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Show "And before that, Hoqqam forced me into an aircar!" She began to weep openly. "Know I well about aircars!" Brandon said fervently. He looked at her with interest. He had never seen Chu weep before. "And I know not how to get back now " She put her grubby hands up to her face. Several nails were broken and her carmine polish was chipped back almost to the quick. Brandon put an arm around her shoulders, and led her away toward the cottages. "Mayhap we won't go b a c k . . . " he said soothingly. Chu wailed aloud at that and began pulling at her filthy hair. "But I cannot live without data! I cannot live without my keyboard!" "Now. now," said Brandon, steering her into the lane. "There is no more d a t a . . . ." "What!" "Come, fair Chu," he said, "we must needs to the cottages to get thee a biopak. . ." "But " " . . . a n d explain I will to thee. . .everything." Belinda was fretful. "We must needs parley," she said in exasperation. "We must needs get back to business." But Dr'Igor had grown tired of it all-a defeated man, his dream shattered, all that work, all that busyness! To what end pray? Be we all destined to run around in circles for our health's sake? "Parley!" he said again. "I will back to my Hold and tend to my own hectares and ye can 331 |