Chris! I told you not to do that. That is going to complicate things,” said the voice. “Look. Be a hero. Don’t be scared. You can do it. Just go over there to that other side of the street. OK? Now. It’s better for you this way. I’ll talk to you later.” He went over to the other side of the street. “Okay. The man on the top floor is out of town. The man on the second floor is very sick. We will let him live. Oh, don’t worry about him. Now what you have to do is, you have to get up on the third floor. The door will be locked, but it’s not too hard to pick. You’ve probably done it before. The money is up there. That’s all. The man who has the money will be there.” “What about the guards?” “I don’t know,” the voice said. “I don’t know anything about the guards. All I know is that you have to get the money.” “No, I’ll never get the money,” she thought. “It’s impossible. I can’t do it.” A new voice interrupted her thoughts. “Oh, yes you can. Just go to the next floor. You have to hurry, though. If you don’t get the money within three weeks, the man will shoot himself. You have to get the money, and get it fast.” The voice broke into her thoughts again. “Don’t forget the telephone. Go to the telephone on the third floor. Get on the phone. I’ll give you all the information you need about the guards, and how to avoid them. And by the way, you may as well know the information about the guards.” “Why should I know the information?” she asked. “Because you will have to pass the guards on the way to the phone.” “I’m not going to give the information. I’ll never get the money that way,” she said. “No, you don’t need to,” the voice said. “No one will know who the real hostage is. Don’t worry about that. I’ll help you anyway I can. You’ll be alright.” “How are you going to help me, if I don’t give you the information?” “I’ll find out who the guards are, and that will be enough. You’ll need to know their names. That’s the way you will get through the security in the way you’re going to go. Don’t worry about a thing.” “What are you talking about? What security? What are you talking about?” she asked. The voice was quiet for a while. “Just listen, and I’ll explain it to you. The security consists of seven men. All seven men are completely in the hands of the man who has the money. If you know how to get past the seven men, and still get the money, you will succeed. No one will know who the real hostage is, and the man will never know that he was robbed. He will be just one of many victims. When he tries to figure it out, he will be too late.” “Too late for what? What are you trying to say?” she asked. “When will you come back to get the money?” the voice asked. “I can’t come back, because if I do, the man will know that he was robbed. He will know that I’m the one who stole the money. That’s the reason why I was brought in the first place. If I try to get the money, he’ll just shoot me for being the robber.” “Alright, alright. Don’t worry about it,” the voice said. “When are you coming back?” “I’m not coming back.” “What? Don’t you want to get the money? Look. You could go back in and get the money. He wouldn’t know the difference. You can take the money and give it to the people at the clinic. They can help you and so on. You won’t be in any trouble.” “How can I get back into the house? I just came out of it. How am I supposed to get back?” she asked. “And how am I supposed to get back in if I do?” “Just tell me how you plan to get back into the house.” “I can’t tell you that,” she said. “I have to get the money, and I have to get back into the house without anyone finding out. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I’m afraid of going back. You know that.” “Yeah. I know,” the voice said. “How are you going to get the money? Do you have a gun?” “No,” she said. “I have my knife. It’s no good. They would know that I didn’t bring it with me. No, I couldn’t possibly use my knife.” “All right. How are you going to get back into the house? How are you going to get into the house without being seen? You have to take a chance. You have to go and get the money. You have to trust someone. You have to be willing to take a chance. Trust me. I’ll help you. I’ll help you as best as I can.” “What are you going to do?” she asked. “Can you help me?” “I can get the money for you. All you have to do is get through the security, and get into the house. You need to get away from all this. I’m not going to get the money for you. I’m just helping you to get away from the guards, and to get the money. I can’t do anything else. I’m too scared to do anything else. That’s what you have to do. There are seven guards in all. Don’t worry about the guard on the ground floor. He never gets up and down the stairs. He stays in the basement. There’s one guard at the front door, and three on each floor. One guard on the roof and one on the alleyway to the back of the house. That’s all. The man with the money is the one to worry about. That’s the man you have to get through.” “How am I going to do that?” she asked. “I don’t know.” “You must do that,” the voice said. “You’ll think of a way to get through them. You’ll think of a way. It’s as simple as that. You have to do that. There isn’t any other way. I can’t do anything for you, and there isn’t anyone else I can trust. You can’t do this alone. If you do, you’ll end up doing something wrong. You have to trust somebody, and you can’t trust the people around you.” “So you’re saying that the only way for me to get the money is by getting past the guards?” she asked. “That’s all. That’s all,” the voice said. “You have to trust me, and get back. If you do that, I’ll help you.” “All right. I’ll trust you. I just don’t know how I’m going to do it. You’ve got to help me. That’s the only thing you can do.” “That’s all I can do. I can’t do anything else for you. But, if you can think of a way, don’t be afraid to tell me. I’ll try to help you. Don’t think of it as a trick. Just think of it as your way to get the money. That’s all I’m going to do for you. I can’t get the money. I’m just a little man, and I’m just a stupid little man. I’m not even smart enough to help myself. But you’re a woman. You’re more skilled than I am, and you can use your skills more effectively. I’m not a hunter. You’re the hunter, not me. You can do the best that you can, and get the money, and get it in a way that I can’t do.” “How are you going to do it?” she asked. “I’m going to make it happen.” “How? How are you going to do that? You told me it was going to be a matter of luck, and chance, and whatever. Are you telling me you’re going to do it, or aren’t you? What are you telling me?” “I’m telling you I’m going to make it happen.” “Are you telling me you’re going to go into the house?” she asked. “