"I believe I can, but I can't be certain."
"If you could be certain, we wouldn't have to kill you," Oliver said.
"You would be taking a chance," Buckmaster replied.
"We can't afford to take any chances," Cuff said. "He—"
"You're forgetting one thing, Cecil," Oliver interrupted. "As things stand right now, we're a lost cause. The Plague has killed many of our best men. The only thing that keeps Koski from staging a blood-bath is his fear of Governor Olson in Duluth. And pretty soon he won't have to fear that. We have only to lose another key dozen and Olson will have no friends here to aid."
"May I offer a compromise?" Buckmaster asked. "As matters stand now, our only chance of winning freedom from Koski's savage rule is to kill him. And to do that we will have to kill Wagner first. Am I correct?"
"Yes." Oliver raised his head. "What do you have to suggest?"
"Let me try to kill Wagner. If I succeed our cause will have taken a big step. If he kills me first, then you've lost nothing more than if you'd killed me yourselves."
After a barely perceptible hesitation Oliver nodded in agreement.
For the rest of the day Buckmaster improvised a simulated course of action to let seep through to Wagner whenever he felt a probe. He kept his mind blank otherwise and was quite certain that he carried on the deception well. He caught nothing from Wagner in return that was not deliberately let through. He suspected that his own control was as good. Though he had not had the practice at this that Wagner had.