But Saem was just not there.
Abigail laughed, sweet, musical.
Herl turned and saw her, a woman in a silky blue gown. A woman with red
hair, not amber flames, a woman surrounded by a faint flowery scent,
not incandescent sodium vapor. A woman standing shyly on the floor, not
proudly seated on an airy throne.
He sprang down from the table and took her into his arms for a long
long moment.
She drew away for an instant and laughed. "I thought I'd given up
telepathy, dear, but I still seem to know just what you're thinking."
"And I know what I ought to do," he replied and did it.