| III.1.085 |
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With Shining River on the horizon and their arrival only fifteen minutes off Bluemud's
feeling of well-being was suddenly disrupted. From the darkness next to him Elizabeth said, "Father, do you mind if I say something about your speech? I really think it's about time you something about letting more men have sexual relations with the women. They're bound to be upset with the delay. It's only natural.' 'You heard what I said. ' Bluemud stared ahead. His face had gone a bright red color and he was glad Elizabeth was unlikely to have seen it in the dim light. 'I haven't had time to process all the data.' 'But you've done nothing in months and months!' Bluemud was thoroughly embarrassed. His hands were sweating. He could think of nothing to say beyond trying to fend his daughter off. 'Elizabeth, it's no business of yours who I decide to pair with whom and when I do it. Your interest is purely with the children.' 'Without sex, father,' Elizabeth said firmly, 'there can be no children. Some of the women are really desperate to have children. And besides, anything that happens in the valley is my business.' Bluemud said nothing. There were thunderheads about them and he concentrated on the approach. 'You know,' Elizabeth continued eventually,' it's pretty stupid for you to be embarrassed. You didn't mind getting me some semen for the cows because you insisted on eating the last bull we had. I don't see what the difference is. You treat people just like animals, anyway.' After they had landed, Bluemud felt irritated and perplexed. It just didn't seem right, a woman talking about such things, especially his daughter. In the parking lot he said, 'Surely you can understand, Elizabeth, that if too many of your precious women have children there'll be no-one left to work in the fields?' Elizabeth was consumed with indignation. 'That's just making excuses, father. You've lost interest, that's all. Why don't you let me do it for you?' 'Do what?' he blurted out. 'Assign the women's mates. Decide who gets who. I'm quite capable of doing it you know.' 'No,' he wanted to shout but he dared not in that place. Instead he spoke in a forced whisper. 'I won't hear of it. It's quite disgusting you being involved in something like that. Besides, you don't know-how. As an accredited historian I can use the public computers and the library in the Capital without suspicion. I need to check each of their backgrounds.' 'That's just ridiculous, father,' she replied in an equally loud whisper. 'You don't have time to do that! You know you're not going to do it. You just don't have any faith in me, do you father? I'm twenty-three and you can't face the facts. I'm not a child. There's lots of things I know that you don't' 'Like what? What does dear Elizabeth know?' 'Well, do you want to hear about the time that Angel was raped and I nearly was?' In her stride and with some satisfaction at being able finally to pay him back for coming to the University with Vera, Elizabeth told him unflinchingly of the incident with the boys. Bluemud paled. Initially he was bewildered. Blood throbbed in the arms making his hands prickle again and he was forced to sit down on a bench. When he spoke his voice was soft and quivering. 'You mean when Vera and I came to see you and Williams gave that ridiculous talk, the very things he warned you against had already happened?' 'To Angel, yes.' 'But nothing happened to you, Elizabeth?' He gripped her arm so firmly that she cried out. 'You're telling me the truth now?' 'If you mean, was I raped? No, I wasn't.' 'And both these men are dead now?' 'Yes.' 'Then what are we waiting for?' Bluemud threw up his arms then stalked off leaving Elizabeth to run along behind, not wishing to give her the chance to finish. |
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