"Now wait a moment," said Scholar Ross. "Gloria, where did you ever learn such brutal, belligerent tactics?"
Gloria faced him, but kept one eye on Bertram. "Out of a book—where else in this calm old world?"
The scholar said, "You see, Miss Hanford, the results of your outrageous behavior? You've committed an act of physical violence. You've—"
The girl gave one sharp bark of laughter. "Who started it with whose caveman technique?"
"I think," said Scholar Ross to the four parents, "that this meeting should be resumed at a later date. Bertram must not overdose himself in a misguided effort to make up for omitted medication. Gloria must not avoid hers—and, Mrs. Hanford, you'll not only have to watch closely to see that she does take her pills; you'll also have to make sure that Gloria doesn't counteract them by surreptitiously acquiring some agitators to neutralize the tranquilizers."
"And suppose I call the whole thing off?" demanded Gloria. "Suppose I don't agree to share bed and board with this souped-up sardine?"
The room grew quieter until the background sounds were gone and from the patio came the faint, sweet strains of romantic music: Program R-147.
Finally Scholar Ross said, "Miss Hanford, we cannot force you to do anything, but we can make your life extremely uncomfortable if you do not comply with what we believe to be best for society. You will find—if you care to look it up—that there is a drastic shortage of eligible young women on the planet Eden, Tau Ceti."
"You mean—migrate—to the colony?"