A uniformed attendant, a sort of cop, stopped Sid, as the elevator doors opened on level C.

'Mr. George Walt wanted to see me,' Sal said. 'Or so Miss Olt tells me, at least.'

'This way, Mr. Heim,' the uniformed attendant said, touching his cap respectfully and leading Sal down the carpeted, silent hall.

He was let into a large chamber - and there, on a couch, sat George Walt. Both bodies at once rose to their feet, supporting between them the common head. The head, containing the unmingled entities of tide brothers, nodded in greeting and the mouth smiled. One eye - the left -

regarded him steadily, while the other wandered vaguely off, as if preoccupied.

The two necks joined the head in such a way that the head and face were tilted slightly back.

George Walt tended to look slightly over whomever they were talking to, and this added to the unique impression; it made them seem formidable, as if their attention could not really be engaged. The head was normal size, however, as were both bodies. The body to the left - Sal did not recall which of them it was - wore informal clothing, a cotton shirt and slacks, with sandals on the feet. The right hand body, however, was formally dressed in a single-breasted suit, tie and buttoned gray cape. And the hands of the right body were jammed deep into the trouser pockets, a stance which gave to it an aura of authority if not age; it seemed distinctly older than its twin.

'This is George,' the head said, pleasantly. 'How are you, Sal Heim ? Good to see you.' The left body extended its hand. Sal walked toward the two of them and gingerly shook hands. The right hand body, Walt, did not want to shake with him; its hands remained in its pockets.

'This is Walt,' the head said, less pleasantly, then. We wanted to discuss your candidate with you,

Heim. Sit down and have a drink. Here, what can we fix for you ?' Together, the two bodies managed to walk to the sideboard, where an elaborate bar could be seen. Walt's hands opened a bottle of Bourbon while George's expertly fixed an old fashioned, mixed sugar and water and bitters together in the bottom of a glass. Together, George Walt made the drink and carried it back to Sal.