kitchen, but I'm sure we'll manage."

Ward set his grip down and glanced about at the chart-covered walls, the
plain, badly scuffed furniture and he was not particularly enthused at
the prospect of being cooped up in this hot little oven of a room with
Halliday.

"What about the other buildings?" he asked. "Surely there'd be room
there for me to bunk."

"We use those building for equipment," Halliday said. "And besides, this
building is safer."

Ward glanced at the little man with a faint, ironic smile.

"Is there something here to be afraid of?" His tone was blandly polite,
but he could not completely conceal an undercurrent of contempt.

"I don't mean to alarm you, Lieutenant," Halliday said, "but this area
of Mars is not quite the safest place in the universe." He removed his
thick glasses with a nervous little gesture and smiled uncertainly at
Ward. "I really think it wiser for you to sleep here."

"Unless that's an order," Ward said, "I'd rather sleep in comfort in one
of the other buildings and take my chances on your bogy-men catching
me."

Halliday replaced his glasses. He was no longer smiling.

"I'm afraid, Lieutenant, you must consider it as an order."

He turned slowly and re-checked the huge gleaming lock on the door, then
walked to a littered, dusty desk in one corner of the room and sat down.
It was obvious that the discussion was ended.

Ward shrugged and carried his grip into a small windowless storeroom
that was directly off the main room of the small structure. There were
bales of supplies, a cot and a stool. A vague musty odor permeated the
air. He tossed his grip onto the cot, stripped off his tunic and walked
back into the room where Halliday was seated at his desk.

Halliday looked up with a smile and removed his glasses with a
characteristic nervous movement of his thin hands.

"Not exactly the choicest accommodations, eh?" he said, in an attempt at
heartiness, which struck Ward as being almost pathetic.

"I'll get by," Ward said. He loosened the collar of his shirt and
glanced at the massive steel door, closed and tightly locked. "Any
objection to letting in a little air?" he asked. "It's pretty close in
here."

* * * * *

Halliday smiled and his eyes flicked to the closed door. He put his
glasses on again and spent quite a time adjusting them to his thin nose.

"I'm afraid we'll have to put up with the closeness," he said.

Ward sighed and s