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She had stayed awake the entire night. The two men had finished their discussion around 2 a.m. by setting her stran­gulation murder for the next evening. They wanted time to notify the landlady they were leaving town to take jobs elsewhere.

For several hours she had been too panicked to think but shortly before dawn she organized her thoughts like so many figures on the report sheet at the bank. After consider­ing the pros and cons, she decided on a frontal attack. If she revealed she knew their plans, she would throw them off balance and perhaps gain an advantage. More important, though, she might talk them out of their plan temporarily, and win an additional day or two.

Sammy said, “I told you she wasn’t asleep, that she was faking.”

Dan turned to her, his face devoid of expression. “If you heard us, you know we don’t want to do it.”

“You don’t,” she said, pressing the attack, “but Sammy does.”

Sammy grinned. “Nothing personal.”

Strangely, his sadistic jibes no longer disturbed her, now that death was so close. “That’s reassuring,” she retorted, determined to match him. He glanced sharply at her, sur­prised that she no longer cringed under his verbal torture.

A shaft of sunlight fell on her to warm her and renew her courage. The sunlight and the normalcy of breakfast about the kitchen table, pouring coffee and serving bacon and eggs, tended to destroy reality. It was as if she had seen a play and was discussing it with a couple of the actors.

She continued, “You might as well know that I’m not going to bed tonight, so it won’t be as easy as you thought. When you try it, I’m going to scream so loud I’ll bring half the neighborhood down on you before you finish. I’ve been quiet and done what you said because I wanted to live, but if I’m not going to . ..”

“We don’t want to,” Dan repeated. He finished the coffee with one gulp, like a man who needed it. “But we’ve got a problem. Nobody on earth knows we did the bank job but you.” He studied her sidewise, never moving his head, seek­ing to capture and analyze her thoughts.

She said, “If you let me go, and I said anything, you could get my father. It’d be the same as if I killed him. Do you think I’d do that?”

Sammy dropped his fork. “Hey, what do you know, she’s a con woman. Here we thought we picked up a dame who was legit and we got ourselves a con artist.”

Dan never took his gaze from her. “That’s enough, Sammy.” He switched back to her. “What do you take us for? A couple stupes? You’d run babbling to the cops the minute we turned you loose. Maybe you wouldn’t want to, but you would. It’s human nature. We all got to talk – Sammy here, and me, and you. We all got to spill everything we know.”

She forced some coffee down. “You think you won’t be caught but you’re smart enough to know, Dan – “

Sammy interrupted. “Hey, Jenkins, that’s good. The old buddy, buddy approach.” He mimicked her. “Dan.”

She ignored him. ” – You’ve got to figure on it. So far you’ve held up a bank but if you add murder to it now

“

Sammy said, “Do you hear that, Dan? She thinks we’re amateurs. Jenkins, if Forest Lawn paid us for every time we sent them a customer

hey, Dan, that’s an idea. We ought to get a commission.”

“Don’t try to be funny,” Dan said. He rose, folded his napkin, and turned toward her. “If you’ve got any other ideas, I’m listening.”

Sammy pretended to shudder. “Gripes, gives me the creeps sitting around with the victim talking about it.” He came up with a nasty little laugh. “Doesn’t seem like good sports­manship.”

He added, “You and your big ears, Jenkins. Now you’ve got to suffer until we put you out of your misery. And here I had it all figured out so you’d never know about it.”

Dan said, “Get lost, Sammy. Just get lost.” He added, “How about tuning in on the news?”

Sammy shrugged and rose. As he was leaving, he said to Dan, “Don’t let her con you into anything.”

Dan waited until he heard Sammy turn the radio on, then said, “You’re working on me because you think I’ve got feel­ings. No, sweetheart, no feelings. They’re something I can’t afford. Might cost me my hundred grand and my neck. The only reason I hesitate about putting you away, I don’t know what to do with you afterward that’d be a hundred per cent safe. You see, I don’t believe in playing the odds. I go only for a fixed winner. So I’ve got to figure it out. Something to do with you afterwards that’s a sure bet or something with you on the hoof that doesn’t get us into trouble.”

She straightened her shoulders, so he wouldn’t know about the rumbling fear deep down. “You could take me wherever you’re going. You need somebody to cook and wash for you.”

He pushed his plate back with a hand none too steady. He hadn’t touched his bacon and eggs, “We can pick up a couple girls along the way to do that – and other things, too. A com­bination package. They won’t know who we are and won’t care as long as we buy them a fur or a piece of rock.”