“Thanks.” Garamond answered the man’s salute, grateful for the small saving in time, and got inside the upholstered shell.

“I thought you’d be in a hurry, sir.” The driver’s eyes stared knowingly at him from the rear view mirror.

“Oh?” Garamond controlled a spasm of unreasonable fear — this was not the way his arrest would come about. He eyed the back of the driver’s neck which was ruddy, deeply creased and had a number of long-established blackheads.

“Yes, sir. All the Starflight commanders are in a hurry to reach the field today. The weather reports aren’t good, I hear.”

Garamond nodded and tried to look at ease as the vehicle surged forward with a barely perceptible whine from its magnetic engines. “I think I’ll catch the tide,” he said evenly. “At least, I hope so — my family are coming to see me off.”

The driver’s narrow face showed some surprise. “I thought you were going direct…”

“A slight change of plan — we’re calling for my wife and son. You remember the address?”

“Yes, sir. I have it here.”

“Good. Get there as quickly as you can.” With a casual movement Garamond broke the audio connection between the vehicle’s two compartments and picked up the nearest communicator set. He punched in his home code and held the instrument steady with his knees while he waited for the screen to come to life and show that his call had been accepted. Supposing Aileen and Chris had gone out? The boy had been upset — again Garamond remembered him shaking his fist instead of waving goodbye, expressing in the slight change of gesture all the emotions which racked his small frame — and Aileen could have taken him away for an afternoon of distraction and appeasement. If that were the case…

“Vance!” Aileen’s face crystallized in miniature between his hands. “I was sure you’d gone. Where are you?”

“I’m on my way back to the house, be there in ten minutes.”

“Back here? But…”