 Why is Doc struggling with a man at the beginning?
I admit it: I didn't know if I was coming or going—but I know that if I stuck to the old man, I was a comer ... even if he was a goner! "Sure," the man agreed severely, prying a little worriedly at Doc's arthritic fingers that were clamped on his collar. I came alongside and carefully started to lever the old man loose, one finger at a time. If a half dozen winos in Seattle hadn't helped me get them loose, Doc and I would have been wanted for the murder of a North American Mountie. Doc's thin frame, layered with lumpy fat, was beginning to muscle-dance against my side. "'Memory Jump,' you mean. All my great-grandfathers have it. I told the human no, thanks, and walked Doc toward the flophouse three doors down. It had happened a few times right after I first found him, but now it was worse. The clerk's hand fell on the coin and slid it off into the unknown before I could move, what with holding up Doc. You don't have any quarter, not if I say so. I found I couldn't focus both my mind and my eyes through the electric flashes of agony, so I concentrated on Doc's voice and trusted my hands would follow their habit pattern and construct the symbols for his words. Beyond Six, Seven, Eight ... They told everything I needed to know to become the most powerful man in the Solar Federation.
 Doc was in the throes of withdrawal and was easily upset, latching on to the closest person he saw
 The man had insulted the narrator, and he couldn't stand for that, so he attacked him  Doc was trying to get information from the man that he was refusing to share  Doc was in the throes of withdrawal and was easily upset, latching on to the closest person he saw  The other man was argumentative and didn't think Doc knew the truth about the story he was telling