“All right, so it’s been a disaster all the way around,” she said, hearing the anxiety back in her voice, but unable to help it. “I’m sorry, Falon, but I’m not going through that again-not with you.”

This didn’t disturb him. He merely pointed out, “You have admitted to wanting me. When your fear is gone, you will want me again. Then do we see your first joining ended properly.”

“No… we… won’t! I won’t. And in case that still isn’t clear enough for you, that means I refuse to share sex with you again, flatly, no mind-changing about it. I’m also through trying to convince you of that fact. I have people waiting for me. I’m leaving.”

“You are welcome to try.”

Once again she recognized the “don’t bother” in those words. And he said it so calmly, unaware or uncaring of the avalanche of trouble that was going to roll down on his head if she didn’t return to her father’s pavilion before the end of the day. All her mother had to do was get to her own computer-link unit and ask Martha where she was. Martha… Stars, how could she have forgotten?

Shanelle bent and swept up her belt with the attached computer link before Falon thought to stop her, then hit the voice-activator button. “Martha, I need help!”

Out of the unit came a very bruised voice. “So now I’m nice to have around, am I?”

“Get out of sulking mode, Martha. You can rub it into the ground later all you like; just do something now!”

The last word was said as Shanelle dodged Falon’s reaching hand. She’d spoken in Kystrani, but that could be a language he understood. Whether he did or not, he’d heard Martha’s voice and wasn’t too happy about it. Martha was amused, however, and chuckling to show it.

“It looks like warriors aren’t the only hardheads around this place,” she purred goadingly in Sha-Ka’ani so Falon would understand.

“Don’t get him angry!” Shanelle snapped.

“But men are so amusing when they get-”

“Martha, please!” Shanelle was still having to dodge Falon’s hands.

“Oh, all right,” Martha said grudgingly. “Pay attention, Mr. Van’yer. I’m a Mock II computer. If you haven’t heard of me-”

“I know computers,” Falon almost growled.

Martha gave a perfect simulation of a sigh. “And here I thought I was going to get to brag a little.”

“Turn it off, woman,” he ordered Shanelle.

She slowly shook her head. She knew he was angered by Martha’s inclusion in their little party, but she wasn’t sure he understood what a Mock II was capable of, especially one in control of an entire spaceship. She almost felt sorry for the frustration he was going to experience-almost.

“Turning Martha’s voice off won’t make her go away, Falon. She’s been with me all along because she’s housed right now in a Transport Rover and is in control of all the ship’s systems, including scanning and monitoring. That means she’s able to hear me and anyone around me, and keep track of our movements, whether this computer-link unit is on or off.”

“She has heard-?”

“Everything, big guy,” Martha cut in with another chuckle. “And I must say I was impressed, especially since only warriors are known to possess your kind of barbarian dominance. You never got around to saying, but I’d sure like to know what planet you hail from, because probables tells me it’s either this one or Sha-Ka’ar.”

Falon didn’t appear the least bit embarrassed over knowing that their joining had been monitored, but Shanelle had assumed Martha had given her a little privacy for that, especially since she hadn’t been Transferred out of Falon’s tent when she had first wanted to leave. She was red-cheeked now, but not so embarrassed that she missed the deduction Martha had drawn.

She didn’t know why it hadn’t occurred to her, since she knew the Sha-Ka’ari had come here to visit their mother planet before. Tedra always hated it when they did, despising the Sha-Ka’ari for what they had done to her own planet all those years ago, and she always had Martha keep tabs on them until they left Sha-Ka’an. But Martha hadn’t been here to do that for these competitions. And Sha-Ka’ari warriors might not reach the seven-foot category after so many years of mating with slaves from their planet and those captured from others, but they were still exceptionally big and tall men- and they could be black-haired and blue-eyed.

Shanelle was appalled, knowing her mother would have fits if she’d given herself to a Sha-Ka’ari warrior, unknowingly or not. She was about to have some fits of her own. They were slaveholders, for Stars’ sake… and the worst kind. There might be a few countries on this planet that enslaved women they captured, but they were rare and far from Kan-is-Tra, and their own women were still free. On Sha-Ka’ar, there were no free women, of any kind.

With her amber eyes glaring at him accusingly, Shanelle demanded of Falon, “Martha’s right, isn’t she? You’re from Sha-Ka’ar.”

“Woman, I have never even heard of such a place,” he replied, annoyance still strong in his voice.

She could no longer accept everything he said as the literal truth. “Martha, what does his body say?”

“That he’s not lying. But I don’t know what you’re getting all upset about. This was something you should have found out before you got involved with a visitor.”

Shanelle was relieved enough merely to say with a sigh, “I thought I asked you to put the lectures on hold until later.”

“Asking doesn’t always get-”

“All right, Martha. Let’s stick to immediate, like getting me out of here.”

Martha managed her own sigh. “If you insist.” And to Falon, “It goes like this, Mr. Van’yer. Shani failed to mention a few of the more interesting things I’m presently in control of. Like most Transport Rovers, our ship is equipped with Molecular Transfer. Are you by any chance familiar with Transferring, or do you require a demonstration?”

Falon was silent for a moment, possibly because Martha’s voice had turned positively smug, giving him an indication of what was coming. “I have heard of Transferring,” he finally gritted out.

“Well, that saves time,” Martha purred. “And I’ll even show you my let’s-be-fair program and leave the choice up to you, the choice in this case being, you let Shani walk out of here or I Transfer you elsewhere. And since the elsewhere will be at my discretion, you’re probably looking at being stranded about a hundred miles from the nearest telecomm. So what’s it to be?”

Shanelle worried at her lower lip with Falon staring at her while he made his decision. But there was nothing to decide. Martha’s let’s-be-fair program wasn’t fair at all. Shanelle would have to insist he not be stranded in the middle of nowhere if he chose to be stubborn and see if Martha was bluffing.

But he didn’t turn stubborn. He didn’t even sound mad when he finally said for Martha’s benefit, “I would prefer it did she stay, but the woman may go.” What he seemed like was defeated, and he was still staring at Shanelle with those lovely azure-blue eyes.

It wasn’t surprising that she felt a moment’s indecision. No man had ever affected her like this one did. She even took a step toward him, only to be halted by Martha’s voice raised at full volume.

“Hold it right there! I didn’t get you out of this mess for you to hop right back into it. He may not look it to you, but that man is absolutely furious right now. Stay the hell out of his reach.”

“The computer is very astute,” Falon said wryly.

“No, she’s just monitoring your emotions,” Shanelle replied as she slowly worked her way around to the exit. But that “absolutely furious” still disturbed her. “Don’t be angry, Falon, please. I had to ask Martha to help. You knew you had no right to keep me.”

“I would not have kept you long-”

“I know-only until we joined again. But I would have fought you and ended up getting even more hurt.”