s finally decided to honor us by waking up."

Tarlac winced inwardly at the sarcasm in the man's voice. It was the
first time since he'd become a Ranger that he'd experienced open
hostility, though he'd known from the beginning that sooner or later he
would. He looked toward the voice, immediately recognizing the older
man as Lord Robert Kaplan, second child of Count Jonathan Kaplan and
the reported leader of this rebellion. "Your hospitality leaves
something to be desired, my Lord. I hope you're giving my pilot and
bodyguards better treatment than you're giving me."

"In a manner of speaking," Lord Robert said. "They, at least, are in
no discomfort."

"They're dead?"

"I'm afraid so," Lord Robert said. "Not that you would really care."

The rebel leader was mistaken there, Tarlac thought grimly. He did
care, very much, about the Navy pilot and the four Security Division
Marines who had volunteered for the mission that had cost them their
lives--but he couldn't let those feelings show. "What do you plan to
do with me?"

"Trade you for rule, I think, rather than fight for it," Lord Robert
said consideringly. "That way, none of my people suffer. And I think
I should be able to get . . . oh, a Subsector at least for you."

In spite of his position, Tarlac had to laugh. Lord Robert was
deluding himself if he honestly thought the Emperor would make that
sort of trade! "You must know better than that, my Lord. The Empire
doesn't make deals with criminals."

"I think His Majesty will make this one, Highness. You are, after all,
his newest Ranger, and he is bound to want to keep you; Rangers, for
whatever reason, are scarce enough to be worth trading for an entire
Sector." Lord Robert looked thoughtful. "Yes, a Sector would be even
better. Myself as Duke, my lieutenants as Earls and Counts, other
officers as Barons--that would be just enough." He scowled. "There
may even be places for my beloved parents and sister, once they
acknowledge that I am truly the best of them, cheated out of what is
due me by the accident of being born second."

"You're welcome to try, but you'll be disappointed." Tarlac remained
outwardly impassive, though he was becoming convinced that Lord Robert
was, to use the Marine expression, firing from a dead powerpack. Well,
he could manage to tolerate a couple of days like this while Lord
Robert called the Palace and tried to negotiate; then the time limit
he'd given the colo