“Such faith! Why should the Spacers do it? When did they start feeling kindly toward us short-lived Earthpeople?”

“If I could talk to them—”

Ben laughed. “Come on, Dad. You just want to go to Aurora, to see that woman again.”

Baley frowned and his eyebrows beetled over his deep-set eyes. “Woman? Jehoshaphat, Ben, what are you talking about?”

“Now, Dad, just between us—and not a word to Mom what did happen with that woman on Solaria? I’m old enough. You can tell me.”

“What woman on Solaria?”

“How can you look at me and deny any knowledge of the woman everyone on, Earth saw in the hyperwave dramatization? Gladia Delmarre. That woman!”

“Nothing happened. That hyperwave thing was nonsense. I’ve told you that a thousand times. She didn’t look that way. I didn’t look that way. It was all made up and you know it was produced over my protests, just because the government thought it would put Earth in a good light, with the Spacers.—And you make sure you don’t imply anything different to your mother.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Still, this Gladia went to Aurora and you keep wanting to go there, too.”

“Are you trying to tell me that you honestly think the reason I want to go to Aurora—Oh, Jehoshaphat!”

His son’s eyebrows raised. “What’s the matter?”

“The robot. That’s R. Geronimo.”

“Who?”

“One of our Department messenger robots. And it’s out here! I’m off-time and I deliberately left my receiver at home because I didn’t want them to get at me. That’s my privilege and yet they send for me by robot.”

“How do you know it’s coming to you, Dad?”

“By very clever deduction—One: there’s no one else here, who has any connection with the Police Department; and two: that miserable thing is heading right toward me. From that I deduce that it wants me. I should get on the other side of the tree and stay there.”