Foreigner #03 - Inheritor by C. J. Cherryh

Author:C. J. Cherryh [Cherryh, C. J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780886777289
Amazon: 0886777283
Publisher: DAW
Published: 1997-02-01T00:00:00+00:00

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CHAPTER 14

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"DIFFICULTY?" Ilisidi said to him.

"Forgive me. It's a phone call from Mospheira. It can wait." He was watching Badissuni and Tatiseigi as they spoke briefly, then moved apart, Tatiseigi instantly surrounded by the curious and less restrained, and people gazing in speculative curiosity at Badissuni, whom — God! — Tabini snagged for a small exchange.

And his mother — dammit, he needed to know.

"Go, go, go," Ilisidi said, "attend your phone call. Come back to me. I'll gather the gossip. Your mind is clearly distracted." Ilisidi's face betrayed no concern whatsoever. But her tone of command, sharp and absolute, told him he'd slipped his facial control and let things through he would rather not have allowed to the surface.

But he wanted the phone call. Ilisidi gave him leave. And might learn more than he could — or than she could with him attached.

He cast a worried look around for Jase, who was quietly in the corner, talking to his security and having no difficulty. Jago was watching him, and he coasted past Jago on the way to the door. "A phone call's come from the island," he said. "I'm going to the office. I'll be right back."

"Yes," Jago said, and tailed him as far as the door, when he'd been so bothered he hadn't even twigged to the possibility of a set-up to draw him to disaster. She stayed close, stationing herself in the hall as he went the short distance to the private office, at the door of which the servant stood.

He went in and picked up the phone. "Hello?" he said. "This is Bren Cameron."

"Bren, this is Toby." It was a tone of voice he almost didn't know. "I thought I'd better call."

"Damn right you'd better call. How are you? How's Mother?"

A pause that said far too much. "Heart attack. Small one. How are you? "

It was better than his worst fears. His knees weren't doing so well. He sat down. "I'm doing fine. Tell her that. Listen. I want you to call Barb and have her call me."

"No. No! You get yourself home, Bren. You want your damn business carried on, you come do it, and you come back and take care of the things you need to take care of! Stop asking your family to put up with this kind of crap! Mama's having surgery this week. She wants you, Bren. She wants you to be here."

"1 can't."

"I can't be up here in the city, either, but I'm doing it! I can't leave my house and my business, but I'm doing it! Jill can't answer the phone without lunatics harassing her! We've had to leave home and all come up here, and I can't let my family go down the street to the park! You know what put mama in the hospital, Bren? You did. People throwing paint on her building, the landlord saying he wants her to move —"

He tried to think through the things he didn't want to hear to

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