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would go to dinner and behave to Tregare with friendship; certainly he had earned that much. And
if she were patient, perhaps he would explain ...
She bathed and dressed, curled her hair in the Tan Obrigo fashion, and pinned all but the
backfall into a topknot cluster. She had soaked the bandage off her cheek; the cut was closed and
makeup disguised it well enough. The swelling at her eye, she decided, added such grotesquerie
that it would be a shame to tamper with its coloring. She smiled into the mirror and turned to go
downstairs.
AT a table set for five, she found only Sparline and Tregare. They broke off conversation;
Sparline said, "You know what, Rissa? Bran and I figured it out-he used to be a year the older
8
of us, but now he's traveled so much more, he's a year or two younger!"
Tregare grinned; suddenly his cheek tattoo seemed out of place. "That's as close as we can
calculate," he said. "My early trips with UET, I don't have exact data."
To Rissa, the lines at his eyes spelled anxiety. She smiled and said, "Relativity makes strange
agemates, does it not? Yes, I suppose you two-separated for so long-have found much to discuss and
compare."
Sparline laughed. "Oh, yes! And it's so good-after all the grim stories we'd heard-to find that
the ogre Tregare is still my brother Bran!"
His finger pushed the tip of her nose. "Hey-remember how I used to do that when you got
stubborn, to make you laugh? You were four, maybe," Then he sobered. "But the ogre's not all make-
believe. I've done things you wouldn't like to hear."
"Haven't we all?" She spoke quietly. "Life here-it's no maypole dance. But to be harsh when you
don't need to- that's not only cruel, but foolish. So we don't-and I bet you don't, either."
After a pause, he said, "Funny thing about need-it's what you think it is. I've been rougher at
times than might have been strictly necessary, to impress some folks who thought Tregare was maybe
a soft touch. Well, Tregare wasn't."
"I would imagine," said Rissa, "that you averted much trouble. As to whether your harshness was
justified, I was not present."
"Yeah. Well, UET taught me the iron-fist trick; it took a while to learn that easier ways work,
too. I'm still learning."
Rissa touched his hand. "So are we all-to stop learning is to stop living. I am not at all
prepared for that, so soon."
"You're telling me something," he said, "but I'm not sure what."
"Neither am I-except that this afternoon I spoke in anger, and I wish to retract what I said. If
you would like, again, the unrewarding role of simply helping me to keep warm ..."
Sparline's laugh rang. "Now that's a polite way to say you're still too sore to spread for
pleasure! Your answer, Bran?"
He scowled. "You know our history. Husband or no, it's
\r9
\rfitting that bed games, now, wait on her decision." He slanted an eyebrow. "Of course, if she
takes too long, I can help myself elsewhere."
Sidelong, he looked at Rissa. She said, "What you do outside our bed is your concern-as what I
do is mine. Need we belabor the point?"
Sparline, hands to face, shook with laughter. Then, "Bran -if you haven't learned yet not to
bait this one, you're slow."
She looked at Tregare; he smiled. "Given time enough, I think we'll make a good match."
Liesel and Hawkman entered from one door, food-laden servitors from another. Between seating and
greetings and serving, a new conversation began-skipping, as they ate, from one subject to
another. Tregare recapitulated the Sleeker interview; Hawkman, laughing, slapped the table hard
enough to upset his wine. Rissa only partially understood the talk of how to consolidate the Windy
Lakes situation after Fenner-abilis' withdrawal. Even less could she follow Tregare's cryptic
mentions of other Escaped Ships. "I'll know in a few weeks what's realistic to plan for, and what
isn't," he said.
Before Rissa could frame a question, Liesel spoke to her. "I've got a figure on your share from
dal Nardo-nearly thirty million. With the rest, it's as I said; you're well up in the
middle'oligarchal ranks. If you don't mind discussing it now, I've got some ideas to sell you-how
to invest as much as you choose, here, to benefit the whole family interest. All right?"
"Of course. Liesel, you need not be a salesperson to me. Tell me your wishes, and I will see
how'far I can agree with you."
Liesel rubbed her forehead. "Black eye and all, you look so baby-face young I keep forgetting
you trained with Erika. All right-Bleeker's warehouse complex that he tried to fob off as part of
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