“Where are those cars?” I hissed into my postage stamp sized and shaped mike, which was magic glued to the back of my hand at this time. Wonderful...stuff “Magic Glue”, hell what did we ever do without it. Technically it’s Cyanoacrylate ester, but to everybody else it’s good old Magic Glue, and I never leave home without one of those little one use tubes in my kit. It’s actually better than stitches to close wounds on the spot and causes less damage than stitches we’ve all found out with. Joe introduced me to John and we talked for a few minutes. I was impressed by John, so we invited him to come with us to the diner for coffee and to talk about a potential job offer. John jumped at the opportunity, and the three of us walked the half-block to the diner. All three of us ordered a cup of coffee and a Danish roll, my treat. John appreciated that because he was close to running out of money.Naturally, when three guys our ages get together, it does not take long for the conversation. Dearden. We still have real crime to pursue."As Derek stepped out of the Landership and down the aircraft steps to the waiting official, he glanced around at his surroundings. The Landership had settled on a beach, and immediately behind the beach had to be a road, the first step into an alien city in the background, for a few vehicles were in sight, up there. The parked ones were probably gawkers at the spacecraft. Closest on the road stood a bus-type vehicle, with a number of females standing. It's about time we wonsomething.'Jim nodded. As much as he hated all this he knew what the rivalrymeant. Well, hated wasn't quite the right word. All the men said theyhated the day, what they had to do, how they resented the humiliation of the Parade and the Dance, but none of them refused to do it or lefttheir wives. Divorce was unknown in Little Wick and it was totalparticipation. If you really pressed the men they would admit thatwhile they hated it in one way, they quite liked it in.