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cheerful sort,” Blades nodded. “Stiff as molasses on Pluto. But I suppose … supposed he’s just naturally that way.”
    Chung shook his head. “It wasn’t a normal standoffishness. You’ve heard me reminisce about the time I was on Vesta with the North American technical representative, when the Convention was negotiated.”
    â€œYes, I’ve heard that story a few times,” said Avis dryly.
    â€œRemember, that was right after the Europa incident. We’d come close to a space war—undeclared, but it would have been nasty. We were still close. Every delegate went to that conference cocked and primed.
    â€œHulse had the same manner.”
    A silence fell. Blades said at length, “Well, come to think of it, he did ask some rather odd questions. He seemed to twist the conversation now and then, so he could find out things like our exact layout, emergency doctrine, and so forth. It didn’t strike me as significant, though.”
    â€œNor me,” Chung admitted. “Taken in isolation, it meant nothing. But these visitors today—Sure, most of them obviously didn’t suspect anything untoward. But that Liebknecht, now. Why was he so interested in Central Control? Nothing new or secret there. Yet he kept asking for details like the shielding factor of the walls.”
    â€œSo did Commander Warburton,” Blades remembered. “Also, he wanted to know exactly when the Pallas is due, how long she’ll stay … hm-m-m, yes, whether we have any radio linkage with the outside, like to Ceres or even the nearest Commission base——”
    â€œDid you tell him that we don’t?” Avis asked sharply.
    â€œYes. Shouldn’t I have?”
    â€œIt scarcely makes any difference,” Chung said in a resigned voice. “As thoroughly as they went over the ground, they’d have seen what we do and do not have installed so far.”
    He leaned forward. “Why are they hanging around?” he asked. “I was handed some story about overhauling the missile system.”
    â€œMe, too,” Blades said.
    â€œBut you don’t consider a job complete till it’s been tested. And you don’t fire a test shot, even a dummy, this close to a station. Besides, what could have gone wrong? I can’t see a ship departing Earth orbit for a long cruise without everything being in order. And they didn’t mention any meteoroids, any kind of trouble, en route. Furthermore, why do the work here? The Navy yard’s at Ceres. We can’t spare them any decent amount of materials or tools or help.”
    Blades frowned. His own half-formulated doubts shouldered to the fore, which was doubly unpleasant after he’d been considering Ellen Ziska. “They tell me the international situation at home is okay,” he offered.
    Avis nodded. “What newsfaxes we get in the mail indicate as much,” she said. “So why this hanky-panky?” After a moment, in a changed voice: “Jimmy, you begin to scare me a little.”
    â€œI scare myself,” Chung said.
    â€œEvery morning when you debeard,” Blades said; but his heart wasn’t in it. He shook himself and protested: “Damnation, they’re our own countrymen. We’re engaged in a lawful business. Why should they do anything to us?”
    â€œMaybe Avis can throw some light on that,” Chung suggested.
    The girl twisted her fingers together. “Not me,” she said. “I’m no politician.”
    â€œBut you were home not so long ago. You talked with people, read the news, watched the ThreeV. Can’t you at least give an impression?”
    â€œN-no—well, of course the preliminary guns of the election campaign were already being fired. The Social Justice party was talking a lot about … oh, it seemed so ridiculous that I didn’t pay much attention.”
    â€œThey talked about how the government had been