mercury on the bottom. "Hello, Bruce," Sheila said softly. "I've been shopping and I spent the money the man gave me. This is all I have left. Do you think it's worth it? Or should I take it back?" He turned it over in his hands slowly, and the smile came back to his face gradually. "You got a bargain, Cuddles," he said. "A lot better than the meal ticket you bought. Let's keep it."