Alexander sighed as Kennon left the room. “I certainly pushed the panic button on that young man,” he said. “He has a pathological attitude toward telepathy. Wonder what he has to hide that he wants privacy so badly? Even for a Betan this reaction was violent.”
“Oh, I don’t know. He’s a pretty emotional sort. Maybe he hates to look like a fool. He’s gotten himself mixed up with one of the Lani. Cute little thing by the name of Copper,” Blalok said.
“Oh—that’s it. I thought that was what he was hiding. A picture of a girl kept popping up.” Alexander chuckled. “I suppose that’s the trouble. A man hardly likes to look a fool, particularly to someone who has warned him. At that, I don’t blame him. They are beautiful and affectionate. And even with their superstitions and tabus they’re better than most humans.”
“For pets,” Blalok said heavily.
“They’re not better at anything,” Jordan demurred. “They can’t be—man is the best and always will be.”
“The eternal racial chauvinist,” Alexander murmured. He turned his attention to Blalok. “But for awhile, Evald, I’d suggest you keep an eye on our young man. I still don’t like his reaction. It was too violent—too defensive. I don’t feel right about it. Perhaps Betans are more sensitive than most people but it seems to me that he’s trying to conceal something. There was an undertone of fear—and something else—beneath his defenses.”
“Couldn’t you get any more than that?” Blalok asked. “You’re pretty good at this mind-reading business.”
“His defenses were remarkably good,” Alexander said dryly.
* * *
Well he’d done it now, Kennon thought. He found the thought-screen circlet sandwiched between two books on comparative neuroanatomy which he hadn’t bothered to unpack. He slipped it on and connected the lead wires to a portable battery pack. There was a half-forgotten tingling as the weak field heterodyned his thought waves. Kennon sighed. If Alexander wasn’t suspicious of him now the man was a fool. He’d done as well as he could with confusion and outrage, but it was hardly possible to hide behind superficialities. Even the most disciplined mind couldn’t do that without some preparation. Undoubtedly his concern about Copper had leaked through. He could only hope that other and more important things had not.