"Yes," Kirk said. "Of course."
"You're a liar."
"Now, Harry," Kirk said, his eyes flickering to the waiting animal. "I surely wouldn't lie to you."
"You haven't come for me until after all this time, and now you say you surely wouldn't lie to me."
It was like standing in a gully, Kirk thought, watching a boulder teetering above you. It tipped this way and that, and you didn't know when or if it was going to come hurtling down. You waited. But Kirk couldn't wait, he knew. He had to do something.
"Harry, listen. It wasn't easy to find you, don't you see?" He hoped he was making it sound as though all he had done for the last dozen years of exploring was look for Harry Loren. He wished that the damned thing would stop swaying its ugly head back and forth. Loren's hand was inching out toward the yellow and brown neck.
"Look, Harry, these things aren't done in a day. We—"
"A day!" Loren hissed. "A day! All this time and you say a day!"
"No, I'm sorry," Kirk said quickly. He wished he could shift out of the cramped half-lying position he was in. "I didn't mean a day, Harry. I meant it wasn't easy. We didn't know where you were—" He was talking quickly, whining almost, and he'd never whined before.
Loren's fingers were touching the waving neck.