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"What on earth are you talking about?"

"I saw you, Gwyneth"

"What? Sahere?"

"When I traveled back in tione only a couple of yards when you were suddenly standing there in front of e You looked at me and smiled as if you were pleased to see me Then you turned and disappeared around the next corner"

"When is this supposed to have been?" I was so confused that I stopped crying for a few seconds

Gideon ignored my question "When I went around the same corner a moment later, I was hit over the head, so I’m afraid I was in no position to have a conversation with you to clear things up"

"You think … you think I knocked you out?" The tears were flowing again

"No," said Gideon "I don’t think that You weren’t holding anything when I saw you, and I doubt whether you could have hit so hard No, you just luredfor me there"

Impossible Totally, absolutely i like that," I finally ed to say reasonably clearly "Never!"

"Yes, I was a little shockedere … friends But when you caarette s to ive me that key!"

I wiped the tears off ed to suppress a sob, hating"If that’s true, then why did you tell everyone you hadn’t seen who hit you?"

"Because it’s true I didn’t see who it was"

"But you didn’t say anything about me, either Why not?"

"Because I didn’t want Mr George to … you’re not crying, are you?" The bea me so that I had to close my eyes I probably looked like a chipmunk, all stripy Why had I bothered to put on mascara?

"Gwyneth" Gideon switched off the flashlight

Nohat? A body search in the dark?

"Go away," I said, sobbing "I do not have any key on me, I swear I don’t And whoever you saw, it can’t have been me I would never, never let anyone hurt you"

Although I couldn’t see a thing, I sensed that Gideon was standing right in front of me His body warmth was like a radiant heater in the darkness When his hand touched ain

"I’m sorry," I heard him whisper "Gwen, I…" Suddenly he sounded helpless, but I was far too upset to feel any kind of satisfaction

I don’t kno much ti floods of tears Whatever he was doing, I couldn’t see it

After a while, he switched the flashlight on again, cleared his throat, and shone the beam on his watch "Another three minutes before we travel back," he said in a matter-of-fact tone "You’d better co on the chest in the chronograph room" He went back to the sofa and picked up the cushions he had thrown on the floor "You know, of all the Guardians, Mr George has always struck me as one of the most loyal Someone to be trusted whatever happened"

"But Mr George really didn’t have anything at all to do with it," I said, hesitantlyaway from my corner "It wasn’t like that at all" I mopped the tears off my face with the back of my hand I’d better tell him the truth so that at least he couldn’t suspect poor Mr George of disloyalty "When I was sent to elapse alone for the first tirandfather here by chance" Okay,for the wine cel--well, never , especially once we’d realized ere He left the key and the password in hiding in this rooain And that’s why yesterday, I mean in 1956, I borrowed the narandfather! He’s been dead for a few years now, and I miss him dreadfully Wouldn’t you have done the saain was so…" I fell silent onceI stared at his outline and waited

"How about Mr George, then? He was already your grandfather’s assistant at the time," he said at last

"I did see hirandfather told hies and ages ago--to hiood fifty-five years in the past" I put my hand on my midriff "I think…"