ct fast. Almost _too_ fast."

"I notified the Government as soon as I was sure of my facts," Olcott
said, completely unflustered.

"That's as may be," Condley said. "The point is that we now have the
problem on our hands, and we must find an equitable solution." He took a
gold fountain pen from his pocket, and his strong, thick fingers began
toying with it while his eyes remained on Sam Bending. "The fact that
you have applied for a patent makes it imperative that we get the
situation under control immediately."

Before Sam could answer, there was a knock on the outer door that came
clearly into the rear room. Secretary Condley rose without saying a word
and went out.

Dr. Larchmont, the Power Utilities physicist, decided to make small talk
to bridge the hiatus. "That's a really beautiful piece of machinery
you've built, Mr. Bending. Really remarkable." He was a small,
flat-faced man with a fringe of dark hair around his otherwise naked
scalp.

Sam looked a little startled. "You mean you opened a Converter up?"

Larchmont nodded. "I presume you are referring to the fusing device. We
X-rayed the thing thoroughly before we opened it. These days, many
devices are rigged to be self-destroying, but that, in itself is a
specialized field. Most of them are traps that are rather easy to get
around if one is expecting them and knows how to handle them. But the
Converter itself, if I may say so, is one of the most original and
elegant devices I have seen in many a day."

"Thanks," said Bending, with a touch of bitterness in his voice. "I--"

The door opened at that moment, and Secretary Condley came in followed
by a tall, round-faced man with dark wavy hair and clear brown eyes.

"Jim!" Sam said in surprise.

The man was James Luckman, Sam Bending's business manager. "Hello, Sam.
What's this all about? The FBI men who picked me up said I wasn't under
arrest, but I had a hunch it was about as close as you can come without
actual arrest."

Sam nodded. "Funny--I had that impression, too." He looked at Condley.
"What's the idea, Condley? Jim doesn't know anything about this."

The Secretary managed to look unoffended at Bending's tone. "Possibly
not. We can't be sure, of course, but--frankly, I'd be willing to accept
your word." He paused. "But--you're not a businessman, Mr. Bending?" He
made it only half a question.

"No. I leave that sort of thing up to Jim. Oh, I don't say I'm
completely ignorant of the field; it's