Read Online Partnership by Anne McCaffrey, Margaret Ball - Free Book Online
Authors: Anne McCaffrey, Margaret Ball
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where molten lava menaced the hapless play icons.
"If you're nice to me," Alpha added, "I'll promise to kill you before the Ganglicide eats out your brains. No human being should have to die like that"
50
Anne McCaffrey fc? Margaret Ball
"Oh, I'll be nice to you," Polyon said. His voice ivas still even; he thrust off from the control panel with HVQ
fingers and floated across the room. As he came closer Alpha recognized the look in his eyes. Not frightened Wary. Like a hunter waiting for his quarry to burst from cover. And as he reached out to encircle her wrist with strong, blunt fingers, the look changed to a light of triumph. "I think we can be very nice to one another lovely Alpha. It's so kind of you to take an interest in my career." His voice changed on the last words, mocking, savagely amused. "But enough about me.
Tell us about yourself, why don't you?" He gestured towards Darnell and Fassa, floating through the open door to join them. "We'd all like to hear about your interrupted research. And why one of the school's brightest young medical researchers chose to donate five years of public service to an obscure clinic on Bahati You're too modest, Alpha."
Alpha tossed her head and tried to pull away from Polyon, but he was too strong for her. "There's nothing to tell, really. I was tired — wanted a change of scene. That's all."
"Is it?" Polyon murmured. "Funny. The way I heard it, there were some other people who wanted to change your scene. The newsnibblers never beamed the story, did they? Can't have scandals about a High Families girl going out as entertainment bytes. But I fancy our friends on board here would find the story very entertaining."
Alpha stared up at Polyon, looking for a hint of compassion in the sharp planes of his face and the ice-blue eyes that had seemed so attractive a moment ago. "I did nothing to be ashamed of," she whispered. "The tradition of scientific experiments — "
"Does not include testing Ganglicide on unwitting subjects." His voice was so low the others could not hear it
PARTNERSHIP
51
Charity cases," Alpha defended herself "Streetbums.
ne of them were so far gone on Blissto they didn't even ow what was happening to them. They were incurable __ nothing but an expense to the state as long as they Kved. I did diem a favor, making sure their lives ended for some purpose."
"Somehow," Polyon murmured, "I don't think the court would have seen it that way. But then, you never did come to trial, did you? Hezra clan and Fong tribe wouldn't let that happen. Private settlement in the med school offices, records sealed."
«How — did you find out?" Alpha gasped. He was very close to her now, his voice the subtlest vibration of sound from lips that almost brushed her cheek. The raw power of his will and his anger wrapped about her. She felt weak from the spine out. His smile made her shiver.
"That's my little secret," he told her, still smiling. His face and gestures might have been those of a courtship; Alpha realized that the others in the room might imagine they were flirting. That was a relief.
Anything was preferable to having her humiliation made public before these people who were to be her constant companions for the next two weeks—having them see her as the disgraced failure she was, instead of the successful young researcher with a social conscience she pretended to be. "You were lucky to get off with five years of community service on Bahati, weren't you?" Polyon commented, stroking her cheek with his free hand. "A commoner would have been doing time. Hard time. Who knows, gorgeous, you might even have wound up on Shemali — getting a chance to check out Ganglicide at first hand, so to speak. Wouldn't our innocent litde friends love to hear the story?"
But he was still speaking in a low voice, head partially turned away from Fassa and Blaize and Darnell, 52
Anne McCaffrey & Margaret Ball
who had grouped together in the far corner of the cabin
"If you're nice to me," Alpha added, "I'll promise to kill you before the Ganglicide eats out your brains. No human being should have to die like that"
50
Anne McCaffrey fc? Margaret Ball
"Oh, I'll be nice to you," Polyon said. His voice ivas still even; he thrust off from the control panel with HVQ
fingers and floated across the room. As he came closer Alpha recognized the look in his eyes. Not frightened Wary. Like a hunter waiting for his quarry to burst from cover. And as he reached out to encircle her wrist with strong, blunt fingers, the look changed to a light of triumph. "I think we can be very nice to one another lovely Alpha. It's so kind of you to take an interest in my career." His voice changed on the last words, mocking, savagely amused. "But enough about me.
Tell us about yourself, why don't you?" He gestured towards Darnell and Fassa, floating through the open door to join them. "We'd all like to hear about your interrupted research. And why one of the school's brightest young medical researchers chose to donate five years of public service to an obscure clinic on Bahati You're too modest, Alpha."
Alpha tossed her head and tried to pull away from Polyon, but he was too strong for her. "There's nothing to tell, really. I was tired — wanted a change of scene. That's all."
"Is it?" Polyon murmured. "Funny. The way I heard it, there were some other people who wanted to change your scene. The newsnibblers never beamed the story, did they? Can't have scandals about a High Families girl going out as entertainment bytes. But I fancy our friends on board here would find the story very entertaining."
Alpha stared up at Polyon, looking for a hint of compassion in the sharp planes of his face and the ice-blue eyes that had seemed so attractive a moment ago. "I did nothing to be ashamed of," she whispered. "The tradition of scientific experiments — "
"Does not include testing Ganglicide on unwitting subjects." His voice was so low the others could not hear it
PARTNERSHIP
51
Charity cases," Alpha defended herself "Streetbums.
ne of them were so far gone on Blissto they didn't even ow what was happening to them. They were incurable __ nothing but an expense to the state as long as they Kved. I did diem a favor, making sure their lives ended for some purpose."
"Somehow," Polyon murmured, "I don't think the court would have seen it that way. But then, you never did come to trial, did you? Hezra clan and Fong tribe wouldn't let that happen. Private settlement in the med school offices, records sealed."
«How — did you find out?" Alpha gasped. He was very close to her now, his voice the subtlest vibration of sound from lips that almost brushed her cheek. The raw power of his will and his anger wrapped about her. She felt weak from the spine out. His smile made her shiver.
"That's my little secret," he told her, still smiling. His face and gestures might have been those of a courtship; Alpha realized that the others in the room might imagine they were flirting. That was a relief.
Anything was preferable to having her humiliation made public before these people who were to be her constant companions for the next two weeks—having them see her as the disgraced failure she was, instead of the successful young researcher with a social conscience she pretended to be. "You were lucky to get off with five years of community service on Bahati, weren't you?" Polyon commented, stroking her cheek with his free hand. "A commoner would have been doing time. Hard time. Who knows, gorgeous, you might even have wound up on Shemali — getting a chance to check out Ganglicide at first hand, so to speak. Wouldn't our innocent litde friends love to hear the story?"
But he was still speaking in a low voice, head partially turned away from Fassa and Blaize and Darnell, 52
Anne McCaffrey & Margaret Ball
who had grouped together in the far corner of the cabin
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