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But now that he knew they were not ignoring him, but silar and very uneasy He looked nervously back along the corridor he&039;d traveled and ahead along its darker and straighter continuation that, also this side of the panel, led out of the rooed and the sound turned on so that he and Brimstine and Dora could be spied on It didn&039;t ing it up his spine

He ht have left the spy chamber but at that moment Moe Bri!" whereupon Billig at once stopped pacing and became as cool and unworried as dark tranquil water He pointedly did not look at the archway beyond hih the archway and stopped He held his spine and the expression of his face very straight

His hair was touched with gray and his face showed years of worry - but not Billig&039;s kind

Billig looked at hi smile that barely stopped short of a smirk He waited a moment and said softly, "Under the circumstances, I suppose you do not care to use your name, but -"

"It&039;s Dave Greeley," the other said bluntly

" - but I do suppose that you come from the Federal Bureau of Loyalty and that you are fully empowered to deal for the services and the president?"

The other nodded once

"Mr Greeley, Mr Briracious wave of his ar of a snake "Mr Greeley, Dora er, Dora Pannes"

The govern," he said, "you tell us you have the green cat If you have, we&039;ll buy it"

"And ill you pay?" Billig raft those senators received fro and microwave tapes Similar material in sixty-odd other cases, which I hardly need enu said softly

Greeley hesitated "Of course, I could appeal to you," he said in a different voice; "si a deadly danger -"

"Please, Mr Greeley," Billig said with a chuckle

Greeley shut his lips tight When he opened them, his earlier voice spoke

"Letters of confidence on all the indicted officials, dated today and signed and thumbprinted by the president and all the service heads, with confir made Naturally our experts will have to exae is made They can be here in twentyh"

"What else do you want?" Greeley derily, but it seemed to Phil that he knew

"The witnesses, delivered into our hands," Billig said "O&039;Malley, Fattori, Madelin Luszcak, and the thirty-odd - no, I&039;ll be precise - thirty-four others"

"That&039;s out," Greeley said sharply "I can&039;t offer to pay you in hu asked mildly "I didn&039;t, did I, Moe? It&039;s just that we&039;d feel safer with the witnesses in our protective custody rather than yours"

"You knohat you&039;d do to theed "You wouldn&039;t have to think about it In any case, there are ways to forget" And he glanced at Dora, who flashed the FBL man a lazy, provocative smile

Greeley flushed For a few seconds he see," he said finally, "don&039;t get the idea that either I or the govern and detestation for you Fun Incorporated has corrupted a third of a nation, and we have your headquarters here and in twenty cities so well cordoned a wasp couldn&039;t get out The sole reason we haven&039;t s that is a little anization But our patience is wearing thin We suspect a bluff, in spite of those green hairs you sent us Make a deal while you can"

"The chemical and physical analysis of the hair ," Billig murmured with a reflective s you can&039;t do without Sohly - shall we say a third of a nation? It see you off very cheaply Consider what the Russkiesto pay So I&039;e In fact, I&039; you," Greeley flared, "that I&039;e of Project Kitty under Emmet and that I&039;ve advised Emmet and the president to break off the deal and raid if you insist on that condition"

"You&039;ve advised," Billig replied, "and you&039;re under Emmet I&039;m only interested in what Barnes and Emmet have advised"

Greeley looked as if he wished he were deaf and dumb His hands clenched and slowly unclenched He set hiht blinked Moe Brimstine snatched it up, obviously prepared to roar out a rebuke and sla Greeley watched him intently

At thatopen and faint footsteps drabber in quality than the binaural richness of the stuff he&039;d been listening to He looked down the straight dark corridor on his side of the panel Soht now flooded across Then Phil saw Dr Romadka cross the corridor at that point The analyst was still carrying his black bag In the other hand was a gun He disappeared fro"

Phil switched around just in tilare "Three of the&039;s words were staccato "And a fourth irl, they said? And what did they tell you the fourth man wanted? I don&039;t care if it sounds silly!What? "

Holding the phone, Billig spared Greeley a glance "We&039;re going to have to delay ements for a few minutes," he said curtly "Dora will entertain you"

"You can&039;t delay," Greeley assured him with a sudden note of triumph "The raid starts in tenih to reen cat, or you&039;re afraid you have"

"I know Emmet would allowsnapped back at hie of him, Brimstine Then come back"

"Let me contact Emmet," Greeley said quickly "We&039;ll cooperate with you fully in finding the cat You have my word the indict said sharply

Greeley, lifting his elbow contemptuously away from Brimstine&039;s hand, started with him out of the rooed away frohtened, lambie," the violet blonde told hiirl&039;s rooot it to his ear and mouth, the skin around his eyes contracted with sudden suspicion and he gazed toward Phil, or rather toward a point near Phil, so sharply that the latter would have sprinted off, except he could not decide for a second which way

Then the spread two first fingers of Billig&039;s right hand struck like a serpent&039;s fangs at two buttons

Lights flared around Phil, everything was suddenly very still, and Phil saw hith of the rooh fully clothed, had the expression of a ht naked in public He hesitated for another desperate second, frozen by the thought that the ht corridor He came to the T and whisked around the coone, until he heard footsteps ahead and pounding toward him He darted back the way Rohtly lit rooe with less than an inch between the bars

But one corner of the cage had been neatly sliced off and rested on the floor beside it like a little three-sided orange tent Phil looked around for a way out and saw nothing but bright white wall marred only by a deep cut in the sa look ended at the door through which he&039;d co in it Brier weapon which, while pointing at at Phil, he held carefully out fro said, "what have you done with the green cat?"