Marel has been telling our friends that you would be staying and making your home here with us," Fasala explained. "She even spoke to our ClanLeader about planting a garden of Terran vegetables, to see if they would grow here. I think this is the cause of her distress."
"I knew she was becoming attached to this world, but . . ." I stopped and rubbed my eyes with my fingers. "We cannot take her with us on this expedition; it is too dangerous. Perhaps she will feel better when she knows that."
"I think not, Healer," Fasala said. "Each time you leave her, Marel fears you will not return. Her true happiness is walking within beauty with you and Linguist Reever." With a sympathetic gesture, the Jorenian girl also departed.
When Marel was upset, Reever always managed her better than I could, so I busied myself with tidying up. An hour passed before he emerged and joined me in the food prep area.
"She is sleeping now." He put his arm around my waist. "Don't blame yourself, beloved. We knew this news would be difficult for her to accept."
I knew, and still it did not make a difference. "I know it must be this way, and still I cannot bear to hear her weeping like that." I took a deep breath and faced him. "Fasala mentioned something. It seems our daughter has been telling the other children that we were to make a home here. A permanent home."
Reever frowned. "I have not said any such thing to her. Have you?"
I shook my head. "Who would make her believe something like that?"
"Perhaps something was said by someone who wishes us to remain on Joren." His gaze shifted to the drone concealed in a nearby wall.
Xonea, of course. Another of his controlling tactics, and this time he used it on my daughter.
This time, he had made my daughter cry.
I couldn't bear another moment of this farce, so I reached into the storage container and removed the largest, sharpest blade from it. "Look over there, Husband." I made my voice as loud as I could without disturbing the child. "I think someone has planted a spying device in our quarters."
"Jarn." Duncan shook his head.
He was right; what I meant to do was a foolish thing. And I didn't care. I went over to the wall and drove the knife into the embedded drone. The plasteel shattered the monitoring device, causing a short spray of sparks to shoot out of the wall.
"I wonder if there are others. Let me look." I went to the next. "Oh, dear, here is another one." I used the blade to pry this one out of the wall panel, and peered into its tiny lens. "Are you getting this picture, spy?" I dropped the drone to the floor and stomped on it until it lay in small pieces.
Reever did not stop me as I went from drone to drone and systematically destroyed all but one of them. With the last, I carefully removed it from its hiding place and brought it over to the disposal unit.
"Hello," I said to the drone. "Please be advised of the following: If I find another monitoring device within a hundred meters of me, Reever, or Marel, I will have the person responsible explain why to the Ruling Council." I paused. "After I beat him senseless for intruding on our privacy and deceiving our child."
I crushed the drone in my hand before I dropped the remains into the disposal.
Reever came to stand next to me. "Regarding the beating, you will have to wait your turn."
"Good." I turned and went to the room terminal, and prepared a formal text signal before I asked my husband to translate it into Jorenian for me. As he read the message, I said, "I will send it now, unless you have any objections."
He gave me one of his rare half smiles. "None at all."
Marel woke up early, but said little to us as she had her morning meal and prepared for her day at school.
I did not like this silence, not when I had grown accustomed to the child's bright, endless chatter. But Reever had suggested I let her have some time to adjust to the news of the expedition before I discussed it with her. Saying nothing made me feel as unhappy as
"I knew she was becoming attached to this world, but . . ." I stopped and rubbed my eyes with my fingers. "We cannot take her with us on this expedition; it is too dangerous. Perhaps she will feel better when she knows that."
"I think not, Healer," Fasala said. "Each time you leave her, Marel fears you will not return. Her true happiness is walking within beauty with you and Linguist Reever." With a sympathetic gesture, the Jorenian girl also departed.
When Marel was upset, Reever always managed her better than I could, so I busied myself with tidying up. An hour passed before he emerged and joined me in the food prep area.
"She is sleeping now." He put his arm around my waist. "Don't blame yourself, beloved. We knew this news would be difficult for her to accept."
I knew, and still it did not make a difference. "I know it must be this way, and still I cannot bear to hear her weeping like that." I took a deep breath and faced him. "Fasala mentioned something. It seems our daughter has been telling the other children that we were to make a home here. A permanent home."
Reever frowned. "I have not said any such thing to her. Have you?"
I shook my head. "Who would make her believe something like that?"
"Perhaps something was said by someone who wishes us to remain on Joren." His gaze shifted to the drone concealed in a nearby wall.
Xonea, of course. Another of his controlling tactics, and this time he used it on my daughter.
This time, he had made my daughter cry.
I couldn't bear another moment of this farce, so I reached into the storage container and removed the largest, sharpest blade from it. "Look over there, Husband." I made my voice as loud as I could without disturbing the child. "I think someone has planted a spying device in our quarters."
"Jarn." Duncan shook his head.
He was right; what I meant to do was a foolish thing. And I didn't care. I went over to the wall and drove the knife into the embedded drone. The plasteel shattered the monitoring device, causing a short spray of sparks to shoot out of the wall.
"I wonder if there are others. Let me look." I went to the next. "Oh, dear, here is another one." I used the blade to pry this one out of the wall panel, and peered into its tiny lens. "Are you getting this picture, spy?" I dropped the drone to the floor and stomped on it until it lay in small pieces.
Reever did not stop me as I went from drone to drone and systematically destroyed all but one of them. With the last, I carefully removed it from its hiding place and brought it over to the disposal unit.
"Hello," I said to the drone. "Please be advised of the following: If I find another monitoring device within a hundred meters of me, Reever, or Marel, I will have the person responsible explain why to the Ruling Council." I paused. "After I beat him senseless for intruding on our privacy and deceiving our child."
I crushed the drone in my hand before I dropped the remains into the disposal.
Reever came to stand next to me. "Regarding the beating, you will have to wait your turn."
"Good." I turned and went to the room terminal, and prepared a formal text signal before I asked my husband to translate it into Jorenian for me. As he read the message, I said, "I will send it now, unless you have any objections."
He gave me one of his rare half smiles. "None at all."
Marel woke up early, but said little to us as she had her morning meal and prepared for her day at school.
I did not like this silence, not when I had grown accustomed to the child's bright, endless chatter. But Reever had suggested I let her have some time to adjust to the news of the expedition before I discussed it with her. Saying nothing made me feel as unhappy as
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