She shook her head gently. "Not all. At least, not all alive. There would be no displacement, and the only hope they would have to avoid the Alwyn action would be to preserve absolute secrecy. You have a saying, I believe: 'dead men--'" She hesitated. "Even if you and I could find a way to escape, even if they _told_ me I might leave, I could not trust them. They are very dangerous men. As long as we and they are both in this time, there would be no safety for me, nor for you." "I suppose you're right," Dolan said reluctantly. He looked down at her searchingly. "What do you _want_ to do?" he asked. "Do you want to stay with me, or do you want me to forget you?" "I want to be with you," she said softly. "Always." "And I, with you," he said. He bent his head toward hers. Below, the door of the cottage opened. Smith's figure appeared. He glanced around and then came plodding up the path. Moirta pulled away and got to her feet. "We might as well start back, I suppose," she said unenthusiastically. "Let's go back in the woods, he won't find us there." She hesitated and then shook her head. "No. We have both been very indiscreet today, and they are suspicious men. It is important in their trade to be suspicious. It would not be wise to let them think we are avoiding them." "OK, I suppose not," he acknowledged glumly. He rose and followed her down the path. * * * * * Like all true artists, Moirta tended to submerge herself completely in her role, a failing which the senior gun runner recognized and allowed for in his calculations. In the following days, Dolan held her hand often, and kissed her sometimes, and talked with her frequently, and took her in his arms for short periods; but at the crucial moment Smith or Brown always casually appeared upon the scene. Dolan suspected, accurately, that they were deliberately permitting him just enough contact with her to keep him constantly on edge, keep his mind off other matters. They made no overt threats, but he was constantly aware of the body in the gully, the bulge in Smith's pocket, Brown's cold eyes studying him. Dolan was not a submissive person, and under the pressure a cold malevolence toward the two gun runners began to develop in him. He concealed it, as well as he could, under a shell of impassivity. His time would come. The sketch of a plan was beginning to form in his mind, it was not very solid yet, but if it worked out they would be laughing on the other side of their faces. What was it Moirta had said? There would be danger "as long as we and they are both in this time." The answer to that was simple. Eliminate "they" and eliminate the danger.