th. Then he had
told her to do whatever a Sandeman 'na would do under the same
circumstances. And she had absorbed enough of their ways to think that
a proper response--except that, as far as she knew, similar
circumstances had never arisen.

For the moment, at least, she was too stunned to be really afraid. She
turned to the w'woman. "Lady--can you help me?"

"Help you how?" the w'woman asked.

"To do what's needed--except that I don't know what is needed!" She
hesitated. "I mean . . . I've been dismissed, but he said I haven't
done anything wrong!"

The w'woman shook her head slowly. "Nothing like this has ever
happened before. All I can tell you is that custom says a 'na who has
been dismissed must make atonement for allowing @'s thakur to accept
one who proved unworthy."

Dana was silent for a moment, absorbing that, then she nodded. In her
misery, it didn't seem too unreasonable that she should have to die
just for being of no further use. She had tried to live by Sandeman
custom; she couldn't change that now, simply because it became
. . . inconvenient. "You're right, of course. But I can't do it myself
right now, and I don't have a clan-chief to help me."

The w'woman looked at her with what seemed to Dana like approval.
"Perhaps a clan-chief can be found for you."

"I'd . . . appreciate that." Dana licked her lips, fear beginning to
emerge from her stunned misery, but her mouth was so dry it was little
help. "I should talk to them myself, I suppose--at least if they'll
talk to me--but I can't dial the phone. Would you, please?"

The w'woman nodded. "What clan?"

"I don't think it matters that much," Dana said. "Alanna first, if I
have to pick one. If their chief won't help, just keep going until we
find one who will."

"A good choice." The w'woman dialed the bedside phone, obviously a
familiar combination, then spoke to the warrior who answered in High
War Speech. Dana could understand only an occasional word of that
variant of Classical Russian, though she could read and write it
fluently; all she could gather was that the w'woman was asking for the
Alanna.

A few moments later, a man wearing the arms of Alanna's chief appeared
on the screen, introducing himself as Killian. The w'woman started to
speak, but before she'd said more than a few words, Killian frowned and
interrupted with a question. She answered with a "Da, Glavniy," then
there was a brief conversation Killian cl