He laughed. It was meant to be contemptuous, I think, but didn’t quite make it. There was a nervousness to it, and too much emotion. He made a displacement gesture.

“Man, I’m almost tempted to let you walk away, I feel so sorry for you.”

I shook my head. “No, you don’t understand. I’m not going to let you take her back to Harlan again. This is over.”

“It certainly fucking is. I can’t believe how totally you’ve fucked up your life. Just fucking look at you.”

“You look at me. It’s the last face you’re ever going to see, you stupid little fuck.”

“Don’t get melodramatic on me, old man.”

“Oh, you think this is melodrama?”

“No.” This time he got the edge on the contempt about right. “It’s too fucking pitiful even for that. It’s wildlife. You’re like some lame old wolf that can’t keep up with the pack any more, has to hang around on the fringes and hope it can grab some meat no one else wants. I can’t believe you fucking quit the Corps, man. I can’t fucking believe it.”

“Yeah, well you weren’t fucking there,” I snapped.

“Yeah, because if I had been, it never would have happened. You think I would have let it all go down the drain like that? Just fucking walked away, like Dad did?”

“Hey, fuck you!”

“You left them just the same, you fuck. You walked out on the Corps and you walked out of their lives.”

“You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. They needed me in their lives like a fucking webjelly in a swimming pool. I was a criminal.”

“That’s right, you were. What do you want, a fucking medal for it?”

“Oh what would you have done? You’re an ex-Envoy. You know what that means? Barred from holding public office, military rank or any corporate post above menial level. No access to legal credit facilities. You’re so fucking smart, what would you have done with that hand?”

“I wouldn’t have quit in the first place.”

“You weren’t fucking there.”

“Oh, okay. What would I have done as an ex-Envoy? I don’t know. But what I do fucking know is that I wouldn’t have ended up like you after nearly two hundred years. Alone, broke and dependent on Radul Segesvar and a bunch of fucking surfers. You know I tracked you to Rad before you got here yourself. Did you know that?”

“Of course I did.”

He stumbled for a moment. Not much Envoy poise in his voice, he was too angry.

“Yeah, and did you know we’ve plotted just about every move you’ve made since Tekitomura? Did you know I set up the ambush at Rila?”

“Yes, that bit seemed to go especially well.”