ht into the MP's."

"Why didn't they come in here after me?"

"They don't have security clearance for this building."

"_Don't_ leave me alone," Nancy said urgently. "I don't understand
what's happening. I feel so helpless. I need help."

"You're asking the wrong man," Collins said briefly.

* * * * *

Collins felt safe when the airlock kissed shut its metal lips.

It was not like the house, but yet he felt safe, surrounded by all the
complicated, expensive electronic equipment. It was big, solid,
sterilely gleaming.

Another thing--he had reason to believe that Doc Candle's power could
not reach him through metal.

"But I'm not outside," Doc Candle said, "I'm in here, with you."

Collins yelled and cursed, he tried to pull off the acceleration webbing
and claw through the airlock. Nobody paid any attention to him. Count
downs had been automated. Smith-Boerke was handling this one himself,
and he cut off the Audio-In switch from the spaceship. Doc Candle said
nothing else for a moment, and the spaceship, almost an entity itself,
went on with its work.

The faster-than-light spaceship took off.

At first it was like any other rocket takeoff.

The glow of its exhaust spread over the field of the spaceport, then
over the hills and valleys, and then the town of Waraxe, spreading
illumination even as far as Sam Collins' silent house.

After a time of being sick, Collins lay back and accepted this too.

"That's right, that's it," Doc Candle said. "Take it and die with it.
That's the ticket."

Collins' eyes settled on a gauge. Three quarters lightspeed. Climbing.

Nothing strange, nothing untoward happened when you reached lightspeed.
It was only an arbitrary number. All else was superstition. Forget it,
forget it, forget it.

_Something_ was telling him that. At first he thought it was Doc Candle
but then he knew it was the ship.

Collins sat back and took it, and what he was taking was death. It was
creeping over him, seeping into his feet, filling him like liquid does a
sponge.

Not will, but curiosity, caused him to turn his head.

He saw Doc Candle.

The old body was dying. He was in the emergency seat, broken, a ribbon
of blood lacing his chin. But Doc Candle continued to laugh triumphantly
in Collins' head.

"Why? Why do you have to kill me?" Collins asked.

"Because I am evil."

"How do you know you're evil?"

"_They told me so!_" Candle shout