Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 53 — page 48: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

CONSPIRACY acting, kind of—and he found he was slipping up on the little things? It’s the little things that count. It’s impor- tant that everything should be just right. Very important.” “TI was right, then!’’ She stared at him. “You are a foreigner?” “Yes. You were right.” “You speak English good, for a foreigner.” “I’ve learned it. You can learn a language. That’s one of the big things. [m all right on the big things.” The idea struck her. ““Youa Red ? You from Russia?” “No.” “T can’t think of any other kind of foreigner who would need to keep under cover. You must be a spy of some kind.” ‘““Honest to God—not a Russian, not a spy. I suppose you could call me a refugee.” “Refugees don’t need to stay hidden,” she remarked, with conviction. “They go on TV “Special kind. If I was a spy, d’you think I would talk to you this way? There’s 47 nothing to stop you turning me in to the nearest cop.” “If you aren’t afraid of the cops, who then?” ““My own people.” “Then you should go to the cops. They’d put a guard on you. You wouldn’t have any- thing to worry about.”’ “Believe me,”’ he said, “‘un- less I can keep right out of sight, I’m finished. No police anywhere could save me.”’ “As bad as that?” “Worse. Are you going to help me?” “1 don’t know what I can do. What do you want?” ‘First thing—what did I do wrong back there?” “Tt wasn’t anything much. Only thing is, the kind of people who come to eat ata joint like ours know you've got to pay cash down on the nail. It seemed funny, you not knowing that.” He said, very slowly: “Thank you. Thank you, Jenny. It’s that kind of thing that I’ve got to know. You see, you get a lot of things from books and magazines, comicloooks.com