The place was dark and damp, and smelled like moldy leaves. Meyerhofffollowed the huge, bear-like Altairian guard down the slipperyflagstones of the corridor, sniffing the dead, musty air with distaste.He drew his carefully tailored Terran-styled jacket closer about hisshoulders, shivering as his eyes avoided the black, yawning cell-holesthey were passing. His foot slipped on the slimy flags from time totime, and finally he paused to wipe the caked mud from his trouser leg."How much farther is it?" he shouted angrily.The guard waved a heavy paw vaguely into the blackness ahead. Quitesuddenly the corridor took a sharp bend, and the Altairian stopped,producing a huge key ring from some obscure fold of his hairy hide. "Istill don't see any reason for all the fuss," he grumbled in a woundedtone. "We've treated him like a brother."One of the huge steel doors clicked open. Meyerhoff peered into theblackness, catching a vaguely human outline against the back wall."Harry?" he called sharply.There was a startled gasp from within, and a skinny, gnarled little mansuddenly appeared in the guard's light, like a grotesque, twisted ghostout of the blackness. Wide blue eyes regarded Meyerhoff from beneathuneven black eyebrows, and then the little man's face broke into acrafty grin. "Paul! So they sent _you_! I knew I could count on it!" Heexecuted a deep, awkward bow, motioning Meyerhoff into the dark cubicle."Not much to offer you," he said slyly, "but it's the best I can dounder the circumstances."Meyerhoff scowled, and turned abruptly to the guard. "We'll have someprivacy now, if you please. Interplanetary ruling. And leave us thelight."