"Why?" uncle Denys asked, over his reports, at the supper table, which was the only place she saw him-at breakfast and at supper.

"Because I"m tired of getting stuck with needles. I"m going to be anemic."

"Dear, it"s a study. It got started when you were born and it"s a very valuable study. You just have to put up with it, I don"t care what doctor you have; and you"d hurt Petros" feelings. You know he"s very fond of you."

"He smiles very nice, right before he gives me something that makes me want to throw up."

"You know, you have to watch, dear, your voice does tell what"s going on with your cycles. That"s something you don"t want to make that public, isn"t it?"

"I don"t know why not! I don"t know why they don"t put it on the news! Why don"t you hand the news-services the tapes from my bedroom? I bet I can give them some real thrills if I work at it, I bet the Security techs just love it!"

"Who said we were taping? That"s a Security system."

"Florian and Catlin are House Security, remember?"

Uncle Denys put down his reports, suddenly very serious.

So was she, not having intended to bring it up. Yet. Till they found out some other things. But he was off his balance: she had her opening; she Got him with it.

Good.

"Dear, all right-yes. There are tapes. They go into Archive, no one accesses them. They"re just a historical record."

"Of me having my period."

"Ari, dear, don"t be coa.r.s.e."

"I think it"s coa.r.s.e! I think it"s a d.a.m.n coa.r.s.e thing to do to me! I want that system shut down, down, uncle Denys! I want it off, I want those tapes destroyed, I want Florian and Catlin to rip out that entire unit, uncle Denys! I want it off, I want those tapes destroyed, I want Florian and Catlin to rip out that entire unit, at the control board" at the control board"

"Dear me, they are are observant, aren"t they?" observant, aren"t they?"

"d.a.m.n right they are."

"Ari, dear, don"t don"t swear. You"re not old enough." swear. You"re not old enough."

"I want that unit off! I off! I want it want it out! I out! I want those tapes want those tapes burned! I burned! I want to move up to want to move up to my my apartment and I want Florian and Catlin to go over apartment and I want Florian and Catlin to go over that that and have access to all the control boards in all the secret little rooms in Security!" and have access to all the control boards in all the secret little rooms in Security!"

"Ari, dear, calm down. I"ll have them turn it off."

"The h.e.l.l! You"ll just relocate the board somewhere else you think Florian and Catlin can"t find it."

"Well, then, you"d have a problem, wouldn"t you? You have to believe me."

"No, I don"t, because I"ll know if that unit is running."

"How?"

"I"m not going to tell you. Ask Seely. I"m sure he can explain it."

"Ari, dear, your temper is running a bit high today, I"m sure you"ve noticed. And I really, really don"t want to discuss things with you when you"re on on like this. I"m very, very fond of you, but no one likes to listen to a cultured twelve-year-old swear like a line soldier, and no one likes to be called a liar-as you once said in a very public place. So do you think you could lower the volume a little and discuss this rationally, or shall we say I"m sure Seely is still a little ahead of Florian? -If I wanted to continue the surveillance against your wishes. I appreciate the fact you"re not a little girl anymore. I know there are very good reasons why you don"t want to be taped in your bedroom, and the fact that you"ve objected is enough. We can"t get any value out of a study if the subject is acting for the cameras, now, can we? So the taping will stop, not because you have the power to take out the units, but because it loses its value." like this. I"m very, very fond of you, but no one likes to listen to a cultured twelve-year-old swear like a line soldier, and no one likes to be called a liar-as you once said in a very public place. So do you think you could lower the volume a little and discuss this rationally, or shall we say I"m sure Seely is still a little ahead of Florian? -If I wanted to continue the surveillance against your wishes. I appreciate the fact you"re not a little girl anymore. I know there are very good reasons why you don"t want to be taped in your bedroom, and the fact that you"ve objected is enough. We can"t get any value out of a study if the subject is acting for the cameras, now, can we? So the taping will stop, not because you have the power to take out the units, but because it loses its value."

"I want the tapes burned!"

"I"m sorry, not even we can get at them. They"ve gone into the Archive vault, under the mountain out there, and they"re irretrievable as long as you"re active in the House computer."

"You mean while I"m logged in?"

"No, as long as you"re an active CIT-number in the files. As long as you live, dear. Which is going to be a long, long time, and then you won"t care, will you, whether somebody has a tape of a twelve-year-old girl in her underwear?"

"You"ve seen those tapes!"

"No, I know the twelve-year-old, that"s quite enough. The taping will shut down. Florian can verify it, if you like, and Florian can remove the unit himself, with, I trust, some reasonable care not to damage the rest of the system."

"Today."

"Today." Uncle Denys looked very worried. "Ari, I am am sorry." sorry."

He was acting with her. Working her. The way he had been Working the whole situation and trying to get her to believe him. The way she Worked him.

He was probably good enough to spot that too. If Seely was ahead of Florian, uncle Denys was still ahead of her, she thought. Maybe.

But she could Work him right back by using her upset and letting it go on long enough to let him do the Shut on her, and do it a couple of times so he thought he Had her.

Then she could do what he was trying to get her to do and see where it led, without being being led. led.

"I"m sorry, Ari."

She glared at him.

"Ari, this is a very bad time for this. I wish you"d come to me earlier."

Dammit, he wanted her to ask. She wanted to Work him to have to tell her whatever he was up to, but that would give it away for sure that she was onto him Working her. Which he might know anyway: you never knew how many layers there were with uncle Denys.

"You know there"s a bill up to extend you the first Ari"s Special status."

"I know."

"You know it"s going to pa.s.s. There"s not going to be any problem with it. There"s no way the Centrists can stop it."

"That"s nice, isn"t it?"

"It was the one thing the Court didn"t hand you with Ari"s rights. The one thing they held back. So you"ll have that. You"ll have everything. You know Reseune is so proud of you."

Flattery, flattery, uncle Denys.

"You are going are going to be on your own in a few years. You"ll leave this apartment and move to yours, and I won"t be with you: I"ll go back to being a fat old bachelor and see you mostly in and out of the offices and at parties." to be on your own in a few years. You"ll leave this apartment and move to yours, and I won"t be with you: I"ll go back to being a fat old bachelor and see you mostly in and out of the offices and at parties."

Saying bad things on himself; humor; trying to get her to think about missing him.

She would. So you didn"t let people Hook you, not when they were uncle Denys.

She didn"t say a thing. She just let him go on.

"I worry, Ari. I really hope I"ve done all right with you."

Trying to scare her. Trying to talk like something was going to change. Another maman-event. d.a.m.n him anyway.

I hope you hope you do do Disappear, uncle Denys. Disappear, uncle Denys.

That wasn"t quite the truth, but it was a real low move uncle Denys was doing and she wasn"t about to show how mad it made her.

"We get along all right," she said.

"I"m very fond of you."

G.o.d. He"s really pushing it.

"Ari? Are you mad?"

"I sure am."

"I"m sorry, sweet. I really am. Someday I can tell you why we do these things. Not now."

Oh, that"s a hook, isn"t it?

"You know Amy"s mother invited you and Florian and Catlin to come over this evening."

"I didn"t know that. No."

"Well, she did. Why don"t you?"

"Because I feel lousy. And Amy didn"t say anything about it."

"It"s a surprise."

The h.e.l.l.

"I think you"ve been studying too hard. I think an evening out would do you a world of good."

"I don"t want to go anywhere! I feel lousy! I want to go to bed!"

"I really think you should go to Amy"s."

"I"m not going to Amy"s!"

Uncle Denys didn"t look happy at all, and began getting up. "I"ll call Dr. Ivanov. I think maybe he did did give you something that"s bothering you. Maybe he can send you something." give you something that"s bothering you. Maybe he can send you something."

"The h.e.l.l he can! I don"t want any more shots, I don"t want any more blood tests, I don"t want any more cameras in my bedroom, I don"t want any more people messing with me!"

"All right, all right. No medicine. Nothing. I"ll talk to Petros." He frowned. "I"m really upset about this, Ari."

"I don"t care." She got up from the table. She was wobbly from anger. It was out of control. She was. She hated the feeling, hated hated whatever they did to her. whatever they did to her.

"I mean I"m worried," uncle Denys said. "Ari, -you"re using the computer tonight, aren"t you?"

"What has that got to do with anything?"

"Just-when you do-remember I love you."

That hit her. Uncle Denys saying I I love you? love you? It was a Trap, for sure. It was a Trap, for sure.

It hurt, because it was about the lowest try yet.

"Sure," she said shortly. "I"m going to my room, uncle Denys."

"Hormones," he said, as shortly. "It"s hormones. Adolescence is a b.i.t.c.h. I"ll be glad when you"re through this. I really will."

She walked out, and shut the door between her hallway and the living room.

Florian and Catlin stepped put their door the instant she did.

Saying What"s the matter? What"s the matter? with their faces. with their faces.

"I"m fine," she said. "Uncle Denys and I had a discussion about the taping. You"re going to take the unit out first thing tomorrow."

"Good," Florian said in a vague, stunned way.

"I"m going to my room," she said. "I"m all right. Don"t worry about me.

Everything"s fine."

She walked past them.

She closed the door of her room.

She looked at the computer on the desk.

Exactly, she figured, what he wanted her to do. She should frustrate h.e.l.l out of him. Make him worry. Not touch the thing for days.

Not smart. The best thing was find out out what he was wanting. Then deal with it. what he was wanting. Then deal with it.

"Base One," she said. "Is there a message?"

"No message," Base One said through the Minder.

That was not what she expected. was not what she expected.

"Base One, what is is in the system?" in the system?"