"You are going to bed. And I am returning to my private rooms." Touching open the passage door, Kolano departed with a soft smile for him.
He was alone and free—but for a vow. He opened the great portals. The Hall Of Life stretched away vast and deserted. To the continuity had been added the scene of his recent dinner with Kolano.
If he could find where they had those scenes stored.... But another thought held him. If the future did show Kolano and him as she had intimated....
Toka turned back into the bridal suite. If he was going to get free he would, and if he wasn't....
It was a line of reasoning typically Kosannan!
The ceiling's glowing had dimmed. Toka turned down the silky covers of the great bed.
... the smooth whiteness of Kolano's skin ... the Titian sheen of her hair ... the deep smouldering in those silvery eyes ... the curve of those carmine lips ... the curvedness of—
This was the way he used to think of Roya! Used to think of Roya—
Toka tensed abruptly. Through the dimness he saw the boudoir door slowly move. Who could have gotten into this suite without toppling the chairs he had balanced against the doors? Hand on Battle-ax, Toka lay motionless—ready to leap. The door moved slowly in.