but it 'd become more difficult to tell him the longer she delayed . it seemed that cool and collected had n't totally deserted the field after all . i stood up and tapped the glass of the monitor . how silly to have been so frightened ! she secured the lock after her and walked gingerly toward his vehicle , slowly , crunching gravel to give him an advance warning that she approached . his voice trailed off and he continued to mumble , `` ready to go . 