I thought of Bale, sending me off on a suicide mission, knowing that my imposture was hopeless as long as I stood on my own legs; I thought of the killer shuttle that had lain in wait to smash us as we went in; of the operating room at the hideout, where Bale had planned to carve me into a shape more suitable for his purpose. I remembered Bale shooting down my new-found brother, and the night I had lain in the cold cell, waiting for the butcher; and still I didn't want to see him die this way. He started to scream suddenly, kicking desperately. He got one foot up on the eave beside his white straining hands; it slipped off. Then he was quiet again. I had been standing here now for five minutes. I wondered how long I had been unconscious. Bale had been there longer now than I would have thought possible. He couldn't last much longer. "Hold on, Bale," I called. "Only a little while. Don't struggle." He hung, silent. Blood dripped from his shoe. I looked down at the alley below and shuddered. I heard a distant sound, a siren, howling. I dashed to the door, opened it, listened. Heavy footsteps sounded below. "Here," I shouted, "all the way up." I turned and ran back to the window. Bale was as I had left him. Then one hand slipped off, and he hung by one arm, swinging slightly. "They're here, Bale," I said. "A few seconds...." He didn't try to get a new hold. He made no sound. Feet pounded on the stairs outside and I yelled again. I turned back to the window as Bale slipped down, silent. I didn't watch. I heard him hit--twice. I staggered back, and the burly men called, looked out the window, milled about. I made my way back to the chair, slumped down. I was empty of emotion. There was a noise all around me, people coming and going. I was hardly conscious of it. After a long time I saw Hermann, and then Barbro was leaning over me. I reached for her hand, hungrily. "Take me home, Barbro," I said. I saw Manfred. "The bomb," I said. "It's safe. Put it in the shuttle and get rid of it." "My crew is moving it now, Brion," he said. "You spoke of home, just now," Goering put in. "Speaking for myself, and I am sure also for Manfred, I will make the strongest recommendation that in view of your extraordinary services to the Imperium you be dispatched back to your home as soon as you are well enough to go, if that is your wish. I hope that you will stay with us. But it must be for you to make that decision." "I don't have to decide," I said. "My choice is made. I like it here, for many reasons. For one thing, I can use all the old cliches from B-I Three, and they sound brand new; and as for home...." I looked at Barbro: "Home is where the heart is."