"Perhaps you're right." The Chief signed the permit without further objection. There was a numbed sickness in Kendall as he rode the elevator down to the file vaults and showed his permit to three sets of guards before he was admitted. Alone in the long, narrow aisles where the greatest secrets of Terran defense and offense were housed, he walked like a man in a dream to the file he wanted and swiftly took his pictures. Then placing the tiny camera into the cuff of his trousers, he went back to Plant Nine.... * * * * * The three-day leave was granted without question, Kendall having over two months due him. The Chief was delighted that he did not ask for more. "Where do you plan on going, Kendall?" "Out in the air somewhere. The Yellowstone, maybe. Some quiet place to clear my mind." "A good idea. Wife going with you?" "As a matter of fact, she went on ahead." Kendall watched the Chief closely for reaction. Only a slight raising of eyebrows. After all, Clare could have gotten a permit without the Chief's knowledge even if Kendall's story had been true. "Have a good time and come back full of enthusiasm." Kendall replied in kind and went home and sat down facing the phonovision screen. It remained blank for three hours. Kendall did not move. He smoked cigarettes and waited. Finally the signal sounded and he snapped it on. The man in the mask. The voice that now associated itself in Kendall's mind with nausea. "You have the film?" "Yes." "Excellent. The leave?" "Yes." "You will leave the project immediately and--" "Not so fast." "I beg pardon?" "I said, not so fast. I'm not satisfied with the arrangements." The voice turned cold. "The arrangements are not yours to question. You--" "Nevertheless, I question them. In fact, I demand some changes." The man was obviously angry, but he held his temper. "What changes do you wish?" "You said that after I deliver the prints on Centaur--" "And iron out any problems our scientists might encounter in building the rocket--" "Yes, after that, you will send my wife and I to Venus and safety." "Correct." "I demand that upon delivery of the prints, you send Clare on ahead." "Why do you ask this?" "Because the one thing I'm selling out my world for is her safety. I will gamble with it for only as short a time as necessary." The man considered. What were the risks involved? Kendall might be sincere in his reason but if he were not, it would be easy enough to pick up Clare Kendall, unprotected as she would be in some Venusian hotel. "Granted," he said. Better to give in than to argue. Centaurian scientists could spot a major hoax on Kendall's part instantly, and Kendall was under great pressure. Resist at this moment and he might defy them, even with his wife's life at stake. "You will proceed at once to Yellowstone." He gave Kendall careful instructions concerning the rendezvous and cut the connection.