The sting of the words stiffened Bart as he took his leave. The color of
the badge seemed deeper orange....
When it's red, you're dead.
It's true. The Lhari don't steal. They don't even seem to understand
dishonesty.
But they lied--lied to us all....
Knowing what we were like, maybe! That we'd steal their ships, their
secrets, their lives!
The deepening color of the badge seemed the one visible thing in a
strange glaring world. He walked along the row of bunkers, realizing he
need not check if they were full or empty--the Lhari wouldn't live long
enough to harvest their better-than-graphite lubricant. They'd be dead.
The last bunker was empty. He looked at his orange badge and stepped
inside, heart pounding so loudly he thought it was an external sound--it
was an external sound, a step.
"Don't move one inch," said a voice in Universal, and Bart froze,
trembling. He looked cautiously round.
Montano stood there, spacesuited, his head bare, dark contact lenses
blurring his eyes. And in his hand a drawn blaster was held
level--trained straight at Bart's heart.