"Fry it!" Douglas grated. The three Clearance agents lifted their tubes, moving forward.
"No." Frank shook his head. "We can't. It's a bad situation."
"What do you mean? Why can't we? We fried the others --"
"They were caught in deep space. This is Terra. Terran law, not military law, applies." Frank waved toward the seated man. "And it's in a human body. It comes under regular civil laws. We've got to prove it's not Lester Herrick -- that it's a Rexorian infiltrator. It's going to be tough. But it can be done."
"How?"
"His wife. Herrick's wife. Her testimony. Jill Herrick can assert the difference between Lester Herrick and this thing. She knows -- and I think we can make it stand up in court."
It was late afternoon. Frank drove his surface cruiser slowly along. Neither he nor Jill spoke.
"So that's it," Jill said at last. Her face was gray. Her eyes dry and bright, without emotion. "I knew it was too good to be true." She tried to smile. "It seemed so wonderful."
"I know," Frank said. "It's a terrible damn thing. If only --"
"Why?" Jill said. "Why did he -- did it do this? Why did it take Lester's body?"
"Rexor IV is old. Dead. A dying planet. Life is dying out."
"I remember, now. He -- it said something like that. Something about Rexor. That it was glad to get away."
"The Rexorians are an old race. The few that remain are feeble. They've been trying to migrate for centuries. But their bodies are too weak. Some tried to migrate to Venus -- and died instantly. They worked out this system about a century ago."
"But it knows so much. About us. It speaks our language."
"Not quite. The changes you mentioned. The odd diction. You see, the Rexorians have only a vague knowledge of human beings. A sort of ideal abstraction, taken from Terran objects that have found their way to Rexor. Books mostly. Secondary data like that. The Rexorian idea of Terra is based on centuries-old Terran literature. Romantic novels from our past. Language, customs, manners from old Terran books. That accounts for the strange archaic quality to it. It had studied Terra, all right. But in an indirect and misleading way." Frank grinned wryly. "The Rexorians are two hundred years behind the times -- which is a break for us. That's how we're able to detect them."
"Is this sort of thing -- common? Does it happen often? It seems unbelievable." Jill rubbed her forehead wearily. "Dreamlike. It's hard to realize that it's actually happened. I'm just beginning to understand what it means."
"The galaxy is full of alien life forms. Parasitic and destructive entities. Terran ethics don't extend to them. We have to guard constantly against this sort of thing. Lester went in unsuspectingly -- and this thing ousted him and took over his body."
Frank glanced at his sister. Jill's face was expressionless. A stern little face, wide-eyed, but composed. She sat up straight, staring fixedly ahead, her small hands folded quietly in her lap.
"We can arrange it so you won't actually have to appear in court," Frank went on. "You can vid a statement and it'll be presented as evidence. I'm certain your statement will do. The Federal courts will help us all they can, but they have to have some evidence to go on."
Jill was silent.
"What do you say?" Frank asked.
"What happens after the court makes its decision?"
"Then we vibro-ray it. Destroy the Rexorian mind. A Terran patrol ship on Rexor IV sends out a party to locate the -- er -- original contents."
"Then we vibro-ray it. Destroy the Rexorian mind. A Terran patrol ship on Rexor IV sends out a party to locate the -- er -- original contents."
"Oh, yes. Lester is alive. In suspension, somewhere on Rexor. In one of the old city ruins. We'll have to force them to give him up. They won't want to, but they'll do it. They've done it before. Then he'll be back with you. Safe and sound. Just like before. And this horrible nightmare you've been living will be a thing of the past."
"I see."
"Here we are." The cruiser pulled to a halt before the imposing Federal Clearance Building. Frank got quickly out, holding the door for his sister. Jill stepped down slowly. "Okay?" Frank said.
"Okay."
When they entered the building, Clearance agents led them through the check screens, down the long corridors. Jill's high heels echoed in the ominous silence.
"Quite a place," Frank observed.
"It's unfriendly."
"Consider it a glorified police station." Frank halted. Before them was a guarded door. "Here we are."
"Wait." Jill pulled back, her face twisting in panic. "I --"
"We'll wait until you're ready." Frank signaled to the Clearance agent to leave. "I understand. It's a bad business."
Jill stood for a moment, her head down. She took a deep breath, her small fists clenched. Her chin came up, level and steady. "All right."
"You ready?"
"Yes."
Frank opened the door. "Here we are."
Director Douglas and the three Clearance agents turned expectantly as Jill and Frank entered. "Good," Douglas murmured, with relief. "I was beginning to get worried."
The sitting man got slowly to his feet, picking up his coat. He gripped his ivory-headed cane tightly, his hands tense. He said nothing. He watched silently as the woman entered the room, Frank behind her. "This is Mrs Herrick," Frank said. "Jill, this is Clearance Director Douglas."
"I've heard of you," Jill said faintly.
"Then you know our work."
"Yes. I know your work."
"This is an unfortunate business. It's happened before. I don't know what Frank has told you --"
"He explained the situation."
"Good." Douglas was relieved. "I'm glad of that. It's not easy to explain. You understand, then, what we want. The previous cases were caught in deep space. We vibro-tubed them and got the original contents back. But this time we must work through legal channels." Douglas picked up a vidtape recorder. "We will need your statement, Mrs Herrick. Since no physical change has occurred we'll have no direct evidence to make our case. We'll have only your testimony of character alteration to present to the court."
He held the vidtape recorder out. Jill took it slowly.
"Your statement will undoubtedly be accepted by the court. The court will give us the release we want and then we can go ahead. If everything goes correctly we hope to be able to set things exactly as they were before."
Jill was gazing silently at the man standing in the corner with his coat and ivory-headed cane. "Before?" she said. "What do you mean?"
"Before the change."
Jill turned toward Director Douglas. Calmly, she laid the vidtape recorder down on the table. "What change are you talking about?"
Douglas paled. He licked his lips. All eyes in the room were on Jill. "The change in him." He pointed at the man.
pointed at the man.
"That's odd," Jill said thoughtfully. "I haven't noticed any change."
Frank and Director Douglas looked at each other. "I don't get it," Frank muttered, dazed.
"Mrs Herrick --" Douglas began.
Jill walked over to the man standing quietly in the corner. "Can we go now, dear?" she asked. She took his arm. "Or is there some reason why my husband has to stay here?"
The man and woman walked silently along the dark street.
"Come on," Jill said. "Let's go home."
The man glanced at her. "It's a nice afternoon," he said. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs. "Spring is coming -- I think. Isn't it?"
Jill nodded.
"I wasn't sure. It's a nice smell. Plants and soil and growing things."
"Yes."
"Are we going to walk? Is it far?"