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Don t delude yourself that I will under any circumstances. I have told you already that there is an
average of seventy cubic light-years per star. If you work by trial and error, without me, the odds are
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two hundred and fifty quadrillion to one against your coming within a billion miles of any star.Any star!
Something wentclick! in Biron s mind.
He said, Take him back to theRemorseless!
Rizzett said in a low voice, The Lady Artemisia--
And Biron interrupted, Then itwas she. Where is she?
It s all right. She s safe. She came out without a carbon-dioxide cylinder. Naturally, as the
CO2washed out of her blood stream, the automatic breathing mechanism of the body slowed. She was
trying to run, didn t have the sense to breathe deeply voluntarily, and fainted.
Biron frowned. Why was she trying to interfere with you, anyway? Making sure her boy friend
didn t get hurt?
Rizzett said, Yes, she was! Only she thought I was the Autarch s man and was going to shoot
you. I ll take back this rat now, and, Biron--
Yes?
Get back as soon as you can. He s still the Autarch, and the crew may need talking to. It s hard
to break a lifetime habit of obedience....She s behind that rock. Get to her before she freezes to death,
will you? She won t leave.
Her face was almost buried in the hood that covered her head, and her body was formless in the
thick, enveloping folds of the space-suit lining, but his steps quickened as he approached her.
He said, How are you?
She said, Better, thank you. I am sorry if I caused any trouble.
They stood looking at each other, and the conversation seemed to have burned itself out in two
lines.
Then Biron said, I know we can t turn time backward, undo things that have been done, unsay
things that have been said. But I do want you to understand.
Why this stress on understanding? Her eyes flashed. I have done nothing but understand for
weeks now. Will you ten me again about my father?
No. I knew your father was innocent. I suspected the Autarch almost from the start, but I had to
find out definitely. I could only prove it, Arta, by forcing him to confess. I thought I could get him to
confess by trapping him into attempting to kill me, and there was only one way of doing that.
He felt wretched. He went on, It was a bad thing to do. As bad, almost, as what he did to my
father. I don t expect you to forgive me.
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She said, I don t follow you. He said, I knew he wanted you, Arta. Politically, you would be a
perfect matrimonial object. The name of Hinriad would be more useful for his purposes than that of
Widemos. So once he had you, he would need me no longer. I deliberately forced you on him, Arta. I
acted as I did, hoping you would turn to him. When you did, he thought he was ready to rid himself of
me, and Rizzett and I laid our trap.
And you loved me an the time?
Biron said, Can t you bring yourself to believe that, Arta?
And of course you were ready to sacrifice your love to the memory of your father and the honor
of your family. How does the old doggerel go? You could not love me half so much, loved you not honor
more!
Biron said, miserably, Please, Arta! I am not proud of myself but I could think of no other way.
You might have told me your plan, made me your confederate rather than your tool.
It was not your fight. If I had failed--and I might have --you would have remained out of it. If
the Autarch had killed me and you were no longer on my side, you would be less hurt. You might even
have married him, even been happy.
Since you have won, it might be that I would be hurt athis loss.
But you aren t.
How do you know?
Biron said desperately, At least try to see my motives. Granted that I was foolish--criminally
foolish--can t you understand? Can t you try not to hate me?
She said softly, I have tried not to love you and, as you see, I have failed.
Then you forgive me.
Why? Because I understand? No! If f were a matter of simply understanding, of seeing your
motives, I would not forgive you your actions for anything I might have in life. If it were only that and
nothing more! But Iwill forgive you, Biron, because I couldn t bear not to. How could I ask you to come
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