Joris motioned him to silence. To Trehearne he said, "What do you know about the Orthist party?"
"Enough to know that they could make a great deal of trouble. Either I'm Vardda or I'm not. And if I'm not, I could be the start of a whole new movement. The first non-Vardda to fly the stars, the first crack in the monopoly."
Joris shook his head. "You can be put away so quickly and quietly that no one will ever hear of you."
"Good," said Trehearne. "Put me away. Put away all the officers of the ship. Put away all the passengers. Put away all the crew. That's a lot of people to keep quiet."
Shairn broke in triumphantly. "Yes, Joris! How are you going to silence me?"
"And," said Edri, "me."
Joris looked from one to the other and back again, his brows drawn angrily together. But he said nothing. Kerrel leaned over the table.
"Joris," he said, "do you understand? The man is trying to blackmail you with an open threat of treason."
"Yes," said Trehearne, "I am." His voice was suddenly very quiet, and he spoke straight to Joris. "When I made that flight and lived I won my right to the freedom of the stars. I won my right to fly deep space, and I will use any weapons I can get my hands on against any man who tries to keep me from it."
Then, for quite a long while, no one spoke.