Even though there was nothing tying her to the conversation she'd caught a snippet from as she jogged through, the name still echoed. Elena. She didn't even know Bothari-Jezek well, though she had some connection to Miles neither he nor anyone else had bothered to explain. Not that she'd asked; there were things Taura wasn't on the need-to-know list for, and why a couple of ex-Barrayaran minor nobility were running around a mercenary outfit definitely qualified. At least she thought they were important; maybe nobility wasn't the right word. Other Barrayarans twitched when they walked in, though some of that was evidently due to some odd rules about women in combat. Given that one of the few things everyone knew was that Elena could out-shoot, out-wrestle, and out-plan her engineer husband as well as most of the Dendarii's makeshift brass, they should twitch before offering her insult.
Connections. Invisible strings tying Taura to Miles, and Miles to Elena, and her to an entire planet. Or the other way; Taura was tracing one strand to its abrupt end this night.
Could last night have been about forging, rather than severing, connections? Reverse psychology worked on grown men and women and herms almost as well as children. Pull something new-formed apart, just a bit, and watch both halves scramble to take hold. But why would Landel want his prisoners to become closer? Even the best company wouldn't make this place a paradise, and he couldn't possibly believe they'd fall for that. Could he?
no subject
Even though there was nothing tying her to the conversation she'd caught a snippet from as she jogged through, the name still echoed. Elena. She didn't even know Bothari-Jezek well, though she had some connection to Miles neither he nor anyone else had bothered to explain. Not that she'd asked; there were things Taura wasn't on the need-to-know list for, and why a couple of ex-Barrayaran minor nobility were running around a mercenary outfit definitely qualified. At least she thought they were important; maybe nobility wasn't the right word. Other Barrayarans twitched when they walked in, though some of that was evidently due to some odd rules about women in combat. Given that one of the few things everyone knew was that Elena could out-shoot, out-wrestle, and out-plan her engineer husband as well as most of the Dendarii's makeshift brass, they should twitch before offering her insult.
Connections. Invisible strings tying Taura to Miles, and Miles to Elena, and her to an entire planet. Or the other way; Taura was tracing one strand to its abrupt end this night.
Could last night have been about forging, rather than severing, connections? Reverse psychology worked on grown men and women and herms almost as well as children. Pull something new-formed apart, just a bit, and watch both halves scramble to take hold. But why would Landel want his prisoners to become closer? Even the best company wouldn't make this place a paradise, and he couldn't possibly believe they'd fall for that. Could he?
[skipping a hall to here]