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.Suppose Tally is in trouble? We know the exact location of his ship, and you and I are trained survival specialists.Why aren't we heading out there.Why are we sitting doing nothing?""Why are we here at all, when Ben Blesh and Sinara Bellstock and Lara Quistner are away on assignments?" Teri glanced at the cabin eye, confirming that it was turned off.It was, but even so she lowered her voice."When we were in our final stages of training, did you have an affair with one of the instructors?""What if I did?" If Torran Veck was startled by the sudden change of subject, he did not let it show."It wasn't forbidden, and I wasn't the only one.I certainly didn't get favored treatment on any of the tests—Mandy was probably harder on me than anyone else.""I believe you.I'm not suggesting you had an easy time.But I'll tell you one thing.If I'd had something going with an instructor, after our training was all done there were certain questions I couldn't have resisted asking Mandy.""Like?""Like how well I had done, compared with others.That wouldn't be giving me an advantage.It would just be pillow talk.""Mm." Torran Veck had a big, fleshy nose.He tended to pinch the bridge between finger and thumb when he was thinking.He held it now."What gave us away? We agreed there would be no signs of public affection and no favoritism.Otherwise we'd both have been in trouble.""You overdid it.Both of you.In the classes, Mandy was hard on you when there was no reason.And you never looked directly at her.""Mm.""Well? Did you? Ask questions, I mean, about how you had done?""Maybe.""And perhaps how other people had done?""So what if I did? Teri, where are you taking this?""I didn't have Mandy's ear, but all during training I couldn't help comparing the members of our group.I watched you perform, and Lara, and everyone else.I bet you did the same.""Of course I did.""But you had Mandy to confirm your gut reactions.I didn't.I'll tell you what I think, and I'd like your comment.All right?""Maybe.""There were two stand-out trainees in our group.Their names were Torran Veck and Teri Dahl.You and me.We were easily the best of the bunch, and there was hardly a whisker separating our final scores."Torran stopped holding the bridge of his nose."Are you sure you didn't have inside information?""Not a scrap.But I use my eyes and ears, same as you do.Comments?""Some of these are Mandy's, not mine—though I agree with you and her, we were both top of the class, kick-ass compared with the others.Ben's smart, but he has these feelings of inadequacy.That makes him want to do wild things, just to prove he can.He gets scared, but he'll try to be a hero even if it kills him.If Ben gets into trouble it will be because he thinks that when you are in charge it's a weakness to say you don't understand or don't know.Lara is smart, too—hell, we all are.But her personality has a built-in contradiction.She doesn't really want to run things.So she takes orders—but then she resents being given them.She will get into trouble trying to prove that she makes command decisions as well as anyone, when in fact she doesn't."He paused, until Teri asked, "That leaves Sinara.What about her?""Mandy has a soft spot for Sinara.""So do you.""A little.I have a soft spot for you, too, but not enough to distort my judgment of either of you.Sinara ought never to have become a survival specialist.She has mood swings.Sometimes she's all dreamy and romantic, sometimes she's a practicing nymphomaniac.""You would know, I suppose.""Don't go by rumors.Anyway, Sinara isn't exactly what you would call a responsible person.If Ben is looking to be a hero, Sinara is looking to find one.Mandy believes Sinara only went into this business because her family wanted her to—father's dying wish and all that.He was in the same line of work, killed in the Castlemaine disaster.But Sinara shouldn't be looking after other people.She needs somebody to look after her.""Now she's off with Louis Nenda and his crew of alien thugs.Heaven help her.I can't see him taking care of anybody but himself.""Look on the bright side.Maybe this is what she needs to sort her out.But I don't think you asked if you could come to my cabin so we could sympathize with Sinara or anyone else.Where are you going with all this?""I'm going to see Julian Graves.But I wanted to talk to you first." Teri uncrossed her legs and stood up from the bunk in one easy movement."I think you ought to come with me [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]