“He means,” Bill Henderson explained, “that these people after Doug don’t belong to our universe. They come from a different dimension entirely.”

“The face wavered,” Douglas murmured. “The gold and the face both wavered and faded out.”

“Withdrew,” Erick stated. “Returned to their own universe. They have entry into ours at will, it would seem, a hole, so to speak, that they can enter through and return again.”

“It’s a pity,” Jean said, “they’re so damn big. If they were smaller—”

“Size is in their favor,” Erick admitted. “An unfortunate circumstance.”

“All this academic wrangling!” Laura cried wildly. “We sit here working out theories and meanwhile they are after him!”

“This might explain gods,” Bill said suddenly.

“Gods?”

Bill nodded. “Don’t you see? In the past these beings looked across the nexus at us, into our universe. Maybe even stepped down. Primitive people saw them and weren’t able to explain them. They built religions around them. Worshipped them.”

“Mount Olympus,” Jean said. “Of course. And Moses met God at the top of Mount Sinai. We’re high up in the Rockies. Maybe contact only comes at high places. In the mountains, like this.”

“And the Tibetan monks are situated in the highest land mass in the world,” Bill added. “That whole area. The highest and the oldest part of the world. All the great religions have been revealed in the mountains. Brought down by people who saw God and carried the word back.”

“What I can’t understand,” Laura said, “is why they want him.” She spread her hands helplessly. “Why not somebody else? Why do they have to single him out?”

Bill’s face was hard. “I think that’s pretty clear.”

“Explain,” Erick rumbled.

“What is Doug? About the best nuclear physicist in the world. Working on top-secret projects in nuclear fission. Advanced research. The Government is underwriting everything Bryant College is doing because Douglas is here.”