“Yes, Master. I will serve you faithfully. If necessary, I personally will kill any Zardalu who seeks to do otherwise, or who disobeys you in any way.”
“Attagirl. That’s what I like to hear. If you’re really good till we get to Miranda, I’ll let you glide down the gangway on your own tentacles and wow the locals. That’s a promise.” Louis turned to Atvar H’sial. “Okay. Done deal. Only thing left is to collect the money.”
“That, and one thing more.” The Cecropian followed Nenda as he started out of the cargo hold. The pheromones were oddly hesitant. Nenda wondered. Atvar H’sial was not noted for diffidence.
“What’s up, At?”
“I wish to request a great favor of you. These past weeks have been most frustrating for me. I have lacked communication ability with anyone but you. And yet the future of the spiral arm, we hear, must involve increased interclade activity. Therefore, I have reached a decision. I must perfect an ability to interface directly with humans.”
“No problem. We’ll get a ship with plenty of computer capacity.”
“That will not teach me the human outlook, as it is reflected in your curious speech. I will need a computer as the interface, true. But I must also converse with a human.”
“What the hell do you think I am? A peanut?”
“A patient human. One willing to devote substantial time to the effort.”
“Forget it.”
“Precisely. Which brings me to my request. Would you consider asking Glenna Omar on my behalf to travel with us, to assist me in perfecting my human speech skills? She already taught me to employ beat frequencies within my echolocation system, and so offer the longer wavelength sounds accessible to humans. Thus, a greeting.” Atvar H’sial produced a grating low-pitched groan. With a lot of imagination Nenda decided that it could be interpreted as “Hello.”
“Why don’t you ask her?”
“Improbable as it seems, I think she admires you more than me. The request would be received better from you. Also, you are able to frame it with more precision in human terms.”
Nenda swung round and stared up at the Cecropian’s blind head. “Let’s get this straight. You want me to try an’ talk Glenna Omar into signing on with us? Long term.”
“Precisely. If you are successful, I will acknowledge a major debt to you.”
“Damn right you will. It sounds impossible.”
“But you will make the attempt?”
“I don’t know. When?”
“As soon as possible.”
“Hell.”
“I hope not. You will do it?”
“All right. I’ll talk to her.” Louis glared up at his towering partner. “But I don’t want you watching. You’ll mess up my style.”
“I will not move from this spot until you return.”
“Might take a while no matter what she says.”
“I will wait. And I will steel myself for the possibility that you will return with bad news.”
“You do that. I’d better get it over with.”
The passenger quarters were in the bow, far from the cargo hold. Louis started the trek forward, wondering how he was going to handle this. There wasn’t a chance in a million that Glenna would agree, but he had to make Atvar H’sial believe that he had done his best.
In the mid-section of the ship he came across Kallik and J’merlia sitting cross-legged on the floor. He stopped as he came up to them, struck by another thought.
“What are you two planning to do, now the trouble’s all over?”
Lemon-yellow eyes on their short eyestalks and doublet rings of black eyes gazed back at him in shared amazement. “Why,” said Kallik, “we are coming with you.”
“And with my dominatrix, Atvar H’sial,” J’merlia added. “What else?”
Which made the presence of Glenna Omar unnecessary. J’merlia was the perfect interpreter. It would be no good telling that to At, though. Louis knew from experience, the Cecropian was nothing if not stubborn. If she insisted that she wanted to learn human speech from a human…
“Atvar H’sial is back there.” Nenda nodded aft. “Go tell her that the two of you will be staying with us, and say that’s fine with me. Tell her I’m on my way to talk to Glenna Omar.”
Which just about wrapped it up. A quick and indignant refusal from Glenna, and Louis could break the bad news to the Cecropian. He started out again along the corridor.
Glenna was alone in her bedroom, staring into the mirror. Even now, with the emergency long past, she was not wearing makeup. Her blond hair was piled high, showing the long and graceful neck, and her skin was as clear and smooth as a young girl’s. She was wearing a scanty pink slip with a plunging neckline, long gold earrings, and nothing else. Her reflection beamed at Louis as he came in.
“Just the man I wanted to see.” She did not turn around.
“Yeah?” A bad start.
“You know that after Miranda, the Salvation is heading for Sentinel Gate?”
“I hear that’s the plan. Darya Lang and E.C. Tally want to go there.”
“But Hans Rebka says you won’t be going on. You’ll stay for a while on Miranda, then take off for some other place.”
“Sounds more than likely. Miranda’s not the place for me and At, any more than Sentinel Gate.”
“Or for me.” Glenna spun around in her chair to face him. She stood up and grabbed his hands. “Louis — take me with you. Wherever you’re going, I want to go.”
“What!” Nenda’s defenses came up automatically. “Sorry. Can’t do that.”
“You like me, I know you do. Why don’t you want me with you?”
“I do like you.” Nenda hadn’t intended to say that. He was baffled by his own surge of feelings. “I like you, sure I do. But it’s — well, it’s — I dunno. It’s not that simple. I have to say no.”
“Is it that you are ashamed that you come from a crude, barbaric part of the spiral arm, and you know that educated people from any decent place will look down on you?”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Is it because you have a funny accent, so that civilized persons laugh when they hear you?”
“Never occurred to me. I think I sound fine.”
“Is it because you know you’re little and dark and ugly, and I’m tall and blond and beautiful?”
“Naw. But don’t stop. You’re doin’ wonders for my self-esteem.”
“Because, you see, if it’s any of those things I don’t care about them at all.”
“It’s none of them.”
“So what is it?” Glenna struck a pose, hand set on rounded hip. “Don’t you find me attractive?”
“I think you’re the sexiest thing on two legs. Or four.” Louis saw her eyes widen, and added hastily, “Not that I’ve tried that, of course. But you don’t know what I’m like, Glenna.”
“So tell me.”
“I’ve led a hard life.”
“And you haven’t let it break your spirit. I admire you for that.”
“Not an honest life.”
“Who is honest? We all tell lies.”
“Mebbe. But Glenna, I’m a crook, for God’s sake.”
“And I’m a tramp. Ask anyone on Sentinel Gate, male or female, they’ll tell you. We make a fine pair, Louis.”
“No. You still don’t get it. Glenna, I’ve killed men.”
“And I’ve done my best to — the hard way. You know that, if anyone does.” She moved closer. Her eyes glowed, and she looked ready to eat him. Her hands reached out to touch his chest. “But there’s more to it than you think. Louis, you don’t understand something, and you may find it hard to believe me when I say it. But cross my heart, it’s true. I can’t bear the idea of leaving you and going back to Sentinel Gate. My life was easy and safe there, but it wasn’t exciting. It was deadly dull. I’m no great brain, like Professor Lang. I sometimes hate her for being so good at what she does, but I admire her, too. My job had a nice title, Senior Information Specialist. You know what I did? I moved information I didn’t care about from one data storage unit I didn’t care about to another like it. You know the biggest thrill I had, all the years I worked there?”