He jerked away. His dark face was set and cruel. "Do you have to make
it harder? Do you think I want to rot on Phobos in their stinking
mines, with shackles on my feet?" He swung around, challenging her with
savage eyes.
"How else do you think Romany is going to stay free? You can't go on
playing cat and mouse with the big shots this way. They're getting sick
of it. They'll pass laws and tie you down. Somebody's got to spread
Romany all over the Solar System. Somebody's got to pull a publicity
campaign that'll make the great dumb public sit up and think. If public
opinion's with you, you're safe."
He smiled. "I'm big news, sister. I'm Roy Campbell. I can splash your
lousy little mess of tin cans all over with glamour, so the great dumb
public won't let a hair of your little head be hurt. If you want to,
you can raise a statue to me in the Council hall.
"And now will you for God's sake go?"
* * * * *
She wasn't crying. Her gray eyes had lights in them. "You're wonderful,
Roy. I didn't realize how wonderful."
He was ashamed, then. "Nuts. In my racket you don't expect to get away
with it forever. Besides, I'm an old dog. I know my way around. I have
a little dough saved up. I won't be in for long."
"I hope not," she said. "Oh, Roy, it's so stupid! Why do Earthmen have
to change everything they lay their hands on?"
He looked at Tredrick, lying on the stones. His voice came slow and
sombre.
"They're building, Stella. When they're finished they'll have a big,
strong, prosperous world extending all across the planets, and the
people who belong to that world will be happy.
"But before you can build you have to grade and level, destroy the
things that get in your way. We're the things--the tree--stumps and the
rocks that grew one way and can't be changed.
"They're building, Stella. They're growing. You can't stop that. In the
end, it'll be a good thing, I suppose. But right now, for us...."
He broke off. He thrust her roughly inside and locked the
steel-sheathed door. "You've got to go now."
It was dark, and hot. The Kraylen child whimpered. He could feel Stella
close to him. He found her lips and kissed them.
He said, "So long, kid. And about that statue. You'd better wait till I
come back to pose for it."
His voice became a longing whisper. "_And I'll be back!_" he promised.