Robot Dreams

Anderson said, "I won’t discuss this matter. Let me say this, though. The treatment will wear off, Heath. You won’t keep your total recall. You will have to come back for further treatment and you can be sure it will be on our terms."

John said, "Nuts! You don’t suppose I haven’t investigated your reports – at least, those you haven’t kept secret. And I already have a notion of what aspects you have kept secret. The treatment lasts longer in some cases than others. It invariably lasts longer where it is more effective. In my case, the treatment has been extraordinarily effective and it will endure a considerable time. By the time I come to you again, if I ever have to, I will be in a position where any failure on your part to cooperate will be swiftly devastating to you. Don’t even think of it."

"You ungrateful – "

"Don’t bother me," said John, wearily. "I have no time to listen to you froth. Go away, I have work to do."

Anderson’s face was a study in fear and frustration as he left.

It was 2:30 P.M. when John walked into Prescott’s office, for once not minding the cigar smoke. It would not be long, he knew, before Prescott would have to choose between his cigars and his position.

With Prescott were Arnold Gluck and Lewis Randall, so that John had the grim pleasure of knowing he was facing the three top men in the division.

Prescott rested his cigar on top of an ashtray and said, "Ross has asked me to give you half an hour, and that’s all I will give you. You’re the one with the trick memory, aren’t you?"

"My name is John Health, sir, and I intend to present you with a rationalization of procedure for the company; one that will make full use of the age of computers and electronic communication and will lay the groundwork for further modification as the technology improves."

The three men looked at each other. Gluck, whose creased face was ta

"I don’t have to be, sir. I have been here for six years and I recall every bit of the procedure in every transaction in which I have been involved. That means the pattern of such transactions is plain to me and its imperfections obvious. One can see toward what it is tending and where it is doing so wastefully and inefficiently. If you’ll listen, I will explain. You will find it easy to understand."

Randall, whose red hair and freckles made him seem younger than he was, said sardonically, "Real easy, I hope, because we have trouble with hard concepts."

"You won’t have trouble," said John.

"And you won’t get a second more than twenty-one minutes," said Prescott, looking at his watch.

"It won’t take that," said John. "I have it diagrammed and I can talk quickly."

It took fifteen minutes and the three management perso

Finally Gluck said, with a hostile glance out of his small eyes, "It sounds as though you are saying we can get along with half the management we are employing these days. "

"Less than half," said John, coolly, "and be the more efficient for it. We can’t fire ordinary perso

Prescott, who had maintained an ominous silence, now puffed furiously at his noxious cigar and said, "Changes like this have to be considered carefully and implemented, if at all, with the greatest of caution. What seems logical on paper can lose out in the human equation."

John said, "Prescott, if this reorganization is not accepted within a week, and if I am not placed in charge of its implementation, I will resign. I will have no trouble in finding employment with a smaller firm where this plan can be far more easily put into practice. Begi

Prescott looked after him with a glance of frigid calculation. He said to the other two, "I think he means what he says and that he knows every facet of our operations better than we do. We can’t let him go."

"You mean we’ve got to accept his plan," said Randall, shocked.

"I didn’t say that. You two go, and remember this whole thing is confidential."

Gluck said, "I have the feeling that if we don’t do something, all three of us will find ourselves on our butts in the street within a month."

"Very likely," said Prescott, "so we’ll do something."

"What?"

"If you don’t know, you won’t get hurt. Leave it to me. Forget it for now and have a nice weekend."

When they were gone, he thought a while, chewing furiously on his cigar. He then turned to his telephone and dialed an extension. "Prescott here. I want you in my office first thing Monday morning. First thing. Hear me?"

Anderson looked a trifle disheveled. He had had a bad weekend. Prescott, who had had a worse, said to him, malevolently, "You and Kupfer tried again, didn’t you?"

Anderson said, softly, "It’s better not to discuss that, Mr. Prescott. You remember it was agreed that in certain aspects of research, a distance was to be established. We were to take the risks or the glory, and Quantum was to share in the latter but not in the former."

"And your salary was doubled with a guarantee of all legal payments to be Quantum’s responsibility, don’t forget that. This man, John Heath, was treated by you and Kupfer, wasn’t he? Come on. There’s no mistaking it. There’s no point in hiding it."

"Well, yes."

"And you were so brilliant that you turned him loose on us – this – this – tarantula."

"We didn’t anticipate this would happen. When he didn’t go into instant shock, we thought it was our first chance to test the process in the field. We thought he would break down after two or three days, or it would pass."

Prescott said, "If I hadn’t been protected So damned well, I wouldn’t have put the whole thing out of my mind and I would have guessed what had happened when that bastard first pulled the computer bit and produced the details of correspondence he had no business remembering. All right, we know where we are now. He’s holding the company to ransom with a new plan of operations he can’t be allowed to put through. Also, he can’t be allowed to walk away from us."

Anderson said, "Considering Heath’s capacity for recall and synthesis, is it possible that his plan of operations may be a good one?"

"I don’t care if it is. That bastard is after my job and who knows what else and we’ve got to get rid of him."

"How do you mean, rid of him? He could be of vital importance to the cerebro-chemical project."

"Forget that. It’s a disaster. You’re creating a super-Hitler." Anderson said, in a soft-voiced anguish, "The effect will wear off."

"Yes? When?"

"At this moment, I can’t be sure."

"Then I can’t take chances. We’ve got to make our arrangements and do it tomorrow at the latest. We can’t wait any longer."

John was in high good humor. The ma