ow Al Duggan, a second cousin from Montana. He
knew that nothing in the world could bring Al further east than Ozarka.
Just to be safe, however, he decided to drop Al a line to explain.

As far as his wife was concerned Merle Duggan was gone. Dead and buried.
She could get a divorce if she wanted and marry that podgy, pink-skulled
boss of hers at the advertising agency....

"Five hundred a month," Duggan told himself. "Two-fifty for the rental,
fifty for insurance--maybe fifty or so for spare parts--that leaves
about a hundred and fifty for me."

He was starting at the bottom as a rock hog, a mucker, a clean-up man in
the newly opened 80th Level. And his wages were the minimum union scale.

He took the lift down to the 79th Level, flashed his new badge at the
guards, and took the gritty freight lift to the lowest level of the
sprawling metropolis....

"You Gaines Short?" he asked the lanky man bent over the littered desk
in the rough plastic bubble that served as an office.

Sharp black eyes studied him--noted the bright new olive badge, and the
creased, obviously new, coveralls.

"You're the new rock hog?"

"Yes, sir. Al Duggan."

"Any experience?"

"Montana--mining. Had some engineering. Worked in Ozarka on tunnels."

The lank man nodded, expressionless.

"You'll hog for a while. Later we'll see.... Any relation to the Duggan
we lost a couple of years back?"

"We're cousins."

"Tough he couldn't see his way clear to try again." Short's lips
thinned. "He may snap out of it yet.... We could use a few more like
him."

"I--I'll talk with him," promised Duggan.

He fought back the words that wanted to pour out. Whether it was a
strange sense of loyalty to his wife, or a stubborn sort of pride, he
could not bring himself to speak ill of her.

"A super mech is not so bad, Duggan." Short flexed a skinny arm. "I've
worn this one since a rock slide crushed my back."

"Yes, sir," Duggan agreed.

Short scribbled on a form, handed it to Duggan.

"Take this down to Ted Rusche, he's the short, dark fellow bossing the
rock hogs. He'll see you're issued your tools."

Duggan nodded and turned away.

* * * * *

In the super mech hostel, on the 79th Level, Duggan shared a compartment
of six sleeping and mentrol plates. All of the others were rockhounds,
and three of them worked in his own clean-up gang. His immediate pusher,
Ted Rusche, was a legless, dark and hairy man, much l