AlFREDm^iRd^l YSTERY MAGAZINE JUNE 1977 • 750 UK55p _ K 47417 LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED If s new! And it's from Isaac Asimov! The Science Fiction magazine you've been waiting for -by the most respected and prolific writer in the field. Published quarterly. The most and best in SF in every issue you could expect. And you'd expect that from Asimov. Four-issue subscription delivered to your doorstep—now for only $4.00. FTicnoN EXTRA COUPON ON PAGE 44. gpcmsft"- si"- fltPov ^^ShmvL.^' a^tAUGHLlN*. TO: ISAAC ASIMOV'S SCIENCE FICTION MAGAZINE AHMM 677 Box 1855 GPO, New York, NY 10001 D I enclose $4.00 (inciudes shipping and postage) for 4 issues of ISAAC ASiMOV'S SCIENCE FICTION MAGAZINE. (In Canada and all other countries, $5.00) Name (please print) Address City State Zip LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ^ ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED TO: ELLERY QUEEN'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE, P.O. Box 2640, Greenwich, CT 06830 I • Send me 9 issues for only $6.97 D Payment enclosed O Bill me • I prefer 18 issues for which I enclose $13.94. Name- Address. City -State- -Zip- In Canada and all other countries add $1.53 for each 9 Issues. AHMM 677 SPECIAL LIMITED-TIME OFFER FOR NEW SUBSCRIBERS ONLY YOU MAY NEVER GET SO MUCH GREAT READING FOR SUCH A LOW PRICE AGAIN! 9 months of ELLERY QUEEN'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE for only $6.97 ' —a saving of $3.53 over the regular subscription price. Enjoy delicious-hours in the The most widely read world of ELLERY QUEENS ETXERX mystery magazine in MYSTERY MAGAZINE-a litTEENS the worldl Published - ;^.;-- a world of challenging in several dijfferent puzzles. Crime and retribu­ ANNfVE^SARY languages. tion. Ingenious solutions. iux-sms Lsnztir The cream of the crime! EQMM is personally edited Special Money-Saving by Ellery Queen. Our writers are Offer! The coupon top-notch. Each monthly issue is a brings you 9 exciting rich, 160-page anthology—averag­ monthly issues for only ing 11 new stories never before 77 cents a copy. Or you may published—plus one distinguished send $13.94 with your order for reprint. By such masters as Eric 18 issues, protecting yourself Ambler, Agatha Christie, Rex against highly probable sub­ Stout, Georges Simenon, Ross scription rate increases due to Macdonald, Dick Francis, Michael the ever rising cost of postage. Gilbert, John D. IMacdonald, Isaac Asimov, plus many talented Order today! Save up to $7.06! newcomers. And save other ways, too! SUBSCRIBERS RECEIVE AT LEAST 20% OFF BOOKS IN OUR REVIEW SECTION LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED June 1977 Dear Reader: I think you'll find much to savor in this issue—a balmy night ride, a transatlantic cruise, a few days' shore leave; a touch of the psychological, a smidgen of the supernatural; plus a look into a possible counterblow to zero population growth. Withal, as usual, you will ob­ serve some intriguing interactions between a number of captivating people—some of them-literally so. Take it all in- stride. As Julia Harris May said, "Slower, sweet June." Good reading. yi.2S^< Joel Davis, President & Publisher Eleanor Sullivan, Editor Mimi H. Pardo , Associate Editor Victor C. Stabile Vice President & Treasurer Leonard F. Pinto Vice President & General Manager Constance DIRienzo Exec. Sec., Rts. & Perm, Mgr. Barbara Bazyn Editorial Assistant Jim Cappello . Advertising Manager Carl Bartee Production Director Don Gabree Newsstand Circulation Director R. V. Enlow Subscription Circulation Director "" Eugene S. Slawson Subscription Circulation Manager Irving Bernstein, Art Director LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED VOLUME 22, NO. 6 JUNE 1977 41FRCB NEXT ISSUE ON SALE HIKHCOCKS JUNE 14 AYSTEKY MAGAZINE NOVELETTE ALECTRYON SLEPT byS. S. Rafferty 101 SHORTSTORIES NIGHT RIDER by Bill Pronzini & Barry N. Malzberg 5 A MATTER OF TIMING by Conrad S. Smith 17 HIT by Gil Brewer 28 THE GUILT COMPLEX by Mary Amiaw 33 KORDA by Al Nussbaum 45 MISSING PERSONNEL by John Lutz 59 LOVE ... AND ZPG by MacLeanO'Spelin 67 THE LAST ONE by Stephen Wasylyk 77 SHORE LEAVE by Patrick O'Keefe 92 ALFRED HITCHCOCK'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE Vol. 22, No. 6, June, 1977. Published monthly by Davis Publica­ tions, Inc., at 75 cents a copy. Annual subscription $9.00 in the United States and possessions: elsewfiere $10.10 (In U.S. funds). Editorial and Executive Offices, 229 Pari< Avenue South, New York, N.Y. 10003. Subscription or­ ders and mail regarding subscriptions should be sent to P.O. Box 26H0, Greenwich, Ct. 06830. Secand-dass post­ age paid at New York, N.Y., and additional mailing offices. © 1977 by Davis Publications, Inc., all rights reserved. Protection secured under the Universal Copyright Convention. Reproduction or use without express permission of editorial or pictorial content in any manner is prohibited. Printed in U.S.A. All submissions must be accompanied by self-addressed envetope; the Publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED VOLUME NO. 1 of ALFRED HITCHCOCK'S NEW SERIES OF LIBRARY EDITIONS tj^ddlAii Attnti^ofne AttUl6<Ht^td edi/iott £a ^ott^ Soo^s^Ae^! StMOU a a/ieaf coHedion. o^ SOi/oieei 6w iome €^ u4^ie<£ ^£lcAc€>c^i lAta^a^inei lale i^i*tfte^. Contents same as Alfred Hitchcock's paperback Anthology Ko. 1. ALFRED HITCHCOCK'S LIBRARY EDITIONS 229 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10D03 n Enclosed is $8.95 plus 65t shipping and postage (total of $9.60) for the newest Hitchcock hardcover anthology, "Tales to Keep You Spellbound." Name Address City LICENSED TO UNZ.ORGState Zip AHMM 677 ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED who was chasing him in the car behind? . Pronziiikand Barry N.Malzbeig It was raining—a slow steady drizzle—^when I came out of the house and walked up the dark driveway to my Cadillac Fleetwood. I started the engine and let it warm up for three minutes. I did not have to look at my watch to tell when the three minutes were up, or to verify the fact that it was approximately eleven P.M. I have performed this ritual for so long that everything connected with it—time, action, direction—has become instinctual and perfectly coordinated. NIGHT RIDER LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG 5 ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED I am, you see, a night rider. The term is "one I discovered some time ago in a magazine article, and pertains to individuals who habitually go for long solitary drives after dark. According to the article, such individuals are attempting to use their cars as escape vehicles from tensions and pressures and dif­ ficult domestic situations. By insulating themselves inside their auto­ mobiles, the article said, they create an illusion of sanctity; and while in full control of their, cars, they are able to imagine that they exercise the same full control over their lives and destinies. In this manner they work out in a socially acceptable manner the conflicts that plague them. Perhaps this is true. But I prefer to believe my own night rides are nothing more than pleasure trips that help me to relax. I have always enjoyed driving, and I have always been able to relax while doing so. I backed the Fleetwood out of the driveway and headed it toward Route 4. The car is a 1968 model—not the commercial chassis, just the upgraded passenger type with all the power extras and a stereophonic radio. There are 77,000 miles on the odometer, which is substantial mileage, and because of that and of its age the Fleetwood has a number of quirks. A yaw in the power steering, a fair amount of lifter noise, a shaky transmission—axle whine, holding in first gear^—all of which indicate more serious problems to come. Still, it's the best car I've ever owned, and I take considerable pride in it. I've always wanted a Cadillac, and when this one came along last year at only $900, I felt I was entitled to it. Ever since, driving the •Fleetwood has given me a certain feeling of dignity and peace. Edna, of course, .has never been able to understand my relationship with the Cadillac. She dislikes driving and has no conception of auto­ mobiles; she is, all told, a completely unimaginative woman who con­ siders my purchase of the Fleetwood to be a "pretentious extrava­ gance." In addition to being unimaginative, Edna is also unyielding. Once she forms an opinion, it remains forever unchangeable; there is absolutely no capacity in her for negotiation of any J<ind. To this day she resents the Cadillac, and my night rides in it as well. Even so, I do not resent her for her attitudes and her failings. In rriost ways she is a good wife, and our marriage has been tolerable if more or less drab and prosaic. Which is as much my fault as hers, for admittedly I have my own negative traits—primarily those of reticence 6 LICENSEDALFRE TO DUNZ.ORG HITCHCOCK'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED and melancholia, both of which were bom as a result of absences in my life. The absence of a successful job, the absence of interest in sports or hobbies or other common passions, the absence of excitement and fiilfillment. In point of sad fact, my only true pleasures are these night rides and the Fleetwood itself, and Edna shares neither of them. Hol­ low pleasures, then? I wonder. I took the car onto Route 4 and accelerated to a steady 45 miles per hour, pointing toward the Route 80 interchange. The route of my night rides is also ritualized: seven miles east on Route 4 to Route 80, then twenty miles straight out on 80 to the county road that runs through the New Jersey swamplands, then eight miles through to another county road that leads me back to 80 and eventually home.