Leo Frankowski

lead through a bunch of kids,” Heinrich said.
“Well, so much for your idea about help from the Eastern Bloc.”
    “Yah. I see
that,” Guibedo said. “This kind of thing has happened
before?”
    “Third intruder
this month. The preliminaries to war.”
    As the med teams
worked, Gamma LDUs were transcribing the intruder’s mind pattern into the CCU.
     
    T HIS IS KGB 501-12 TO C ENTRAL, C ODE 2297 S UB A LPHA. I HAVE MADE A
THOROUGH SEARCH OF D EATH V ALLEY AND CAN FIND NO INDICATION THAT H EINRICH C OPERNICK OR M ARTIN G UIBEDO IS PRESENT. I HAVE MADE CASUAL ACQUAINTANCE WITH SEVERAL LOCALS. M ICHAEL S COTT, N ELSON H AYNES, AND A LLEN P RUES HAVE
SEPARATELY STATED THAT THEY HAVE HEARD THAT M ARTIN G UIBEDO IS IN NORTHERN M INNESOTA. P URSUANT TO MY INSTRUCTIONS, I AM NOW LEAVING FOR THAT LOCATION.
    — D AVID J OHNSON
     
    “The intruder’s
arms are successfully replaced, Lord Copernick,” the CCU announced. “He
will be fully functional in three weeks. Do you want him reprogrammed for life in the
valley?”
    “He doesn’t
deserve it. Send him back with a compulsion to kill others of his type.”
    *
    Patricia and Mona
wandered into a flatter and shadier section of town where most of the tree
houses were one— story affairs. Facilities were laid out for the less athletically
inclined, with chessboards and trout streams instead of bridle trails and
canoe streams. Quite a few older people were around.
    “Most of our
senior citizens have moved out this way,” Mona said.
    “Wouldn’t they
want to be nearer the medical center at Pinecroft?” Patricia asked.
    “That was the
original plan. But when a group of doc tors formed a clinic out this way, most of
the seniors moved near it. I guess they prefer a human doctor to an LDU.”
    “LDUs do take
some getting used to,” Patricia said.
    “Hi, Mom!”
    “Bobby! What are
you doing at this end of town?” Mona said.
    “There’s a new
physics teacher who just moved in. I want to see if he’s any good. Who’s your
friend?”
    “Patty, this is
my son, Bobby. Bobby, Patricia Cambridge. Patricia is staying with Uncle
Martin.”
    “Pleased to meet
you, Patty. I’m glad to see Uncle Martin isn’t living alone anymore.”
    “Uh, it’s good
to meet you, Bobby.” Patricia tried not to act as flustered as she was. For one thing, Bobby looked fifteen and Mona looked twenty. And Mona
was all red hair and freckles while
Bobby was pure ebony. But mostly, you
don’t tell your son who’s sleeping with whom!
    “Ma, why don’t
you come over to my house tomorrow afternoon. Ishtar has been talking about
you—that’s my faun, Patty—and I want you to meet my new girlfriend.”
    “I’d love to,
Bobby. About three?”
    “Great, Mom.
But I’ve got to run. The introductory seminar starts in ten minutes. Bye!”
    “Bye,
Bobby!” Mona said. “The schools here function something like
those of the old Moslem culture. If there is something you’re interested in, you
find some one
who can teach you whatever it is you want to know. Then you make a private deal
with him. You stay with it until you’ve learned all you want. No grades, no di plomas. But it
works.”
    “He’s very nice,
your, uh, son,” Patty said.
    “Adopted, of
course. How old do you think I am? Bobby was injured on our land, and Heinrich
felt pretty bad about it. The doctors in L.A. couldn’t help Bobby, but of course
Heinrich could. When we found out that Bobby was an orphan, the easiest thing was to
adopt him.
    “He stayed with
us for a year, mostly to get his bearings, but he’s fifteen now, so he moved into
his own tree house a few
weeks ago.”
    “He moved out at fifteen?”
    “Yes. A bit
late, of course, but then the lack of a proper home during his formative years slowed
him down
a bit. He’s doing all right now.”
    “But leaving
home at fifteen?” Patty said.
    “The age of
consent around here is puberty, Patty. Uncle Martin feels that if nature says you’re
an adult, who are we to
argue?”
    “I guess
so,” Patty said. Life Valley was going to take some getting used
to.
     
    Vintovka and his
eagle died on the operating tables.
    “You know,
Heiny. This man didn’t kill Vintovka. His gun did it.”
    “Same
difference,” Heinrich said. “He pulled the trigger.”
    “Yah, he’s guilty. But without
weapons, he couldn’t have done any real damage to us,”
    “You have an idea, Uncle
Martin?”
    “I am thinking
about my kidney trees, that take metal out of the soil.