"Didn't it occur to you that their objections might be something other than mere military regulations?" asked John in some asperity.
"Phil has a theory—" began Fran, but Phil silenced her with a shake of the head.
"My theory can wait until I have proof for it, and I expect that in short order," said Phil, winking at Fran. "We've made good use of our time while you and Ann were in conference."
Phil and Fran were eager to know what John and Ann had learned from their conference with Elfor.
"Not much," he confessed. "Elfor is pretty close-mouthed. He's more anxious to learn about us than to give us information about their set-up.
"We did find out, though, that they've located the records of the Discovery's departure in the archives of Kansity. There seems to be something irregular about it, but I couldn't get Elfor to go into detail."
The first hint John and Ann had of Phil's method of proving his theory was when he quietly stripped and went into the bathroom as they were preparing for supper that evening. Ann was about to remind him he had forgotten to get the orderly to bring his bath water, when they heard the sound of a shower roaring. All three crowded to the door, to find Phil luxuriating under a steaming downpour.
"What goes on here?" demanded John. "Phil, how did you know they'd started the water pumps?"
Phil smiled triumphantly.
"Try the lights," he suggested.