"I don't know what she's doing here," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "She has been here for about two months, I understand, although this is only the fourth or fifth time I've seen her."

The girl from Aldebaran laughed again. "Your Regulusian friend doesn't like me," she said. She managed somehow to make "Regulusian" sound like an unflattering word. "That is why he is so blunt, Manning. But I am here on a visit, just as you are. I came intending to stay only a few days, but the natives are so quaint I've stayed longer. I am what you Terrans call an anthropologist. It has been rather lonely, of course—but I can see that won't be true after tonight."

Marriage had worked several changes in Manning Draco. He loved Vega and liked being married to her. He had every intention of remaining faithful to her, not because the Terran tradition was as strong as it had once been but because he believed that a life with her could be complete. At the same time, he was a normal enough man to be flattered by Velmar's attitude and to have a certain amount of response to it.

"By the way," she said, "have you met the Acruxian who is here? Dtilla Raishelle?"

"We were just on our way to meet him," Manning said.

"Oh, let me introduce you," she said, urging him forward with her hand on his arm. "He is such a fascinating character."

"I can hardly wait," Manning said dryly. But he went forward under her urging and Xelia Zon kept pace with them.

As they neared the group which contained the Acruxian, Manning Draco controlled that part of his mind which worked in front of the secondary shield, so that it would seem that he was nothing more than another curious Terran. He knew that the Acruxian would probably try a brief mental probe and if his first response was no more than that he would probe no farther and so would not discover the secondary shield.

Velmar Shonda cleared a way through the little group until they stood in front of the Acruxian. "Manning," she said, "I'd like you to meet the distinguished Regulusian candidate for the Assembly of the Stars, the future Senator from Regulus, Dtilla Raishelle. Senator Dtilla, this is Manning Draco of Terra."

As he'd expected, Manning felt the mental power of the Acruxian nibble briefly at his thoughts. Then apparently satisfied, it withdrew.

"I am deeply 

 Prev. P 18/50 next