Sean stood leaning against a tree, looking over the moonflooded valley. He felt bollow inside, as if nothing were altogether real.
Ilaloa came to him. He saw her white in the moonlight, and she slipped tip till be could have touched her. He didn’t look at her, but kept li;s eves on the valiev. Here and there in its darkness the torch trees were like spears of radiance.
“Sean,” she said.
“Go away,” be replied.
“Sean, may I talk to you?”
“No,” he said. “Begone, I tell YOU.”
“I did what I had to, Sean. These ar
I wanted to say that I love you. 11
“I’d like to break your back,” be said.
“If you wish that, Sean, then do it.”
“No. You’re not worth the trouble.”
She shook her head. “I cannot quite understand it. I do not think any other of the Alori has ever felt the way I do. But we love each other, you and I.”
He wanted to deny it, but words seemed futile mouthings. ‘I will wait, Sean,” she said. “I will always be waiting.”
e my people. But