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own. He's got a swell education. He could be one of the best yeggs in the business. And why not? Look who his teacher was!"
    Duke laughed. The girl shuddered in his arms.
    "What are you going to do with him?" she persisted.
    "Simple. He'll do whatever I say, won't he? When I get back, just before we leave, I'll lock him in the furnace. Then I'll set fire to this joint. Destroy the evidence, see? The law will think Charlie got caught in the flames, get me? There won't be anything left. And if they ever poke around the ruins and find Junior in the furnace, he ought to be melted down pretty good."
    "Isn't there another way? Couldn't you get rid of him now, before you leave?"
    "I wish I could, for your sake, baby. I know how you feel. But what can I do? I've tried to figure all the angles. You can't shoot him or poison him or drown him or chop him down with an axe. Where could you blow him up in private? Of course, I might open him up and see what makes him tick, but Junior wouldn't let me play such a dirty trick on him. He's smart, Junior is. Got what you call a criminal mind. Just a big crook — like me."
    Again Duke laughed, in harsh arrogance.
    "Keep your chin up, Lola. Junior wouldn't hurt you. He likes you. I've been teaching him to like you. He thinks you're pretty."
    "That's what frightens me, Duke. The way he looks at me. Follows me around in the hall. Like a dog."
    "Like a wolf you mean. Ha! That's a good one! Junior's really growing up. He's stuck on you, Lola!"
    "Duke — don't talk like that. You make me feel — ooh, horrible inside!"
    Duke raised his head and stared into the darkness, a curious half-smile playing about his lips.
    "Funny," he mused. "You know, I bet the old Professor would have liked to stick around and watched me educate Junior. That was his theory, wasn't it? The robot had a blank chemical brain. Simple as a baby's. He was gonna educate it like a child and bring it up right. Then I took over and really completed the job. But it would have tickled the old Professor to see how fast Junior's been catching on. He's like a man already. Smart? That robot's got most men beat a mile. He's almost as smart as I am. But not quite — he'll find that out after I tell him to step into the furnace."
    Lola rose and raced to the door. She flung it open, revealing an empty hallway, and gasped with relief.
    "I was afraid he might be listening," she whispered.
    "Not a chance," Duke told her. "I've got him down in the cellar, putting the dirt over Charlie."
    He grasped Lola's shoulders and kissed her swiftly, savagely. "Now keep your chin up, baby. I'll leave. Be back tomorrow about eight. You be ready to leave then and we'll clear out of here."
    "I can't let you go," whispered Lola, frantically.
    "You must. We've gone through with everything this far. All you must do is keep a grip on yourself for twenty-four hours more. And there's one thing I've got to ask you to do."
    "Anything, Duke. Anything you say."
    "Be nice to Junior while I'm gone."
    "Oooh — Duke — "
    "You said you'd do anything, didn't you? Well, that you must do. Be nice to Junior. Then he won't suspect what's going on. You've gotta be nice to him, Lola! Don't show that you're afraid. He likes you, but if he gets wrong ideas, he's dangerous. So be nice to Junior."
    Abruptly, Duke turned and strode through the doorway. His footsteps clattered on the stairs. The outer door slammed below. The sound of a starting motor drifted up from the roadhouse yard.
    Then, silence.
    Lola stood in the darkness, trembling with sudden horror, as she waited for the moment when she would be nice to the metallic Junior.
    It wasn't so bad. Not half as bad as she'd feared it might be.
    All she had to do was smile at Junior and let him follow her around.
    Carefully suppressing her shudders, Lola prepared breakfast the next morning and then went about her packing.
    The robot followed her upstairs, clanking and creaking.
    "Oil me," Lola heard him say.
    That was the worst