Code to Zero Page 0,10

allay suspicion, he studied doors, as if looking for a street number. He went all the way back to where he had started.

The raincoat followed.

Luke was mystified, but his heart leaped with hope. A man who was following him must know something about him - maybe even his identity.

To be sure he was being followed, he needed to travel in a vehicle, forcing his shadow to do the same.

Despite his excitement, a cool observer in the back of his mind was asking: 'How come you know exactly how to check whether you're being followed?' The method had popped into his head immediately. Had he done some kind of clandestine work before he became a bum? i ' .

He would think about that later. Now he needed bus fare. There was nothing in the pockets of his ragged clothes; he must have spent every last cent on booze. But that was no 'problem. There was cash

everywhere: in people's pockets, in the stores, in taxicabs and houses.

He began to look at his surroundings with different eyes. He saw news-stands to be robbed, handbags that could be snatched, pockets ready to be picked. He glanced into a coffee shop where a man stood behind the counter and a waitress served the booths. The place would do as well as anything. He stepped inside.

His eyes raked the tables, looking for change left as tips, but it was not going to be that easy. He approached the counter. A radio was playing the news. 'Rocket experts claim America has one last chance of catching up with the Russians in the race to control outer space.' The counterman was making espresso coffee, steam billowing from a gleaming machine, and a delicious fragrance made Luke's nostrils flare.

What would a bum say? 'Any stale doughnuts?' he asked. .-- ...

'Get out of here,' the man said roughly. 'And don't come back.'

Luke contemplated leaping the counter and opening the cash register, but it seemed extreme when all he wanted was bus fere. Then he saw what he needed. Beside the till, within easy reach, was a can with a slit in the top. Its label showed a picture of a child and the legend: 'Remember Those Who Cannot See.' Luke moved so that his body shielded the box from the customers and the waitress. Now he just had to distract the counterman.

'Gimme a dime?' he said.

The man said: 'Okay, that's it, you get the bum's rush.' He put down a jug with a clatter and wiped his hands on his apron. He had to duck under the counter to get out, and for a second he could not see Luke.

In that moment, Luke took the collection box and slipped it inside his coat. It was disappointingly light, but it gave a rattle, so it was not empty.

The counterman grabbed Luke by the collar and propelled him rapidly across the cafe. Luke did not resist until, at the door, the man gave him a painful kick in the ass. Forgetting' his act, Luke spun round, ready to fight. The man suddenly looked scared and backed inside.

Luke asked himself what he had to be angry about. He had gone into the place begging, and had not left when asked to. Okay, the kick was unnecessary, but he deserved it - he had stolen the blind children's money!

All the same, it took an effort for him to swallow his pride, turn around, and slink away like a dog with its tail between its legs.

He ducked into an alleyway, found a sharp stone, and attacked the can, venting his anger. He soon busted it open. The money inside, mostly pennies, amounted to two or three dollars, he guessed. He put it in his coat pocket and returned to the street He thanked heaven for charity and made a silent promise to give three bucks to the blind if he ever got straight.

All right, he thought, thirty bucks.

The man in the olive raincoat was standing by a news-stand, reading a paper.

A bus pulled up a few yards away. Luke had no idea where it went, but that did not matter. He boarded.

The driver gave him a hard look, but did not throw him off. 'I want to go three stops,' Luke said.

'Don't matter where you want to go, the fere is seventeen cents, unless you got a token.'

Luke paid with some of the change he had stolen.

Maybe he was not being shadowed. As he walked towards the back of the bus, he looked anxiously