Stranger in a Strange Land

you."
                "He's been arraigned then. Is the preliminary hearing set?"
                Ben smiled. "That's not quite the way it is, Jubal. Mike is technically a fugitive from justice. He wasn't released on bail. He escaped."
                Jubal looked disgusted. "What a silly thing to do. Now the case will be eight times as difficult."
                "Jubal, I told you not to worry. All the rest of us are presumed dead-and Mike is simply missing. We're through with this city, so it doesn't matter in the least. We'll go someplace else."
                "They'll extradite him."
                "Never fear. They won't."
                "Well ... where is he? I want to talk to him."
                "Oh, he's right here, a couple of rooms down from you. But he's withdrawn in meditation. He left word to tell you, when you arrived, to take no action-none. You can talk to him right now if you insist; Jill will call him out of it. But I don't recommend it. There's no hurry."
                Jubal thought about it, admitted that he was damnably eager to hear from Mike himself just what the score was-and chew him out for having gotten into such a mess-but admitted, too, that disturbing Mike while he was in a trance was almost certainly much worse than disturbing Jubal himself when he was dictating a story-the boy always came out of his self-hypnosis when he had "grokked the fullness," whatever that was-and if he hadn't, then he always needed to go back into it. As pointless as disturbing a hibernating bear.
                "All right, I'll wait. But I want to talk to him when he wakes up."
                "You will. Now relax and be happy. Let the trip get out of your system." Ben urged him toward the group around the stereo tank.
                Anne looked up. "Hello, Boss." She moved over and made room. "Sit down."
                Jubal joined her. "May I ask what the devil you are doing here?"
                "The same thing you're doing-nothing. Watching stereo. Jubal, please don't get heavy-handed because we didn't do what you told us. We belong here as much as you do. You shouldn't have told us not to come. . . but you were too upset for us to argue with you. So relax and watch what they're saying about us. The sheriff has just announced that he's going to run all us whores out of town." She smiled. "I've never been run out of town before. It should be interesting. Does a whore get ridden on a rail? Or will I have to walk?"
                "I don't think there's protocol in the matter. You all came?"
                "Yes, but don't fret. Jed McClintock is sleeping in the house. Larry and I made a standing arrangement with the McClintock boys for one of them to do so, more than a year ago-just in case. They know how the furnace works and where the switches are and things; it's all right."
                "Hmm! I'm beginning to think I'm just a boarder there."
                "Were you ever anything else, Boss? You expect us to run it without bothering you. We do. But it's a shame you didn't relax and let us all travel together. We got here more than two hours ago-you must have had some trouble."
                "I did, A terrible trip. Anne, once I get home I don't intend ever to set foot off the place again in my life . . - and I'm going to yank out the telephone and take a sledgehammer to the babble box."
                "Yes, Boss."
                "This time I mean it." He glanced at the giant babble box in front of him. "Do those commercials go on forever? Where's my goddaughter? Don't tell me you left her to the mercies of McClintock's idiot sons!"
                "Oh, of course not. She's here. She even has her own nursemaid, thank God."
                "I want to see her."
                "Patty will show her to you. I'm bored with her-she was a perfect little beast all the way down. Patty dear! Jubal wants to see Abby."
                The tattooed woman checked one of her unhurried dashes through the room-so far as Jubal could see, she was the only one of the several present who was doing any work, and she seemed to be everywhere at once. "Certainly, Jubal. I'm not busy. Down this way.
                "I've got the kids in my room," she explained, while Jubal strove to keep up with her, "so