The plump N.P.A. who had been studying a bank of dials, looked up and said, "He's lying. From that I would infer that he understands the stellar drive." "What?" gasped Emil. With a sinking heart Jon Saxon realized that the blond man had not been expecting such luck. They had thought that he might be able to give them some clue to the stellar drive, but not that he actually could reproduce it. "What's his torture coefficient?" Emil shot at the N.P.A. Georg adjusted several dials. The tingling became livid fire coursing up Saxon's spine. His eyes closed, he crushed his lips between his teeth until a trickle of blood coursed down his chin. The room swayed sickeningly. Sweat burst from his pores, made his sick white face glisten in the indirect lighting. Then as sudden as it came, the fire smoldered and died out of his spine. He heard the N.P.A. speak in an awed voice, "His torture coefficient is below his will to live. He'll die first." * * * * * Emil began to stride nervously back and forth before the lounge. He swung suddenly on Saxon, saying, "Look, that post on General Atomic's research bureau is still open. I can promise you three times your present salary, and a bonus besides." "Liar," replied Saxon without hesitation. "I don't need a machine to tell you're lying." He laughed shortly. The N.P.A.'s plump face looked puzzled. He made rapid adjustments on the machine, bent over the dials again. "He's not lying," he said in a queer voice. "He knows you intend to kill him as soon as you squeeze him dry of information." Saxon caught sight of Ileth's white, strained face and grinned at her. She had been as surprised, he read her thoughts, as himself at Emil's opportune entrance. Obviously, Emil had not been supposed to put in an appearance until she had a try at him first. It was all verification that General Atomic was trying to steal the stellar drive. But Saxon had been able to catch only the scantiest of details from Emil's mind. General Atomic not only wanted the drive, he sensed, but a monopoly on it. That meant killing or buying off everyone in Government's Bureau of Research who knew the secret of the drive. Emil said to Saxon, "Suppose I contact General Atomic and put it up to them. I'll confess my orders were to question you, then dispose of you. Frankly, Ileth's reports have convinced us that you couldn't be bought." "What makes you think that I can now? Anyway, what guarantee have I that their promises aren't as empty as yours?" he asked sceptically. Georg, the neuro-psychoanalyst, pursed thick lips and interjected himself into the conversation. "General Atomic abides by its contracts," he pointed out. "Yes. When it's to their advantage." Emil's eyes blazed; red stained his pale cheek. "Do you mean to imply, sir, that General Atomic is treacherous?" "Exactly." "Emil!" said the plump N.P.A., sharply.