Lora put a half-closed fist to her lips, and didn't look at either of the men, or at the dog who stood with freshly pointed ears.
"No," she said softly. "I lost something on the last one. Gee, I wonder if the Mindsnake likes Wagner now? Still, it's not as if I had stopped liking music altogether, or books. Not this time."
Hale grabbed her arm roughly. "You're sure doing a great job of getting Hammen ready for the jump."
Lora's eyes clouded. "I'm sorry, Ham." She looked up, smiled warmly, kissed her fingertips and placed them on Hammen's lips. "Companion's Code, huh?"
He took her hand and for the moment liked her. "Okay, honey. I guess even a Witch squeezes in under the wire for that."
The young team was abruptly embarrassed. "Oh, well, Witch," Hale said deprecatingly, "what does cargo know, anyway?"
Hammen laughed and scratched Lad's ears. "They know I'm a Witch. But it has its advantages. I don't have to worry about Lad losing his taste for Wagner. A dog does not have that much to lose. If it comes to that, he's just gone."
Lora shuddered delicately, the way of a watered flower. "How could you stand to lose a Companion with so little feeling?"
"I've lost three Companions, and got myself and my cargo into port. They were only dogs."
Hale looked at him sharply. "But you were Companioning with them. It must have been," he selected a word, "difficult for you."