FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   >>  
ation isn't getting into Soviet hands, we're safe." He glanced at his wrist watch. Dr. Gamble said: "But--" "My, my," Malone said. "Almost lunchtime. I have to go over and have lunch with Her Majesty. Maybe she's dug up something more." "I hope so," Dr. Gamble said, apparently successfully deflected. "I do hope so." [Illustration: "One more crack out of you...."] "Well," Malone said, "pardon me." He shucked off his coat and trousers. Then he proceeded to put on the doublet and hose that hung in the little office closet. He shrugged into the fur-trimmed, slash-sleeved coat, adjusted the plumed hat to his satisfaction with great care, and gave Burris and the others a small bow. "I go to an audience with Her Majesty, gentlemen," he said in a grave, well-modulated voice. "I shall return anon." He went out the door and closed it carefully behind him. When he had gone a few steps he allowed himself the luxury of a deep sigh. * * * * * Then he went outside and across the dusty street to the barracks where Her Majesty and the other telepaths were housed. No one paid any attention to him, and he rather missed the stares he'd become used to drawing. But by now, everyone was used to seeing Elizabethan clothing. Her Majesty had arrived at a new plateau. She would now allow no one to have audience with her unless he was properly dressed. Even the psychiatrists--whom she had, with a careful sense of meiosis, appointed Physicians to the Royal House--had to wear the stuff. Malone went over the whole case in his mind--for about the thousandth time, he told himself bitterly. Who could the telepathic spy be? It was like looking for a needle in a rolling stone, he thought. Or something. He did remember clearly that a stitch in time saved nine, but he didn't know nine what, and suspected it had nothing to do with his present problem. How about Dr. Harry Gamble, Malone thought. It seemed a little unlikely that the head of Project Isle would be spying on his own men--particularly since he already had all the information. But, on the other hand, he was just as probable a spy as anybody else. Malone moved onward. Dr. Thomas O'Connor, the Westinghouse psionics man, was the next nominee. Before Malone had actually found Her Majesty, he had had a suspicion that O'Connor had cooked the whole thing up to throw the FBI off the trail and confuse everybody, and that he'd intended merely to ha
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   >>  



Top keywords:

Malone

 

Majesty

 

Gamble

 
audience
 
thought
 

Connor

 
properly
 

dressed

 

rolling

 

needle


telepathic
 

Physicians

 

appointed

 

meiosis

 

bitterly

 
psychiatrists
 

remember

 

careful

 

thousandth

 
psionics

nominee

 
Before
 

Westinghouse

 

Thomas

 

probable

 

onward

 

confuse

 
intended
 

suspicion

 

cooked


present

 

problem

 

suspected

 

stitch

 

information

 

Project

 

spying

 

proceeded

 

doublet

 

trousers


shucked

 

pardon

 

office

 

closet

 

plumed

 

satisfaction

 
adjusted
 

sleeved

 

shrugged

 

trimmed