Arnaud touched his hand. They shook hands solemnly. It was an old gesture which Earthmen had never lost. Gilbert told Arnaud Wenzi was there, told Arnaud Wenzi was a girl. "So there are three of us now," Arnaud said. Gilbert nodded, then realized the gesture was lost in darkness. He said, aloud, "We'd better put some distance between us and the camp." They returned to the trail, plodded through the hot darkness. They walked for three hours and reached high ground as Gilbert had expected. "We can sleep here," he said. "But we'll have to be up before the sun. And we'll have to hunt for our food, too. Mulveen has provisions." "Do you hate Mulveen?" Wenzi asked. "For his proposition? No, why should I?" "For his arrogance--" "He is an outworlder," Arnaud said. "For what he wanted of you," Gilbert told Wenzi, "yes. But only for that." "Do you have any plans?" Arnaud asked as they settled on the hillock. Gilbert thought about it. They would need a plan, all right. It was what the animals of Earth lacked. The ability to plan, to rationally pursue their survival. And so the animals of Earth never had a chance. "Mulveen will probably stalk us in the morning," Gilbert said. "We'll have to move fast. We'll be able to move faster than Mulveen because he'll be tracking us. We can circle around behind him--while he still believes himself behind us." "It might work," Wenzi said, but not too optimistically. "I don't see how it can miss!" Arnaud declared jubilantly. "Now let's get some sleep." Gilbert was tired all at once. He felt the fatigue crawl through his muscles, dull his senses. He'd been on the go all day, and walking half the night. He drifted quickly into sleep and dreamed of a faudi reptile with the face of the hunter Mulveen, chasing them with tail-supported forty yard leaps.... * * * * * He awoke in dim light. Like any experienced hunter, he awoke knowing exactly where he was and what was happening. The first thing he did was reach for his rifle. He had placed it at his side. It was gone. "Wenzi?" he called. No answer. "Arnaud?" Silence. "Wenzi! Arnaud!" he shouted. He stood up quickly. He had the hillock of high, dry ground all to himself. Distantly, he heard a scream. Wenzi's voice? he thought it was. "Wenzi!" he shouted again, at the top of his voice. The scream was faint. She might have been calling his name. It might have been pure terror. Arnaud, he thought. Arnaud has taken Wenzi. But why? Why? He was only a tracker, a beater. He couldn't provide for her. He wouldn't dare ravish her, for while there was no penalty for an outworlder, the penalty for an Earthman was severe. Mulveen, he thought. Mulveen's idea. Arnaud had never left Mulveen. Arnaud had come following Gilbert--as Mulveen's man. Mulveen knew Wenzi was gone. Mulveen reasoned she had gone to Gilbert, further reasoned that Gilbert would protect her. Mulveen had sent Arnaud for her. And for Gilbert's rifle.