Thea nudged him; he turned his head to glance back at her, and she nodded at him and at the computer as if to say, Keep going; this might need to be done in a hurry.“We come in pursuit of something that belongs to us,” the Queen said regally.Terry opened up the laptop screen and waited, his hand poised on the POWER button.“Something we had bargained for,” one of the other Alphiri said.“Fair price for fair trade,” the third added.Terry punched the button as they spoke; the Alphiri always spoke in threes, and the sound of their voices masked the noises of the computer’s waking-up routine.Thea had never managed to get over her fear of the Alphiri, but she bit down on it, tasting its harsh and bitter residue in her mouth, and stepped forward.“Your Majesty,” Thea said with great formality, “there is nothing here that lawfully belongs to the Alphiri, or may be bargained for with intent to purchase.”The Human Polity does not sell its people.“We do not seek a person,”
