try to understand the old boy. Maybe
you'll get more of the fine-grain structure of it if you'll try for
more understanding."

"What do you mean?" she asked, sniffing.

"Look. Forsythe has made his living being a fraud, right? And yet he
sent out those warning _free_--and anonymously. He had no thought of
any reward or recompense, you know that. Why? Because he is basically
a kind, decent human being. He wanted to do all he could to stop any
injury or loss of life.

"Why, then, would he send out a fraudulent warning? He wouldn't. He
didn't. Every one of those warnings--_including the last one_--was
sent out because he _knew_ that something was going to happen.

"Evidently, once he gets a flash about a certain event, he can't get
any more data on that particular area of the future, or we could get
more data on the Moonbase accident. I think, if we can boost his basic
understanding up past the critical point, we'll have a man with
controlled prescience, and we need that man.

"But, Donna, the only way we're ever going to do that--the only way
we'll ever whip this problem--is for you to increase _your_
understanding of _him_.

"You're past the critical point--way past it--in _general_
understanding. But you've got to keep an eye on the little specific
instances, too."

She nodded contritely. "I know. I'm sorry. Sometimes a person can get
too near a problem." She smiled. "Thanks for the new perspective,
Brian. I'll go back to work and see if I can't look at it a little
more clearly."

* * * * *

In the White House, Senator Mikhail Kerotski was facing two men--James
Bandeau, the Secretary of Space, and the President of the United
States.

"Mr. President," he said evenly, "I've known you for a long time. I
haven't failed you yet."

"I know that, Mike," the President said smoothly. "Neither has your
Society, as far as I know. It's still difficult for me to believe that
they get their information the way you say they do, but you've never
lied to me about anything so far, so I take your word for it. Your
Society is the most efficient espionage and counterespionage group in
history, as far as I know. But this is different."

"Damned right it's different!" snapped Secretary Bandeau. "Your own
Society, senator, admits that we've stirred the Soviets up with this
space lift thing. They've got ships of their own going out there now.
According to reports from Space Force intelligence, Chi