"We could take her with us."
"Not a chance," he said. "Do you suppose a talking neutroid would be any safer there?"
She demanded angrily, "Why should they want to destroy her?"
Norris sat on the edge of the bed and thought about it. "No particular individual wants to, honey. It's the law."
"But why?"
"Generally, because deviants are unknown quantities. They can be dangerous."
"That child—dangerous?"
"Dangerous to a concept, a vague belief that Man is something special, a closed tribe. And in a practical sense, she's dangerous because she's not a neuter. The Federation insists that all mutants be neuter and infertile, so it can control the mutant population. If mutants started reproducing, that could be a real threat in a world whose economy is so delicately balanced."
"Well, you're not going to let them have her, do you hear me?"
"I hear you," he grumbled.