John said: 'They're trying to be honest about things.'

'That's what I mean,' Roger said. 'I know I speak from the exalted wisdom of an ex-Public Relations Officer, but you don't have to have had much to do with humanity in the mass to know that honesty is never advisable and frequently disastrous.'

'It will be disastrous in this case,' Pirrie said.

Too bloody true, it will. The country faces starvation - things are in such a state that the Prime Minister decided to wipe the cities out - the Air Force would never do such a thing, but all the same we appeal to them not to - and you can leave London but we'd rather you didn't! There's only one result news like that can have: nine million people on the move - anywhere, anyhow, but out.'

'But the Air Force wouldn't do it,' Olivia said. 'You know they wouldn't.'

'No,' Roger said, 'I don't know. And I wasn't prepared to risk it. On the whole, I'm inclined to think not. But it doesn't matter now. I wasn't willing to take a chance on human decency when it was a matter of hydrogen bombs and famine - do you seriously imagine anyone else is going to?'

Pirrie remarked thoughtfully: 'That nine million you spoke of refers to London, of course. There are a few million urban dwellers in the West Riding as well, not to mention the north-eastern industrial areas.'

'By God, yes!' Roger said. 'This will set them on the move, too. Not quite as fast as London, but fast enough.' He looked at John. 'Well, Skipper, do we drive all night?'

John said slowly: 'It's the safest thing to do. Once we get beyond Harrogate we should be all right.'

'There is the question of route,' Pirrie suggested. He spread out his own road-map and examined it, peering through the gold-rimmed spectacles which he used for close work. 'Do we skirt Harrogate to the west and