Page 59 - Astounding Pulp V2

58 ASTOUNDING SCIENCE-FICTION THE SMALLEST GOD 59

information directly .from her head, since idly toward the cell. mounting over the The other chuckled sourly as he fin- trumped-up evidence to convict me. He
she knew where it was. "Now go back bottom brace and through the bars. The ished. wanted to make the charge kidnaping,
to skep and I'll go find your father." s.cientist did not see him as he tro tted "So while Hodges was fooling around but they suggested corpse stealing, and'
"And bring him home to mamma ?'' under the bunk and found a con venient with amrebas and flesh, I made super- compromised on larceny-grand lar-
1
"And b1 ing him home to mamma." hiding place near the man ·s legs. At the life, only I didn't know it, eh?" · There ceny, I guess."
Hermes knew ' practically nothing of moment, Brugh was considering the was no longer doubt i,~ his mind, but "I still might be able to swipe the
jails. but the feeling of power was surg- pleasant prospect of ·attaching all police that might have been due to the whiskey. guard's keys, and attract their atten-
ing hotly through him. So · far, every- to Bertha and bomlpircling them with The reason for more than one conver- tion-"
thing he had attemp~ed had be: n ac- neutrons until their flesh turned to any- sion 'to a new religious beli'ef lies hid- Brugh gathered his somewhat pickled
complished. Kitty smiled uncertainly a t thing but protoplasm. den in the mysterious soothing effect of · senses. "No. Your biggest value to me
him and dropped her head back on .the Hermes tapped a relatively huge leg ethanol in the form of whiskey and rum. is in your ability to get in places where
pillow. Then th_e little ~od's sense of and spoke softly. "Dr. B rug h. if you 'll "Well, glad to know you. What hap- a man couldn't, and find out things
vibration percept1011 led h11n toward the look dovvn here. please-'' He held up pens now ?" without anyone knowing it. If I get
cellar in search of certain .vital bottles. the bottle, the cap already unscrewed. "I promised your daughter I'd take out, I can do no more than I can here
A child's toy truck, overburdened with Brugh lowered his eyes and blinked. you home to the m.istress." But now -I'm not a detective when it comes to
a iarge · bottle and a small god. drew up from the angle of his sight, only a half~ that he was here, he wasn't so sure. human reactions ; just physical or chemi-
in front of the dirty white building that pint bottle of whiskey, raising itsel£ fi·om T here we1·e more men around than he cal puzzles."
served as jail. H ermes ·had discovered th~ floor, could be seen. But he was in liked. "We'll have to make plans." There was something in that, Hermes
the toy in the yard and used it as a a mood to accept miracles withou t ques- Brugh reflected thoughtfully. "That had to concede. "Then I'm to , work
boy does a wagon to facilitate travel. tion, and he reached instinctively. Or- might not be so good. They'd come outside?"
Now he stepped off. lifted the bottle, . dinarily he wasn't- a drinkino- tna n after 1:ne again, and I'd have less chance "If you want to. You're a free agent,
and parked the truck in a small shrub but the person who won't d11nk ~ to prove my innocence." not bound to me. Slaves have gone out
0 1
where he could find it again. Then he occasion has a special place reser ved for Hermes was surprised. "You're in- of fashion, and you're hardly a robot."
began the laborious job ·of hitching him- him in heaven-well removed fro 111 all nocent ? I thought you'd, murdered The physicist shook his head. "Why
self up the steps and into the building. other saints. Hodges." After all, it was a reasonable should you help me, come to think of
It was in the early morning hours,
As the bottle was lowered again, Ii.er- supposition, based on the state of the it?"
and there were 'few men about, but he mes reached for it and drained the fe . physicist's mind the day before. "What "Because I want to grow ·up, and
l
. .
w
l ·1 B
stayed carefully in the shadow and rema111111g c rops, ,v 1 e rugh s tared t happened ?"
1
moved only when their . backs were him. " \Veil ?" the god asked finally .' a you might help me ; and because in_ a
I "No, I haven't murdered him-yet." sense we both have the same memories
turned. From his 9bservat1011, men saw . The alcehof was leaving the scientis t·
only what they expe~ted, and the un- stomach rapidly, as it does w hen no fo ~ Brugh's smile promised unpleasant and thought actions-I started out with
usual attracted attention only when ac- interferes, and making for his head . tf things at the first chance. " It's still a a mixture of dog, cat and you." He
companied by some sudden sound or 1 11ice idea, after this trick, though. It climbed off the bunk and scuttled across
mellowing effect Hermes had hoped' £ ~ all started with the key." the floor. " I 'll give Hodges youi: love
.
.
movement. Hermes searched one of the was b egmmng. "Tl . . o1
1at's my voice Yo u '.
men's minds for the location of Brugh, 1 "Maybe I better take it from your if I see him."
us ing," Brugh observed mildly. e di y. " Do."
then headed toward the cell, dragging head," H ermes decided. "That way I 'll Brugh grinned crooke
"It should be; I le~rned the langua ·e be less apt to miss things, and more sure
the half-pint bottle behind him as noise-
from you. You made me. you kno g_, to get things straight."
lessly as he could. VIII.
He waited for a second. "'vVell, do yw. Br.ugh nodded and relaxed, thinking
. . · ..,,. OU
b Ie 1eve m me now r back over the last few hours. He lifted PROFESSOR H rRAM HODGES stirred
D R. B RUGH sat on the hard iron cot and turned over in his bed, a sense of
Brugh grunted. " Hermes, eh ? the bottle and tried to extract another
with his head in his hands. somewhat
I wasn't imagining things back · So drop, but the only dampness in it was somethino- that wasn't as it should be
after the fashion of Rodin's " Thinker" ; 111 the troubling°his .mind. H e grunted softly
but his face bore rather less of calm re- lab. What happened to you?'' A. s us- such as condensed from his breath. and tried to sleep again, but the _premo-
flection. An occasional muttered invec- picious look crossed his f ace. "I-Ias Hermes followed the mental pictures
Hodges been tinkering again ?" and memory until the story was com- nition still bothered him. And then he
tive reached the little god. who grinned. realized that there was a rustling _sound
Arlington Brugh was a man of wide at- As briefly as he could, the little 0 plete in his head. going on in his study and that 1t was
tainments, and he had not negl!:!cted the summarized events and explained 11 ~ d "So that's the way it was," he grunted, still too early for his housekeeper.
ttn-
If 1 1111 mg up on t 1e cot as he ct·ct
development of his voc~bulary. . se , c . b' I finished.\ "Some of it doesn't make
1 sense." He kicked off the sheet and rnm-
H ermes waited patient ly until the so, and squatting do~vn against the Phy • maged under the bed for his slippers,
guard was ot1t of sight and slipped rap- cist's side, out of sight from the cloi :.~ "None of it does. All I know· is that
I'm here and Hodges has enough drawing on the tattered old robe he'd