’ She gave the hug back to me and said, ‘Healing isn’t something I know how to rush. If tears would do it, it would have been over years ago. I ...hed lots of tears when you retreated, so did Rina, Bonnie, Siomara, and others.’ ‘How do I thank each of you for hangin in there while I was gone?’ ‘You already have. You came back.’ She paused. ‘Are you out here thinking about Pete?’ ‘A little. I’m thinking about Siomara, about you, about Pam and Kat… about me, too.’ ‘Oh. I notice you were at the end. "It's blood that does it. I've always been queasy about blood. My father found it amusing. As a boy I revelled in stories of battles and bloodshed and it never bothered me. Even now I love listening to warriors talk about their deadly deeds. But show me blood and I become ill. My father laughed at that. The man revelled in swordplay and drawing blood while I hid from it. He said I would never be a great ruler so long as I couldn't draw the blood of another man. I guess he was right." Do your. I felt kind of foolish, check that, I sounded kind of foolish speakingin such a controlled and steady feminine tone that I wished I hadn'tleft a message at all. Crap, and I sounded like such an idiot. To latenow...Time for that shower, I couldn't wait to shave my legs and brush myteeth! Oh, brush my teeth! God, why can't all my wants be so freak'nsimple? Then I started to think about the call again...November 22nd, 1:38 PM I pretty much used every ounce of hot water inthe condo during my. "Yes!" they all said in unison.I started the diagnostic program and the data began to flow into my computer directly from their brains."I want you to watch the screen, it's going to cycle through some stuff." I said pointing at the TV on the wall opposite them.It was a quick mashup of different videos from everything like puppies and kittens to wolves and tigers, Solid colors to works of art, and the most serene landscapes to war-torn battlefields. Their reactions were being recorded and mapped.