Lady Lure (40 page)

“The Famorati?” Perri said, unable to
restrain herself at the mention of the intriguing name.

“Yes,” Almaric said. “Do you know anything of
that Race?”

“Only what Halvo has told me. The Famorati
live too far from Regula for the Race to be familiar to me.” Perri
hoped she was not blushing. She knew Halvo was looking at her in a
peculiar way, as if he were considering a fascinating possibility
he dared not discuss with her in front of other people.

“I will consider your proposition,” Halvo
said to his father, “but only after you agree to several
conditions. First, when I travel as your personal ambassador, I
want to use the
Space Dragon.”

“That wretched little ship?” Kalina cried.
“Halvo, we can provide a larger, better-equipped vessel for
you.”

“I like the
Space Dragon,
Mother. She
holds special memories for me.”

“Can she be made space worthy again?” Almaric
looked from Halvo to Jyrit for confirmation.

“Easily,” Jyrit said at once. “For all their
governmental faults, the Regulans are master shipbuilders. It won’t
take much to repair the
Space Dragon
and make her
comfortable for long distance space travel. She already has a
Star-thruster device.”

“Very well, Halvo,” Almaric said. “You shall
have the
Space Dragon.
In fact, now that I think about it, a
smaller vessel will be more appropriate for your work. Wherever you
go, you won’t upset the official Jurisdiction ambassadors by
upstaging them.”

“I also want Rolli to go with me,” Halvo
said.

When Perri would have protested that
condition, Halvo, who had risen to stand behind her, put a hand on
her shoulder and squeezed tight, signaling her to remain quiet. She
sat in her chair, but not without sending a questioning look in
Halvo’s direction.

“I have found Rolli useful and easy to work
with,” Halvo said.

“Thank you for the compliment, Admiral, but I
prefer to remain with Perri,” Rolli said.

“Once Perri’s trial is finished, I see no
reason why the robot should not be handed over to you.” Almaric
spoke right across Rolli’s words, as people frequently did when
robots offered unsolicited remarks.

Perri was further annoyed by Almaric’s
attitude toward her old friend. She was about to make a complaint
on Rolli’s behalf when Halvo’s hand on her shoulder squeezed again
so hard that she almost cried out in pain.

“There will be no trial for Perri,” Halvo
said.

“The woman has admitted kidnapping you,”
Almaric said. “Her conviction and sentence are inevitable.”

“Not only do I refuse to press charges
against Perri on my own behalf,” Halvo said, “but I will not act as
witness against her if the Jurisdiction presses charges.”

“You cannot prevent her trial,” Almaric
said.

“I can and I will. I intend to marry Perri. I
call everyone here in this room to witness that I do so freely.
What surer sign could there be that I forgive whatever minor
mischief she has committed?”

“Minor?” Kalina gasped. “You could have been
killed! If it had been left up to Elyr and the Chief Hierarch, you
would have been killed.”

“Not only do I remain alive,” Halvo said,
“but my life has been revitalized and I am happier than I have been
since I was a boy.”

“I do not understand why you have chosen to
do this,” Almaric said, “but I remind you, Halvo, that once you
marry this woman she can no longer be prosecuted for kidnapping
you. Are you absolutely certain you want to take this path?”

“I have no doubts at all, Father.”

“This is beyond my comprehension.” Almaric
shook his head in perplexity.

“He loves her,” Kalina said to her
husband.

“With everything that’s in me,” Halvo said.
“I knew you would understand eventually, Mother.”

Throughout the discussion Perri sat, still
with Halvo’s hand on her shoulder, unable to move for sheer
amazement at his declaration. She was not certain she could believe
what he had said. She knew he desired her. She thought he took
pleasure in her company. But love? Or was this a ruse, Halvo’s way
of saving her from prosecution? Would he see to it that she was set
free and then desert her?

“I cannot say I fully approve,” Kalina said
to Halvo, “but I will accept your choice.”

“I do not approve,” Almaric said.

“You will,” his wife said, “once you
understand how happy she makes Halvo. I was greatly prejudiced
against her, Almaric, but the weeks I have spent observing the two
of them have begun to change my mind about Perri’s character.”

“But to have my son, the former Admiral of
the Fleet, marrying an accused felon—”

“You could say that she didn’t kidnap him,
that the abduction was in fact a cleverly planned elopement,” Dysia
said. “People might laugh at them for a short time, but the
explanation would help to defuse a serious interplanetary incident
if any Jurisdiction Member planet should decide that Regula ought
to pay for its part in Halvo’s abduction.”

“No! Dysia, I thought you were my friend.”
Perri was on her feet, throwing off Halvo’s restraining hand. “How
dare any of you arrange my life for me without even asking me what
I want? Tell me, Halvo, did you imagine I would be so grateful to
escape a future on a prison planet that I would be willing to marry
you instead of facing trial?”

“Actually,” Halvo murmured, “I was hoping you
might agree to marry me because you are eager to see more of the
Jurisdiction. Or did I misunderstand your interest in space travel
and in learning about new worlds?”

“You didn’t ask me. You just told everyone
else first!”

“I am asking you now. Will you marry me?”

“No.”

“Why not? Is it because of my age? Do you
think I am too old for you?”

“Age is only an excuse for something you
don’t want to do,” she cried. “If you don’t know my reasons for
refusing, then I am right not to marry you.”

He caught her hands and drew them up to rest
on his chest. When she tried to pull away he kept his larger,
stronger hands around hers, holding her fingers flat over his heart
so she could feel it beating. He looked down into her eyes, and his
own eyes flamed with the silver light of desire.

“Are you refusing me because I have never
said aloud that I love you?” he asked.

“Your mother had to tell me, at the same time
she told everyone else in this room!”

“I thought you knew. I thought I had been
saying it with every act and every kiss since we first escaped
Regula. I do love you, Perri. Without you, my life would be empty
and unbearable. You have made me young again. You have given me
laughter and warmth and hope. Now I have a universe of love to give
to you in return. Please, please marry me. I don’t think I can go
on living without you.”

She stared into his eyes, seeing there a
future of honesty, love, and hope. And freedom, too. Halvo would
never restrict her as Elyr once had. To Halvo, her love was
valuable only if she gave it without coercion.

“Well,” she said, “if you put it that way, I
can scarcely refuse, can I? You are right. I do want to see as much
of the universe as I can, and marrying you seems to be the best way
of achieving that particular dream.”

“Now I begin to understand,” Almaric said.
“Kalina, she is very like you when you were young. I suppose I
could remand her to Halvo’s custody for long-term
rehabilitation.”

Perri and Halvo were not listening to him or
to the laughter of the others in Almaric’s office. Perri and Halvo
were locked in each other’s arms, mouth to mouth, heart to
heart.

“Excellent.” Rolli’s blue eyelights were
blinking merrily. “Precisely the outcome for which I hoped. I would
remind you, Perri, that despite all the changes recently made to my
programming I am still capable of caring for children as I once
cared for you.”

“If they intend to have children, they will
need official permission,” Almaric said.

“They already have permission from a far
higher power than you,” Rolli told the Leader of the Jurisdiction.
“They have love’s permission.”