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Timka turned bright green eyes on Skeen. Coming more and more awake, her
persona taking command of her flesh, the likeness between the two Min
diminished considerably. She cleared her throat, coughed, said, "I know this
place. You're a Pass-through."
Skeen nodded absently. She contemplated the silently smoldering Telka. "You
understand, Min, attacking me tore up the contract." She bent her leg,
flattened it and inspected the small pulls where the werecat's claws had
glanced off her leg, weren't for the eddersil she'd've got to the bone. She
straightened the leg out, scowled at Telka. "Doesn't matter, it's finished
anyway. You really want her, don't you, and not to kiss and make up."
Telka stared at her, saying nothing, her lips almost disappearing as she
screwed down her emotions and withdrew into herself.
Skeen smiled. She turned to Timka. "Timka," she said. "Listen a minute, then
I'll cut you loose." She kept the darter on Telka and made sure the Min knew
she was keeping an eye on her. "Seems to me you've got yourself a couple of
choices. You can try for the city, doubt you'd make it, though, and unless
you're hooked on the Poet, I don't see why you'd do that. Or you can head for
Mintown, but me, I wouldn't go near that hanging mob waiting for you. You know
your folk better than me, you know what your chances are. Up to you. Or you
can come through the Stranger's Gate with me." She grinned at the fuming
Telka. "I owe your sister a kick in the butt, why not take advantage of that.
Take a chance on my world. I'll show you how to go on, then it'll be up to you
to keep yourself. Shouldn't be too hard with your talents. Think about it, but
don't take too long. You Min make me nervous."
Timka lifted her bound hands, rubbed them across her face. "What did she do?"
"Jumped me. Tried it anyway. Didn't work out the way she thought."
"You'd have sold me to her without that?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Why not? Didn't know you."
"What stops you from selling me again?"
"Me telling you I won't."
"Why should I believe you?"
"Throw the dice. And ask yourself what you've got here that's so great."
Timka held up her bound wrists. "What about cutting me loose?"
Skeen slipped the knife from her boot; watching Telka with additional care,
she flipped the knife into the ground within Timka's reach but on the side
away from her sister.
As Timka began the awkward job cutting herself loose, Skeen got to her feet
and backed off a few steps so she could watch both more easily, trusting
neither of them.
Timka got to her feet, stood rubbing her wrists as she gazed down at her
sister. "Hanging mob. That's right, isn't it, Telk. Don't bother answering.
Brain-burn me, won't they, Telk. With you goosing them on if their enthusiasm
flags, yes sister?" She ran her hand through her hair, grimacing at the greasy
feel, struggling to bring some order to the matted mass. "I wonder how much
control you'd have over them if I really decided to fight? I'm the oldest,
remember? I could always beat you when I had to. Oh, don't tense up so, I
won't. You were quite sure of that, weren't you. Well, you're right. I'm not
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going back to be caged in until I die of boredom. And you bore me worse than
any of them."
"Whore," Telka whispered, hate so thick around her it shivered the air like
heat waves. "You like eating Nemin dirt."
"Same old song, Telk. Boring, Telk. Booorrriing." Timka turned her back on
Telka, making a production of it, crossed the glade to stand in front of
Skeen, making a production of that also, a graceful sway in her walk,
exaggerated to intrigue Skeen and infuriate Telka. "Free woman?"
"Free by me. You watch yourself cleverly enough, you can stay free. But don't
expect me or anyone else to pay your way forever."
Timka tapped the black compo handle of the knife against her cheek, then swung
round to glare at her sister. "How long before you got tired of trying to fish
me out and sent one of your dupes to cut my throat?"
Telka glared back, said nothing.
Timka started for her.
"Nope, not that way." Skeen tapped the Min's shoulder with the darter. "Give
me the knife."
Timka hesitated as if wondering whether she could successfully defy Skeen,
then turned with a brilliant smile, a flutter of her hand in graceful
surrender, offered the knife over her arm, hilt forward. "You'll be sorry you
didn't let me finish this. I don't know how she'll manage it, but she'll make
you sorry you left her alive."
Skeen shrugged. "I'll take my chances. Where I come from, cutting the throat
of an ex-employer is bad for business. Makes the rest hesitate to hire you."
"This isn't there. She tried& "
"Doesn't matter what she tried up to me to see she loses out. Which I did.
Forget& no, you don't, shifter." She put a dart in Telka as the Min began to
blur at the edges, then darted her again.
Telka fought the drug, struggled to shift before it took her, but she lost the
race and slumped against the basin.
Skeen frowned at the two horses, stripped of gear, cropping languidly at the
grass, then she shook her head, holstered the darter, caught up the pack and
dipped her arms through the straps.
"Why not take them?" Timka scowled. "Leave them for her? Why?"
"No water, bad footing, too noisy. We go quiet-quiet like a mouse."
Timka sighed. "I hope you know I'm all over bruises and my head isn't that
steady."
"Exercise will work the kinks out and food will take care of the swim in the
head. Let's go."
OH SHIT!
The gate looked different. The woods were full of noises. Buzz of insects,
rustle of leaves. The white wall had lost some of its shimmer and menace.
Skeen stepped to the gate and looked into it.
And looked through it.
Saw the trees on the far side of the glade.
She looked over her shoulder, saw the despair dragging down Timka's face, so
it didn't surprise her much when she walked between the posts, walked around
the Gate and came back to where she'd started. "Gate's closed," she said. "How
come?"
Timka sighed. "Who knows.'
Skeen closed her eyes, chewed her tongue. At that moment, she had a strong
impulse to dart the Min and toss her back to her bonesucker sister. She
cleared her throat. "You aren't surprised."
"I was hoping you knew what you were doing."
Skeen lost her outrage in a sputtering laugh. "Now who's the fool. Djabo!" She
giggled some more. "Both, I suppose. All right. The Gate is closed. Not much I
can do about that. When will it open again?"
"When someone comes through from the far side, I suppose." [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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