Ben thought, _I know a lot about you, Jacob. I know you're based on an
asteroid. I know how many men you have, how many ships. I know where
this dome is. I know you have men planted in the I. B. I. Would you
let me go, knowing these things? How great is your immunity from the
law? Do you love freedom so much that you'd kill to help preserve it?_
Fear crawled through his mind on icy legs.
"Maggie," he said, "what would Jacob do if he were me?"
She looked amused. "Jacob wouldn't have gotten into your situation. He
wouldn't have struck Cobb. Jacob is--"
"A man? And I'm still a boy? Is that what you mean?"
"Not exactly. I think you'll be a man after you make your decision."
He frowned, not liking her answer.
"You think the dream of going into space is a boy's dream, that it
can't belong to a man, too?"
"Oh, no. Jacob still has the dream. Most of our men do. And in a
man, it's even more wonderful than in a boy." Then her face became
more serious. "Ben, you've got to decide soon. And it's got to be a
_complete_ decision. You can have no doubt in your mind."