What could I do? Suddenly, it hit me. I looked down at the ring and grinned to myself. Suddenly, I was Amanda's twin. "Nothing, Mom," I said in Aman...a's voice. "I just spilled something on myself in Biology and came home at lunch to change clothes." "Fine, honey. Will you let me in, though?" "Just a second! I'm not through changing!" I said. But what I was thinking was: Shit! Got to get dressed in my sister's clothes. I opened her underwear drawer and pulled on one of her thongs, then. They were something special, to be kept to myself and pulled from memory to pick over by the firelight when other men talked of their families or boasted of the voyages they'd made. I had no family and this was my first summer voyage. All I had was the image of a skraeling girl to remember. But it was enough.The skraeling men still appeared occasionally to trade but there was little real contact between us. Leif spoke several tongues, even the language of the Lapps, who most closely resembled. ---That was the last thing I remembered before starting to come around. Icould hear before I could see. It was dark in the room, I presumed it wasnighttime. I couldn't focus my eyes but I could hear voices. I drifted backto sleep."She's coming around" I heard a woman's voice whisper. I couldn't keep mymind focused, I felt myself drifting again.Wen my eyes finally opened the first thing I saw was Gary. He wasbeaming. He had been standing over me and was rubbing my forehead gently."How's the. ..well i'm sure isaw what part she played in it, but i can't remember." Allison, that demon was orchestrating the end of the world. He set up thecircumstances that will lead a russian scientist to believe that a certainFBI agent was responsible for his parents death." So the scientist plans to trigger a nuclear holocaust all because hisparent's died?"The old man chuckled. "No, the then to be scientist too small a player inthat part. The missile would have touched down in washington. It triggers.