Philip Dick - CANTATA-141

Opening the hall door, Jim looked out. It was not a well wisher and, as the Secret servicemen had said, it was not an assassin.

The man waiting for him was Bruno Mini.

Hand extended, Mini said, 'It certainly took me a long time to catch up with you, Mr. Briskin.

I've been trying all throughout the latter part of the campaign.'

'Indeed you have, Mr. Mini,' Jim said.

Mini advanced toward Jim, smiling an intense, white-tooth smile. A small man, wearing a stylish but somewhat gaudy Ionian purple snakeskin jacket with illuminated kummerbund and curlytoed

Brazilian pigbark slippers, Mini looked exactly what he was: a dealer in wholesale dried fruit. 'We've got a tremendous amount of vital business to transact,' Mini said earnestly. The gold toothpick projecting from between his molar teeth wobbled in a spasm of energetic activity. 'At this point I can reveal to you that the first planet I've planned on - and this will no doubt come to you as a complete surprise - is Uranus. You'll naturally ask why.'

'No,' Jim Briskin said. 'I won't ask why.' He felt resigned. Sooner or later Mini had to catch up with him. In fact, he was very slightly but perceptibly relieved that it had at last happened... and that did surprise him.

'Where can we go that we can talk at adequate length to do justice to this topic, and of course, in strict private ?' Mini asked. He added, 'I've already gone to the trouble of informing the media that we would meet, tonight; it's my 'conviction', based on years of experience, that dignified but continual public exposure to our program will do much to put it over with the - how shall I

phrase it ? - less educated masses.' He rooted vigorously in his overstuffed briefcase.

A Secret serviceman appeared out of nowhere and took the briefcase from Mini.

Grumbling, Mini said, 'You fellows inspected it downstairs on the front sidewalk and then here just a minute ago. For heaven's sake.'

'Can't afford to take any chances.' Obviously the Secret servicemen viewed Bruno Mini with magnified distrust. Some quality about him aroused their professional interest. The briefcase was elaborately examined and then, reluctantly, passed back to Mini as being harmless.

From the room noisily trooped Tito Cravelli, Phil Danville, Dorothy Gill, the Peke Bill Smith, wearing his blue cloth cap and carrying his linguistics machine, and finally three Secret servicemen. 'We're on our way to Sal and Pat's,' Tito explained to Jim Briskin. 'You coming or not ?'

'Not for a while,' Jim Briskin said, and knew that it would be a long time before he managed to get to this party or any other party.

'Let me describe the advantages of Uranus,' Mini said enthusiastically. And began handing Jim an overwhelming spectrum of documents from his briefcase as rapidly as possible.

It was going to be a difficult four years. He could see that. Four ? More likely eight.

The way things turned out, he was proved correct.