25
" Cordelia – “Why so rough?”
Aral – “It’s very poor. It was the town center during the time Isolation. And it hasn’t been touched by renovation, minimal water, no electricity choked with refuse.”
“Mostly human,” added Peoter tartly.
“Poor?” Asked Cordelia bewildered. “No electricity? How can it be on the comm network?”
“It’s not of course,” answered Vorkosigan.
“Then how can anyone get their schooling?” Cordelia
“They don’t.”
Cordelia stared. “I don’t understand, how do they get their jobs?”
“A few escape to the service, the rest prey on each other mostly.” Vorkosigan regarded her face uneasily. “Have you no poverty on Beta colony?”
“Poverty? Well some people have more money than others, but no comm consuls…?”
Vorkosigan was diverted from his interrogation. “Is not owning a comm consul the lowest standard of living you can imagine?” He said in wonder.
“It’s the first article in the constitution! ‘Access to information shall not be abridged.’”
“Cordelia, these people barely have access to food, clothing and shelter. They have a few rags and cooking pots and squat in buildings that aren’t economical to repair or tear down yet with the wind whistling through the walls.”
“No air conditioning?”
“No heat in the winter is a bigger problem here.”
“I suppose so. You people don’t really have summer. How do they call for help when they are sick or hurt?”
“What help?” Vorkosigan was growing grim. “If they’re sick they either get well or die.”
“Die if we’re lucking” muttered Veoter.
“You’re not joking.” She stared back and forth between the pair of them. “Why, think of all the geniuses you must missing!”
“I doubt we must be missing very many from the Caravanceri.” Said Peoter dryly.
“Why not? They have the same genetic compliment as you.” Cordelia pointed out the – to her -obvious.
The Count went rigid. “My dear girl, they most certainly do not. My family has been Vor for nine generations.”
Cordelia raised her eyebrows. “How do you know if you didn’t have the gene-typing until 80 years ago?”
Both the guard commander and the footman were acquiring peculiar stuffed expressions. The footman bit his lip.
“Besides,” she pointed out reasonably, “If you Vor got around half as much as those histories I’ve been reading imply. 90% of the people on this planet must have Vor blood by now. Who knows who your relatives are on your father’s side.
Vorkosigan bit his napkin absently. His eyes gone crinkly with much the same expression as the footman and muttered, “Cordelia, you really can’t sit at the breakfast table and imply my ancestors were bastards. It’s a mortal insult here.”
“Where should I sit? Oh I’ll never understand. "
― Lois McMaster Bujold , Barrayar (Vorkosigan Saga, #7)
31
" Desperately, Cordelia stuck her foot through the whatchamacallit foot-holder, stirrup, grabbed, and heaved. The saddle slid slowly around the horse’s belly, and Cordelia with it, till she was clinging underneath among a forest of horse legs. She fell to the ground with a thump and scrambled out of the way. The horse twisted its neck around and peered at her, in a dismay much milder than her own, then stuck its rubbery lips to the ground and began nibbling up weeds. "
― Lois McMaster Bujold , Barrayar (Vorkosigan Saga, #7)
33
" truth,” she said in a burst of candor, “I’m not sure I’d want to give custody of a pet cat to Bothari. Doesn’t he strike you as a bit strange?” “Aral and I are keeping an eye on things. Bothari’s doing very well so far, I think. He found Mistress Hysopi on his own, and is making sure she gets everything she needs. Has Bothari—that is, does Bothari bother you?” Droushnakovi gave Cordelia an are-you-kidding? look. “He’s so big. And ugly. And he . . . mutters to himself, some days. And he’s sick so much, days in a row when he won’t get out of bed, but he doesn’t have a fever or anything. Count Piotr’s armsman-commander thinks he’s malingering.” “He’s not malingering. But I’m glad you "
― Lois McMaster Bujold , Barrayar (Vorkosigan Saga, #7)
36
" They embraced each other so tightly, they had to back off to manage a kiss. “Don’t you ever,” he said, voice husky with strain, “pull a stunt like that again.” “Don’t you ever let it become necessary, again.” “Deal.” He held her face away from his, between his hands, his eyes devouring her. “I was so afraid for you, I forgot to be afraid for your enemies. I should have remembered. Dear Captain. "
― Lois McMaster Bujold , Barrayar (Vorkosigan Saga, #7)