"I'd have been the man of the hour. I'd have been handed a large appropriation and a project of my own to pursue this--But Nora, it will work. Why did you feel that you had to falsify?" "Paul, you are the only man in the known universe that does not think Haedaecker's Theory is valid. Please go on--please?" "So I'd have been able to pursue my work unhampered. And--" "Now suppose that you were unable to make the Z-wave contact again?" suggested Nora. "Remember, the recording was the only contact but the Z-wave--regardless of your belief--does not really work." Paul shrugged: "Lacking a repeat, I'd have begun to study the connection a bit more," he said. "So the upshot would have been--_Hope_--for those who wanted communications between Terra and Neoterra." Stacey looked wistful. "Quoting some great poet that I don't remember other than that it was not Edgar Guest or John Paul Jones: "_Of all sad words of tongue or pen The saddest are these: It might have been!_" "So what do we do now?" Paul looked at Stacey. "This is G.S.C. 113; IX. Hoagland's gang have Z-wave equipment here, probably trying to see whether or not I am right. So the thing to do is to get free long enough to use the Z-wave equipment for a call for help." Nora shook her head. Paul looked at Stacey. Stacey looked at Nora and said, "I don't know anything about it." Paul looked at Nora. "Don't you believe either?" Nora clung to him, hugged him to her, cradled his head against her soft breasts and caressed his cheek. "Paul--Paul--Paul; I do so desperately _want_ to believe--I want you to be--everything--I want you--" Paul relaxed in her arms for a moment then moved away from her; holding her by the shoulders and looking her straight in the face, he said, "But--?" Nora buried her face in his shoulder. A sob wrenched her and she clutched at him frantically. Then she looked up with tears welling on the brim of her eyes, tried to speak but choked and buried her head in his shoulder once more. Paul put his hand under her chin, lifted it from his shoulder and with his other hand dashed the tears from Nora's eyes. "Tell me," he said gently. "Paul--Paul--Oh Paul, I love you and this hurts--but for all of your faith, you have not one shred of evidence." CHAPTER 14 Like most human beings, Paul could comprehend the actions of someone of his own type. But he could not understand the mental machinations of people who had other motives and other interests in life. Nor could he seem to make other people understand that his continued interest in the Z-wave was only just and sensible. After all, he had never had an opportunity to try it.