Jill stepped up to him. «Ben was kidding, dear. You look just perfect.» She straightened his tie and kissed him — and Jubal felt kissed. «Go talk to them.»
«Yup. Time to turn the tip. Anne? Duke?»
«Ready, Mike.» Anne was wearing her Fair Witness cloak, wrapping her in dignity; Duke was just the opposite, being sloppily dressed, with a lighted cigarette dangling from his face, an old hat on the back of his head with a card marked «PRESS» stuck in its band, and himself hung about with cameras and kit.
They headed for the door to the foyer common to the four penthouse suites. Only Jubal followed; all the others, thirty and more, stayed around the stereo tank. Mike paused at the door. There was a hall table there, with a pitcher of water and glasses, a dish of fruit and a fruit knife. «Better not come any farther,» he advised Jubal, «or Patty would have to escort you back through her pets.»
Mike poured himself a glass of water, drank part of it. «Preaching is thirsty work.» He handed the glass to Anne, then took the fruit knife and sliced off a chunk of apple.
It seemed to Jubal that Mike sliced off one of his fingers … but his attention was distracted as Duke passed the glass to him. Mike's hand was not bleeding and Jubal had grown somewhat accustomed to legerdemain. He accepted the glass and took a sip, finding that his own throat was very dry.
Mike gripped his arm and smiled. «Quit fretting. This will take only a few minutes. See you later, Father.» They went out through the guardian cobras and the door closed. Jubal went back to the room where the others were, still carrying the glass. Someone took it from him; he did not notice, as he was watching images in the big tank.
The mob seemed denser, surging about and held back by police armed only with night sticks. There were a few shouts but mostly just the unlocalized muttering of the crowd.
Someone said, «Where are they now, Patty?»
«They've dropped down the tube. Michael is a little ahead, Duke stopped to catch Anne. They're entering the lobby. Michael has been spotted, pictures are being taken.»
The scene in the tank resolved into enormous head and shoulders of a brightly cheerful newscaster: «This is NWNW New World Networks' mobile newshound on the spot while it's hot — your newscaster, happy Holliday. We have just learned that the fake messiah, sometimes known as the Man from Mars, has crawled out of his hide-out in a hotel room here in beautiful St. Petersburg the City that Has Everything to Make You Sing. Apparently Smith is about to surrender to the authorities. He crashed out of jail yesterday, using high explosives smuggled in to him by his fanatic followers. But the tight cordon placed around this city seems to have been too much for him. We don't know yet — I repeat, we don't know yet — so stay with the chap who covers the map — and now a word from your local sponsor who has given you this keyhole peep at the latest leap — »
«Thank you, Happy Holiday and all you good people watching via NWNW! What Price Paradise? Amazingly Low! Come out and see for yourself at Elysian Fields, just opened as home-sites for a restricted clientele. Land reclaimed from the warm waters of the glorious Gulf and every lot guaranteed at least eighteen inches above mean high water and only a small down payment on a Happy — oh, oh, later, friends — phone Gulf nine-two eight two eight!»
«And thank
(«They're coming out the front entrance,» Patty said quietly. «The crowd hasn't spotted Michael yet.»)
«Maybe not yet … but soon. You are now looking at the main entrance of the magnificent Sans Souci Hotel, Gem of the Gulf, whose management is in no way responsible for this hunted fugitive and who have cooperated with the authorities throughout according to a statement just issued by Police Chief Davis. And while we're waiting to see what will happen, a few high lights in the strange career of this half-human monster raised on Mars — »
The live scene was replaced by quick cuts of stock shots: The
«See anything, Patty?»
«Michael is at the top of the steps, the crowd is at least a hundred yards away, being kept off the hotel grounds. Duke has grabbed some pix and Mike is waiting to let him change lenses. No hurry.»
Happy Holliday went on, as the tank shifted to the crowd, semi-close and panning: «You understand, friends, that this wonderful community is in a unique condition today. Something strange has been going on and these people are in no mood to trifle. Their laws have been flouted, their security forces treated with comtempt, they are angry, righteously so. The fanatic followers of this alleged antichrist have stopped at nothing to create turmoil in a futile effort to let their leader escape the closing net of justice. Anything can happen — anything!»
The announcer's voice climbed: «Yes, he's coming out now — he's walking toward the people!» The scene cut to reverse; Mike was walking directly toward camera. Anne and Duke were behind and dropping farther behind. «This is it! This is it! This is the blow-off!»
Mike continued to walk unhurriedly toward the crowd until he loomed up in the stereo tank in life size, as if he were in the room with his water brothers. He stopped on the grass verge in front of the hotel, a few feet from the crowd. «You called me?»
He was answered with a growl.
The sky held scattered clouds; at that instant the sun came out from behind one and a shaft of light hit him.
His clothes vanished. He stood before them, a golden youth, clothed only in beauty — beauty that made Jubal's heart ache, thinking that Michaelangelo in his ancient years would have climbed down from his high scaffolding to record it for generations unborn. Mike said gently, «Look at me. I am a son of man.»
The scene cut for a ten-second plug, a line of can-can dancers singing:
«
The tank filled with foamy suds amid girlish laughter and the scene cut back to newscast:
«
«
Mike said calmly, «In fighting me, you fight yourself… for Thou art God … and I am God … and all that groks is God — there is no other.»
More rocks hit him, he began to bleed in several places. «Hear the Truth. You need not hate, you need not fight, you need not fear. I offer you the water of life — » Suddenly his hand held a tumbler of water, sparkling in sunlight. « — and you may share it whenever you so will … and walk in peace and love and happiness together.»
A rock caught the glass and shattered it. Another struck him in the mouth.
Through bruised and bleeding lips he smiled at them, looking straight into the camera with an expression of yearning tenderness on his face. Some trick of sunlight and stereo formed a golden halo back of his head. «Oh my brothers, I love you so! Drink deep. Share and grow closer without end. Thou art God.»
Jubal whispered it back to him. The scene made a five-second cut:«
«Lynch him! Give the bastard a nigger necktie!» A heavy gauge shotgun blasted at close range and Mike's right arm was struck off at the elbow and fell. It floated gently down, then came to rest on the cool grasses, its
