Serpent's Gift Read Free Page A

didn't work out.
    "Since then, there's been a succession of foster homes. She's been shuffled around from pillar to post. After the mandatory telepathic screening in school turned up her abilities, Heather was offered the chance to go to Melbourne and try to pass the profiles for StarBridge. She jumped at it, and she did very well there. She's earned the chance to try to make it out here, and we all want her to succeed."
    Hing nodded slowly, and Rob saw from the expression in her black eyes that she had indeed read between the lines of his carefully worded explanation.
    "So what does she need from me?"
    "Mostly, a friend ... someone like you, who's easygoing and knows the routine. She'll need some leeway while adjusting, but she'll be expected to follow the rules." Rob took another swig of his coffee, then added, "What Heather needs, after the time she's had, is stability in her life, and we'll try to provide it here."
    "Okay," Hing said, and for once there was no glint of laughter in her eyes. "I'll do it. I owe you, Rob, like everyone else at this| school. You can count on me."
    "Don't look so serious," Rob said, smiling at her gratefully. "I'm not asking for your right arm. It's just that Heather's going to need someone to show her around, keep an eye on her."
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    He buttered a muffin. "Someone . .. older, responsible, studious, trustworthy ... a senior student who will be a good example, someone she can look up to . .."
    Hing had crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue before he was halfway through. Rob chuckled. "Okay, yeah, I'm laying it on a little thick. Just be her friend, Hing. Help her out. Remember that if she makes it, with her telepathic abilities, she'll be a real asset to the school."
    Hing nodded. Rob glanced at his watch, then made abrupt shooing motions.
    "Oops, that took longer than I thought. Hurry and catch up with Janet aboard the King, so you can ride back with the kid, take her under your wing, okay?"
    She gave him a thumbs-up. "Tell 'em I'm on my way." As she started out the door, Rob was seized again with the urge to mention that Serge LaRoche would be on that shuttle, too, but as he hesitated, she was gone with a last wave, and it was too late.
    He shrugged and finished the dregs of his cold coffee, then poured himself another cup and hastily reviewed the end of Heather's file. .Early testing showed incipient megalomania coupled with a tendency toward compulsive fabrication. . . Psychologists' jargon, he thought morosely, taking a bite of muffin. Why can't they just say that she's self-absorbed, extremely selfish, and lies a lot?
    Rob cheered up a little as he read the end of the Melbourne [¦ school's summary:
    Since coming to Melbourne, there has been a definite and marked improvement. Heather's Social Adjustment Indices (especially the computer-linked tests) have risen significantly. Her telepathic ability, language aptitude, fluency in Mizari, and exceptional academic progress, coupled with her obvious determination to overcome her emotional problems, permit us to recommend her admission on a provisional basis . . .
    > "I just hope we can help this kid make it the rest of the way," Rob muttered to his small black cat, Bast, who leaped up onto his desk and stared interestedly at the remaining muffins. He put out a finger and rubbed the animal behind one ear, feeling as well as ¦hearing the warm vibration of her purr.
    Rummaging through his desk drawer, he unearthed a glittery earr ring made of a golden Mizari alloy that resembled a jeweled c lip. Fingering the telepathic distort thoughtfully, the psychologist sighed. I hate wearing this thing. It'll give both of us a headache. But if it's necessary, so be it. ..
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    Another thought made him smile. "We've got another secret weapon, Bast,"
    he told the cat. "The only Avernian telepathic therapist in the galaxy. If Doctor Blanket isn't more than a match for Heather Farley, I'll swallow this distort."
    Glancing at his watch again, he groaned