When I started the car it kicked right over and I spun out of there, gravel spraying from beneath the wheels. I didn't breathe any easier until I was a hundred miles away.
I thought a lot about what I was going to do on the way back. I'm not the hero type but I just can't see them move in on Earth without fighting back. And I consider Fred only the downpayment on John Kelley's murder.
One important thing. I've found a flaw, a weak spot.
The invaders are imitators. The perfect imitators. They're a lot like Fred was. They never have original ideas of their own, they parrot the editorial pages and even the stock of jokes they save for stag parties aren't funny because you've heard them all before.
You can see them on the street-car on their way to work. Half will sit with blank stares on their faces, reading the transitads, while the other half will sit with their noses buried in their papers. Watch them. If they looked alike you'd be reminded of the rockettes on the stage of the RCA Music Hall. Or walk into a bar when the fights are on and watch the customers with their faces glued to the TV sets. All with their glasses of beer in the right hand, all with the same rapt expressions on their faces.
You see, they're imitating human beings. And they've got an organization. They've infiltrated the government bureaucracy. How do I know? Read some of the pamphlets the government puts out. There's one on washing dishes that starts out with the proper size pan. Silly. But not for somebody for whom washing dishes is a brand new experience. And there's another pamphlet that says younger married men and women own more sports clothes, older men wear hats, and older women have more fur coats. Very interesting data. Like when I was in the army and they briefed us on foreign customs before going out on a pass.
There's probably thousands of Imitators in the government itself, weighing, analyzing, and surveying humanity so they can issue reports on how to act ... like a human being. Reports and pamphlets that are point for point instruction books for the new arrivals.
There's an organization. And there has to be somebody at the top of that organization. That's the man I want to get.
Fred knew a lot of people, he had a lot of contacts, and I'm investigating them one by one. It isn't going to be too long before I meet somebody that Fred knew back ... home. And then I'll find out about the organization and I'll be on my way.