right price. Especially on a planet like Mistworld.
“It’s really very simple,” said Silver. “As head of starport Security, I have access to all Blood confiscated on the streets. And as I control all the computer records, no one’s going to notice if I liberate a few drops now and then, for myself and a few special friends. You can’t try and run a hellhole like Mistport without some crutch or other to lean on. And we don’t all have it in us to be incorruptible heroes, like Investigator Topaz. I’m not an addict. I can control it. I’m not so sure about you. Hazel. You always were the greedy kind. Coming off it the last time nearly killed you. You really want to go through that again?”
Hazel stared down into her mug, not looking at him. “You don’t know the pressure I’m under, John. So much has happened in such a short time. One minute I’m just a small-time outlaw, of no interest or importance to anyone but myself, and the next I’m a rebel, and everyone’s after my head. Including some of those supposed to be on my side. As long as I was fighting and running for my life and didn’t have time to think, I was fine, but now . . . Everything I do matters, everything I say has consequences, not just for me but for the whole damned rebellion. They’ve made me a bloody hero and a leader, and expect me to be perfect.
“And that’s not all. Something happened to me on the Wolfling World, John. Something . . . changed me. I’m more than I used to be, and I’m scared all the time. I don’t think I’m me anymore. I have bad dreams, and I can’t tell if I’m remembering the past or the future. I can do things now that I never could before. Strange and terrible things. The Blood is the only thing that helps. It . . . stabilizes me, calms me . . . helps me believe I’m still human.”
She put down her mug and reached out with her hand, and the glass phial of Blood leaped up from the table and shot into her waiting hand. Silver looked at her, startled.
“I didn’t know you were an esper, Hazel.”
“I’m not. I’m something else. Something . . . more.” She unscrewed the top of the phial and sniffed delicately at the black liquid inside. Her nostrils flared as the familiar scent filled her head, dark and smoky. She breathed deeply, sucking it into her lungs, and sparks flared and fluttered in her veins. She tilted the phial carefully, and allowed a single drop of Blood to fall onto her tongue. She swallowed quickly, to avoid as much of the bitter wormwood taste as she could, and then refastened the phial’s cap and put it back on the table, so not to be tempted to take a second drop. She leaned back in her chair, and groaned aloud as the familiar heat rushed through her, burning along her nerves, making her strong and powerful and confident again. The pressures and the duties and the doubts that plagued her were swept away, and, for the first time in days, her face relaxed. She smiled slowly. It felt so good. So good not to have to care anymore.
Silver watched her from his chair, keeping his own counsel till he was sure she was well under. He had intended to join her, but memories of what Hazel had been like in the worst throes of addiction had changed his mind. He wasn’t an addict. He could control himself. So he stayed straight and sober, because he had a strong feeling that Hazel needed him to be there, watching over her. Even as he thought that, her half-shut drowsing eyes snapped suddenly open, and she sprang to her feet, looking wildly about her. Silver was quickly on his feet, too, putting his mug on the table so he could take Hazel by the arms. She didn’t seem to notice him, and her arms were rigid as steel bars. Silver watched her carefully. You had to be careful with Blood users, when you weren’t cranked yourself. With their new strength they could kill a normal human in a moment and not give a damn till after the Blood had worn off. Hazel stared about her, her
“It’s really very simple,” said Silver. “As head of starport Security, I have access to all Blood confiscated on the streets. And as I control all the computer records, no one’s going to notice if I liberate a few drops now and then, for myself and a few special friends. You can’t try and run a hellhole like Mistport without some crutch or other to lean on. And we don’t all have it in us to be incorruptible heroes, like Investigator Topaz. I’m not an addict. I can control it. I’m not so sure about you. Hazel. You always were the greedy kind. Coming off it the last time nearly killed you. You really want to go through that again?”
Hazel stared down into her mug, not looking at him. “You don’t know the pressure I’m under, John. So much has happened in such a short time. One minute I’m just a small-time outlaw, of no interest or importance to anyone but myself, and the next I’m a rebel, and everyone’s after my head. Including some of those supposed to be on my side. As long as I was fighting and running for my life and didn’t have time to think, I was fine, but now . . . Everything I do matters, everything I say has consequences, not just for me but for the whole damned rebellion. They’ve made me a bloody hero and a leader, and expect me to be perfect.
“And that’s not all. Something happened to me on the Wolfling World, John. Something . . . changed me. I’m more than I used to be, and I’m scared all the time. I don’t think I’m me anymore. I have bad dreams, and I can’t tell if I’m remembering the past or the future. I can do things now that I never could before. Strange and terrible things. The Blood is the only thing that helps. It . . . stabilizes me, calms me . . . helps me believe I’m still human.”
She put down her mug and reached out with her hand, and the glass phial of Blood leaped up from the table and shot into her waiting hand. Silver looked at her, startled.
“I didn’t know you were an esper, Hazel.”
“I’m not. I’m something else. Something . . . more.” She unscrewed the top of the phial and sniffed delicately at the black liquid inside. Her nostrils flared as the familiar scent filled her head, dark and smoky. She breathed deeply, sucking it into her lungs, and sparks flared and fluttered in her veins. She tilted the phial carefully, and allowed a single drop of Blood to fall onto her tongue. She swallowed quickly, to avoid as much of the bitter wormwood taste as she could, and then refastened the phial’s cap and put it back on the table, so not to be tempted to take a second drop. She leaned back in her chair, and groaned aloud as the familiar heat rushed through her, burning along her nerves, making her strong and powerful and confident again. The pressures and the duties and the doubts that plagued her were swept away, and, for the first time in days, her face relaxed. She smiled slowly. It felt so good. So good not to have to care anymore.
Silver watched her from his chair, keeping his own counsel till he was sure she was well under. He had intended to join her, but memories of what Hazel had been like in the worst throes of addiction had changed his mind. He wasn’t an addict. He could control himself. So he stayed straight and sober, because he had a strong feeling that Hazel needed him to be there, watching over her. Even as he thought that, her half-shut drowsing eyes snapped suddenly open, and she sprang to her feet, looking wildly about her. Silver was quickly on his feet, too, putting his mug on the table so he could take Hazel by the arms. She didn’t seem to notice him, and her arms were rigid as steel bars. Silver watched her carefully. You had to be careful with Blood users, when you weren’t cranked yourself. With their new strength they could kill a normal human in a moment and not give a damn till after the Blood had worn off. Hazel stared about her, her
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