"What?" she saidblankly.
"You heard me. Don't askme to repeat it." He strode on down the path, still not looking at her."And I won't lie and tell you I wouldn't do the same thing again. I wantedyou and I wanted Cinnidar and there's every chance I'd fall from grace."
"Then why apologize? Whythis change?"
"You too? Why doeseveryone insist I've changed? I merely wanted to—"
"Why?" she repeated.
He was silent a moment andthen finally said simply, "I think I'm happy. I don't ever remember beinghappy. I've been content, satisfied, but not happy. It's a very oddfeeling."
"And now you're happybecause you've got your Cinnidar?"
"It's more than Cinnidar.It's like… "
"What?"
"A new life, a chance tostart over… " He grinned. "Like getting off the train at the laststop and knowing it's where you want to be. Does that make it clearer?"
"Yes." He wasdescribing how she had felt when she left Frenchie's those many years ago, andshe felt a sudden sense of kinship with him. "That makes it muchclearer."
"Anyway, I wanted to tellyou." He paused and then changed the subject. "You really think LiSung will go to Zabrie?"
She nodded miserably. "Hewon't listen to me. I wanted him to be happy but—" She had to steady hervoice. "He's always helped me and I wanted to help him too. Blast it, Ishould never have interfered."
"How did he helpyou?"
"So many ways."
"Tell me one."
"Books. He taught me toread and write and cipher. His father believed knowledge would save Li Sungfrom staying a common laborer and made him study every book he could get hishands on from the time he was a small child. What Li Sung didn't know, welearned together."
"Kartauk said you've beentogether a long time."
"He came to Frenchie's,the place I grew up, when he was twelve. His father had been killed and LiSung's leg crushed in an accident a few months before. He was seventeen when weleft with Patrick."
"What kind ofaccident?"
"His father was abrakeman and was training Li Sung to the trade." Her smile was bitter."Li Sung was very proud of his father. Chinese were considered good enoughto work the rails but not to be an engineer or fire a train, and even brakemenjobs were rare. His father could do all three and taught Li Sung. However,braking the train was his primary duty and one day he and Li Sung were bothcaught between two railroad cars and crushed."
Ruel's lips pursed in a lowwhistle.
"Oh, it wasn't an unusualaccident. It happened all the time before Westinghouse invented the air brakethat could be worked from the cab by the engineer. Before that a link-and-pincoupler fastened one car to another, and to work it a brakeman had to standbetween the cars. If he didn't get the pin into the link at the right moment,the cars would come together and crush him." Her lips tightened."Which may be why the honor of being a brakeman was given to a Chinese. LiSung's father would probably never have been promoted to engineer."
"And does the maharajah'strain have these air brakes?"
She nodded. "I had to cutcorners on other things, but I made sure of those brakes." She gave him asidewise glance. "Why are you asking all these questions about LiSung?"
"No reason," Ruelsaid casually. "Just curious."
"You were very strongtonight," Zabrie murmured as she brushed a kiss on Li Sung's shoulder."Every time you get better and better." She rose from the bed, drapedherself in a gossamer-thin shawl that accented rather than hid her nudity."Wine?"
Li Sung shook his head as hesat up in bed. "I must leave now."
"Not yet. Stayawhile." Zabrie crossed to the table and poured herself a glass of wine."I have no other customers, and even if I did, I would give them to one ofthe other women." She turned and smiled at him. "For you."
She was more beautiful than hehad ever seen her, Li Sung thought. Or perhaps it was because this was the lasttime, she appeared more lovely to him.
