So he finished. And the rest of the story was even nuttier.
He was a throwback, he said with quiet pride. The perfection which had
taken his people countless years to attain was wiped out the moment he
came into being. They'd tried to reform him, but there was something
fundamental about his evil--as if it were an essence.
As a last resort, they'd put him into one of their wonderful machines
and thrown the switch. At that agonizing instant, he'd imagined himself
to be water scraping over the edge of a sharp rock. Then he'd come to,
drifting through space. And, much later, he'd touched Earth. Once
landed, he'd taken on many shapes, through the years--mainly, however,
of people who'd died.
* * * * *
Even as he talked, I was carefully sliding my chair back. If I could
reach the phone in the hallway without being noticed, it would be
fairly simple to get help. But he saw what I was doing and laughed.
"Edward," he said, "I know you don't believe me, but stick around until
I prove it."
What happened next almost made me sick to my stomach. His face, which
had been as wrinkled as a fielder's mitt, all of a sudden took on the
appearance of a disturbed reflection in a pool of water. His flesh began
to writhe like a tangled mass of earthworms. Thirty seconds after it
began, he'd sloughed off thirty years. Even his beard, which had been as
white as shower-room tiling, became a fierce, dead black.
I heard Tommy pipe, "Gol_lee_!" and Nan sigh--only it sounded more like
a groan. I shook away the dazed feeling and it was immediately replaced
by a great excitement.
"Listen here," I said hoarsely, "this story will set the whole country
on its ear. With my by-line on it!"
"Oh, Ted," Nan cried, "don't let him take you in! It's a trick.
It's--it's mass hypnotism or something."
"The trouble with you," I said, "is you don't believe even what you see
with your own eyes!"
The next day, I went to see Jones. We'd decided--Ashe and I--upon a
course of action. The existence of Ashe was to remain a secret, but I
was to keep my job with the paper at all costs. Then we could sit back
and wait for the opportune moment to spill it, a time when we had the
best angle and were positive Ashe wouldn't be labeled a hoax.
Driving to the plant, I was tense enough to snap. It was not entirely
from the unabated heat, either. I didn't like the way Ashe had acted
during the latter part of the evening.
Naturally I had felt disappointment at not being able to reveal his
presence. But what rankled most was the guy's colossal gall. Okay, so
I'm childish, only I just don't like to have someone gobble up my share
of the dessert.
He'd also borrowed all the cash in the house and then demanded I draw on
my bank account. I quickly discouraged that. But the topper was his
forcing Nan and me to sleep on the couch while he used the bed. He said
his bruises still hurt, even though they weren't visible.
* * * * *
My mood didn't improve when Jones kept me waiting for over an hour.
Surprisingly enough, he was in good spirits. As I entered the office, he
indicated one of the leather chairs and said with a laugh, "Sit down,
Ted. I've got some good news."
My opinion of him the previous evening obviously hadn't been taken very
much to heart. Sourly, I told him, "As a publisher, you should know that
good news is no news."
The smile left his face. Then, with a visible effort, he forced it back.
"You have something there, Ted. You certainly have. But point of view is
important, also. You see, they've arrested a gang of kids for
shoplifting. One of them is Tommy, your son."