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.Vrithianaction on the primary lineShareem slept restlessly on her pallet in the flier, woke with an aching head,soreness in her hips and shoulders where her weight had pushed them againstthe thinly padded floor, a stuffy nose from the dust.Muzzy and irritable,annoyed with Aleytys and Kell, she groaned up onto her knees, massaged hertemples, patted a yawn, then crawled out of the flier feeling grubby andmelancholy and wholly disgruntled with the fate that had brought her to thispass.She straightened and looked around. Whatever you did, we re still inone piece. She stretched, ran her hands through her hair, rubbed bare feet onthe cool wiry grass. Lee, she called out. Hoop hoop hoop, hey Lee,breakfast time.Up, my girl, your mama s hungry. The mewls of the sea birds, the distant mutter of the sea, the drip of waterin the fountains, that was all she heard.The house was silent, the gardensquiet, nothing moving, shadows stark in the early sun.Patches of frostlingered in the long shadows, and there was the smell of frost to come in theair, a hint that the short summer was nearing its end.Shareem pulled her toeacross the powdery white, feeling the chill of it bite into her flesh,watching the black line her toe drew lengthen and fade as the frost patchfaded.Abruptly she felt thrust back into time, into the primitive time wherenothing changed with any permanence, where everything recurred again andagain.In the seasons of her life it was Kell s time again, a time of flightand terror, but or so she told herself and tried to believe it the old themewas turned on its back, this time Kell would be the driven one.She stared atthe silent house, suddenly frightened. Lee, she called, urgency in hervoice. Lee! No answer.Shareem fought panic.Dead? Fled? What.She forced herself towalk slowly toward the house.Slow and calm, she thought, slow and calm, slowand calm, but she was breathing hard and almost running by the time shereached the door.She tore it open, slammed it back against the stone, but shedidn t care, she didn t care if the noise triggered the menace, she didn tcare about anything but Aleytys.In the middle of the great hall she scrambledto a stop and screamed her daughter s name.No answer but the echoes.She tried to control her terror, tried to think.Told herself: Remember, youcan precipitate the thing you want to avoid, you can kill Aleytys, killyourself, reduce house and hold to slag, let Kell win.She hugged her armsacross her breasts and tried to calm herself, dragging up the ways she dlearned to shunt aside uncomfortable thoughts and shaming memories. Ikanom, Page 142 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlshe called, her voice still ragged but settling into control. Ikanom. The android came from the back of the house, moving into the hall with thatliquid grace that all of Synkatta s designs possessed. You desire, anassa? She cleared her throat. Where is Aleytys? Ikanom went quiet, consulting the kephalos, at first listening calmly, thenturning its head so the planes of its face made a pattern of puzzlement, thenit faced Shareem once more. It is difficult to say, anassa.Within the dome,yes, somewhere, but precisely where is not at all clear. Shareem swallowed, fought to control her fear. Is she alive? Ikanom went still.Shareem s throat closed up.Its face made a pattern ofpuzzlement again. Kephalos is confused, anassa. Shareem waited, unable to speak. Aleytys archira is living but dormant. Shareem swallowed again, stiffened back and knees. It is certain? It is certain, anassa. Then find her, Ikanom, bring her to me.It s important.It s more importantthan anything kephalos has ever done.Find her.Bring her to me. She lookedaround. Here.I think here.When I see her I ll know better what to do. Kephalos searches, anassa.Would you care to eat while you wait? She stared at the shifting planes of the android s face.How can I eat? Shepressed her hand against her middle.I should.I don t know, yes I d better. Yes, she said. Bring me.bring me an omelet, toast.um.someshalla juice.um.a pot of cha.Over there. A small table and twochairs, in a deep alcove whose windows opened onto one of the gardens. In twenty minutes, anassa.If that suits you? It suits. Ikanom left.She walked with slow careful steps across the elaborate parquetryof the hall floor and sat in one of the chairs, her back to the hall so sheneedn t see how empty it was, her shakes changing into numbness, fear andanger blunting into passivity.If Aleytys failed last night, this afternoon smissile could trigger the tumor at the house s heart.Or tomorrow s.Or athousand other things.She didn t care.Couldn t care.All she wanted was forthis torment to be over, one way or another.If Kell walked in the next momentwith a knife to cut her throat, she d lift her chin to make his task easier.Time dragged, each second an eternity.A few eternities later one of the houseserviteurs rolled up and began setting out her meal.She stared at the food.At first her stomach rebelled, but she forced herselfto nibble at a piece of toast and sip at the fruit juice.In a few minutes herrevulsion vanished, and her hunger returned so fiercely she had to disciplineherself into eating more slowly.Cradled by the quiet of the great hall, the hot meal scaring away the worst ofher anxieties, she began to recover her composure and back away from thatlethargy that was a kind of suicide.She sat a little longer at the table,watching the day brighten outside, expecting to hear at any moment that thekephalos had located Aleytys.After half an hour had slipped away, she got toher feet and began wandering through the house, room to room, kicking alongthe flow spaces, into closets and storage niches, prying into chests, notadmitting to herself she was searching for her daughter s comatose body, justlooking.She poked her nose into every crazy corner of that crazy house andfound nothing.I ll get close enough to her, I ll feel her, I know I will, shetold herself; whether that was true or not, she felt nothing.Midafternoon.She was in the bookroom passing a window when she saw the flareof light that meant another missile had been destroyed.She glanced at herringchron.Right on time.Eyes closed, she listened.Nothing happened.Eitherit wasn t supposed to or Aleytys had pulled the thing s teeth.She droppedinto the chair by the desk and sat with her head propped on her hands,thinking.One place left.And I can t get in there.Househeart.Tumor on theheart.Yes
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Tematy
IndexGolon Anne & Golon Serge Angelika 09 Angelika i demony
Golon Anne & Golon Serge Markiza Angelika 09 Angelika i demony
Isaac Asimov Foundation 09 Foundation and Chaos
Bruce Campbell Ken Holt 09 Mystery of Galloping Horse UC
Pedersen Bente Roza znad Fiordów 09 Gdy zakwitnš konwalie
John Ringo Alldenata 09 Sister Time (with Julie Cochrane)
Kava Alex Maggie O'Dell 09 Œmiertelne napięcie
Rose Emilie Dynastia Elliottów 09 Zakochani wrogowie
Stacia Kane Dolna Dzielnica 02 NieÂświęta Magia
Żukowski Lesław Największe kłamstwa i mistyfikacje w dziejach koÂścioła