‘Look at me’. She does so and I can see she is breathing more heavily now, sweat is appearing across her brow and her face looks flushed. I watch ...er intently before continuing. ‘Good, now take off your jacket’. Hesitantly she reaches up and undoes the button on her jacket, her hands shaking to the point where she can hardly undo it. My eyes don’t leave hers as I tell her to undo her blouse and remove it. I can sense her apprehension, her nerves combined with excitement as I watch her comply. I. "You should do it, Martina. I know you want to."I stared at her. She could read my mind. Deep down the idea of wearingthose earrings had become quite appealing."Daddy," Barbara said in her daughter's voice, "perhaps you can convincethem to have their ears pierced if you offer full makeovers for the fourof us afterwards -- over there. She pointed to another place in thestore.I couldn't believe how far she would push her Dad...and me, to get whatshe wanted.Her father chuckled; and he agreed to. I'll keep you posted, Lauren." Thank you, Sheriff. I'm sorry about all this..." Lauren told him.He shook his head. "Lauren, you did the right thing. Your niece did the right thing. Young Miss Kennedy did the right thing... everyone did the right thing except this Larkin person. I was told in advance about the possibility of a problem. You called me when you saw a stranger sneaking through the camp. I was having coffee down at the restaurant, so I was close to hand. We changed our patrol. " Some of the men exhaled so this technology really frightened them. It also occurred to me that they would simply kill me to keep things the way they were. "The trouble with this sort of thing is that even if I do not make these tools now another country could and would."The Frisians have the cannon and the secret of the powder and a great many more devices. To not progress means that in a hundred years the Frisians will simply take over the empire by force. I want to take it over too but all.