Hoagland smiled. "That it was," he said. "But have you gotten any evidence?" "None. We'd been trying Grayson's idea for months without success. When the Z-wave broke into life we thought it was working until we located the source and went out to pick him up. The boys at the other end heard the same thing, did likewise, and then came scurrying back home to let me know about it. So we collected Grayson and Morrow in two fell swoops." Hoagland nodded again, and then said: "Westlake, how good a gambler are you?" "I like to play safe," said Westlake. "How safe?" "Plenty." "Then you won't like this. But I'm going to make one gamble, and one bet on a certain thing." "Yes--and which is which?" "Without a doubt Grayson got the equipment he was using from Huston and Huston's crowd of coalitionists. They set him up on some planet with a laboratory under their direction, and are probably running the Neoterran Press ragged with glowing reports of Grayson's howling success--carefully guarding their statements with cautious warnings that The Public must not expect Z-wave communications with Terra overnight, but someday--soon--et-cetera, and so forth." Westlake laughed. "'The police anticipate an early apprehension of the criminals,' sort of thing." "Exactly." "Furthermore I will be a bad prophet if I am incorrect in assuming that when Huston started Grayson on his job, Huston gave orders that Grayson was not to do anything that would gain him any notice whatsoever. On the idea that the first mention of failure would puncture Huston's political propaganda." "All reasoning based upon the 'what would I do?' theory. Good and sound I calls it." "Right. Now, here is the certainty. If Grayson is the kind of idealist that I think he is, Grayson will at the first opportunity make some check of the Z-wave--in fact he has tried to set it up already. He will try again if he is permitted." "That's your certainty." "Now for the gamble. I've read all of Haedaecker's Theory and find it solid. I've read Grayson's line of reasoning and find it logical." "Then which is right?" "Haedaecker based his reasoning on fact. Grayson set out to poke holes in it and--like so many idealists--he proceeded to leap upon any facet that supported his theory against Haedaecker, while discounting anything that mitigated against him. "So," smiled Hoagland affably, "the thing to do is to permit Mister Grayson's escape in a ship loaded with Z-wave gear. Let him take his friends, Phillips, Stacey, and Morrow." Westlake nodded slowly. "I get it. Grayson will not make his next attempt in secret. He'll try it and we'll have observers to watch--and report his failure." "Right."