mate
tone of comradeship; but still I could not mistake the irony in it.

"You listen to me, Kent. There was a time, years ago, when we were good
friends. You liked your young assistant, the hunchback Polter. Iss it
not so? Then why should we quarrel now? I am gifing up the Earth world.
I wanted of it only the little Babs.... You look at me so strange! You
do not speak."

"There is nothing to say," retorted Dr. Kent wearily.

"Then you listen. I haf much gold above in Quebec. You know that. So
very simple to take it out of our atom, grow large with it to what we
call up there the size of a hundred feet. I haf a place, a room,
secluded from prying eyes under a dome roof. I become very tall, holding
a piece of gold. It is large when I am a hundred feet tall. So I haf
collected much gold. They think I own a mine. I haf a smelter and my
gold quartz I make into ingots, refined to the standard purity. So
simple, and I am a rich man.

"But gold does not bring happiness, my friend Kent." He chuckled
ironically at his use of the platitude. "There iss more in life than the
ownership of gold. You ask my plans. I haf Babs, now. I am gifing up the
Earth world. The mysterious man they know as Frank Rascor will vanish. I
will hide our little fragment of quartz. No one up there will even try
to find it. Then I come down here, with Babs, and we will haf so nice a
little government and rule this world. No more of the drugs then will be
needed, Kent. When you die, let the secret die with you."

Again Polter's voice became ingratiating, even more so than before. "We
will be friends, Kent. Our little Babs will lof me; why should she not?
You will tell her--advise her--and we will all three be very happy."

Dr. Kent said abruptly, "Then leave her with me now. That was her
request, a moment ago. If you expect to treat her kindly, then why
not--"

"I do! I do! But not now. I cannot spare her now. I am very busy, but I
must take her with me."

Babs had been silent, clinging to the bars of our cage. She called;
"Why? I ask you to put this cage down."

"Not now, little bird."

"Let me be with my father."

It struck a pang through me. Babs was scheming but not the way Polter
thought. She wanted the cage put on the floor, herself out, and a chance
for me to escape. I had not yet told her of my miserable stupidity in
losing the vial.

Polter was repeating, "No, little bird. Presently; not now. I will take
you with me on my last trip