Penny Maowkavitz was the creator of my physical structure,eden said, Wing-Tsit Chong is the father of my mind. I love them both.

Hoi Yin was watching me closely, waiting for my reaction.

You can love?i asked.

I believe so.

Any entity with a soul can love, wing-tsit chong said. It is only the fault of our flawed society that not all are given the chance to love. For only by showing love can you receive love in return. This is what I consider to be the most fundamental act of dana, the Buddhist practice of giving. In its purest state, dana is a sacrifice of self which will allow you complete understanding of the needs of others. And in doing so you transform yourself. A supreme state of Nibbana achievable only with unselfish love. Sadly so few are capable of such munificence.

I expect you're right.i was getting out into waters way beyond my depth. philosophy doesn't figure very heavily on the hendon police college's training courses. i wondered what father cooke would have to say on the subject of eden having a soul.

You worked with Penny Maowkavitz?i asked.

For many years,wing-tsit chong said. As a geneticist she was peerless. So many fine ideas. So much energy and single-minded determination. Given the diversity of our respective cultural backgrounds our temperaments were not conjunctive, but even so we achieved much together. Eden alone is testament to that. I await with some eagerness to see what it is that will bloom from her grave. To experience eagerness at my age is remarkable. Only she could bring about such a thing.

Did she confide in you at all?

Alas no. Our union was conducted on a professional level. I was filled with sorrow at her radiation accident, and I grieve her death. To suffer so is a tragedy. But both of these incidents can only be understood in the greater nature of Kamma; our past actions create our present life.

You mean she deserved it?i asked, surprised.

You misunderstand; there is no cruelty involved with the law of Kamma, which is given as: knowledge of the ownership of deeds. The nearest Western interpretation of this would be controlling your own destiny. Only you are responsible for your own future. And the future is determined by the past.

Reap as ye shall sow, i said.

Again this is too literal, it demonstrates a Western inclination towards belief in preordained fate. You are rooted in the physical world. The determinative actions to which Kamma refer are acts of will.

Right.i could see myself developing another headache if this went on much longer. now that's fate, action and reaction. So you don't know of anyone who would wish to harm her?

No, I regret I can shed no light on the perpetrator for you.

What about Boston?i asked. You're not listed as a member in the files I have been given. Do you support its aims?

You asked to come here to learn about affinity, hoi yin interjected sharply. You outstay your welcome, Chief Parfitt.