ut you're a telepath!_

_So are you, Gyp_, he thought. _The only kind of telepath that really
counts. You can read minds, but others can't read yours._

I fell back on words, closing my mind--it was rattling so I didn't want
George to read my thoughts: "But a telepath _can't_ close his mind!" I
protested.

"I hope the Russians are as sure of that as you are, Gyp," George
grinned. "The only agents we have in Russia are closed-mind
telepaths--telepaths who don't automatically give themselves away. Now
_that_ kind of a telepath really _is_ a usable espionage agent or a safe
link in a communications net."

"How long has this been going on?"

"About three years, Gyp. When we discovered that certain training could
make some telepaths closed-mind operators, we got the President to
promulgate the Executive Orders that Congress later made into law. We
got all ordinary telepaths out of circulation and put to work those that
we could train to closed-mind operation. Now you know why I won't take
your resignation."

I sputtered. "George, how can I conscientiously crack down on these poor
people, if I'm a TP myself?"

He grinned. "You won't. You'll still be doing just what you've always
been doing, except now you'll _know_ that you're doing it. You'll be
recruiting telepaths for us. Where do you think we train them?"

"Oklahoma? The Detention area?"

"Sure. Where else? Now relax. But for heaven's sake, don't ever leak
this. We feel sure the Russians haven't discovered this business of
closed-mind telepaths yet. Some day, I suppose, they will. It may take a
long time. The self-realized closed-mind telepath like you, Gyp, is a
rarity. Mostly we have to train people rigorously for it. It took your
mother over two years to learn it."

"My mother!"

"Sure. Why did you think she was in Washington? She's part of the
Sevastopol, Teheran and Cairo communications network."

"George," I insisted. "Something is shaky. If she's on the inside, how
did she ever get picked up?"

He laughed. "Just part of her cover. Fred Plaice got too close. We know
what he is, Gyp. But we didn't dare to have him guess what your mother
was. She's on her way to a nice California vacation. New assignment
after that. Maybe middle Europe. After all, she _is_ a gypsy. Ought to
go well, say, in Bulgaria!"

THE END

Transcriber's Note:

This etext was produced from _Analog_ July 1961. Extensive research
did not uncover any evidence tha