"I wonder what's happened to my watch? I must turn it back," and pressing the spring Billy turned the hands back to ten thirty. Just at that moment he happened to catch sight of the bridge over his shoulder, and, strange to say, it was almost in touching distance.
"Hurrah!" he cried, delightedly, "here's the bridge right here—now I'm sure to catch it," and he ran backwards as hard as he could, but without getting an inch nearer to it.
"How did it get here, anyway?" he asked.
"I don't know," said the Bridge Keeper. "I noticed it coming up while you were setting your watch back."
"That's it—that's it," cried Billy. "Don't you know, you said that what has once been done can't be undone unless time turns back."
"What has that got to do with it?"
"Can't you see when I turned time back, up came the bridge? Now I am going to turn it back more and get to the other side."
"Don't risk it, don't risk it," cried the Toll Gate Keeper, in great excitement. "If you should happen to be lost between two hours, you might never catch up with time again."
But Billy did not heed the warning, for he knew he could turn his watch ahead again and make up for any lost time that way.
So back went the hands of the watch and, "Spang!" Billy stood in the dark and dismal streets of Never Was.