“Is there to be a next one?”
“Man, a flock of next ones! We’ve got a lot to do, to explain. People want to know all kinds of things. I’m having the kids out in the front office do a breakdown on all the letters we’ve got: to get the general reaction ... what it is people most want to hear, and, believe me, we’ve been getting more damned questions, and not just the main thing but family problems too, things like that: 'Please, Mr. Cave, I’m married to two men and feel maybe it’s a mistake since I have to work nights anyway.’ Lord, some of them are crazier than that.”
“Are you answering all of them?”
“Oh, yes, but in my name. All except a few of the most interesting which go to Cave for personal attention. I’ve been toying with the idea of setting up a counselor-service for people with problems.”
“But what can you tell them?” I was more and more appalled.
“Everything in the light of Cavesword. You have no idea how many questions that does answer. Think about it and you’ll see what I mean. But of course we follow standard psychiatric procedure only it’s speeded up so that after a couple of visits there can be a practical and inspirational answer to their problems. Stokharin said he’d be happy to give it a try, but we haven’t yet worked out all the details.”
I didn’t want to hear anything more about this; I changed the subject. “What did you have in mind for me to do?”
“Cavesword applied to everyday life.” He spoke without hesitation; he had thought of everything. “We’ll know more what people want to hear after a few more telecasts, after more letters and so on. Then supply Cavesword where you can and, where you can’t, just use common sense and standard psychiatric procedure.”
“Even when they don’t always coincide?”
Paul roared with laughter. “Always the big knocker, Gene. That’s what I like about you ... the disapproving air ... it’s wonderful and I’m quite serious. People like myself ... visionaries, you might say, continually get their feet off the ground and it’s people like you who pull us back ... make us think. Anyway, I hope you’ll be able to get to it soon. We’ll have our end taken care of by the time the telecasts are over.”