Howling Stones by Alan Dean Foster Read Free Book Online Page B

up especially for you.”
    “Just for me? You shouldn’t have.”
    “Yeah, I know, but I did anyway.”
    “Seaforth …” he began sternly.
    “Come on: it’s Fawn. We’re going to be working together too long for last names. Especially last names as long as yours.”
    “All right, Fawn.” With a sweeping gesture he encompassed the room and what he could see of rooms beyond. “How can you live and work in this squalor?”
    “Squalor?” She made a face. “There’s no squalor here, Pulickel. Just comfort. Don’t you like flowers?”
    “I love flowers, and houseplants, but I don’t relish the idea of sharing my living quarters with alien species. Especially new ones whose properties and characteristics haven’t been thoroughly cataloged.”
    “Relax.” She moved to another plant. “I put each one through a rigorous quarantine and check before I bring it into the station. Make sure that they’re all free of parasites and hangers-on. I even check pollen and spores for possible serious contamination. Sure there’s dangerous flora on Senisran, but these here are all harmless to both human and thranx.”
    Carefully avoiding the debris that made passage difficult, he worked his way across to the outer wall and its bank of indigenous foliage. “I can understand a small collection, but these are taking over. They could get into equipment, clog filters, no telling what.”
    She spread her arms and performed a slow pirouette. “Honestly, Pulickel. Do I look in any way unhealthy to you?”
    In point of fact, she looked healthier than any human being he’d ever seen in his life, but that wasn’t the point. There were procedures that had to be followed, strictures that needed to be observed.
    It suddenly occurred to him that he was more than a little tired. “Could you just show me my room, please? We can discuss all this later.”
    “Sure. I know you must be exhausted.”
    “I’m not exhausted,” he replied irritably as she unhooked the hammock that was blocking the doorway.
    “Sorry. This was the best place I could find to put it up. There’s a lovely view of the inlet from here. You can lie here at night, open the windows, and watch the moons come up.”
    His eyes widened. “Open the windows? You mean, you consciously and willingly violate the atmospheric integrity of the station?”
    “Frequently. I like the feeling of freedom.”
    “I’m sure that the native species that fly in and out at such times do, too.”
    “You are a worrier, aren’t you? If it’ll make you feel safer, I’ll arm the external defenses. As for the open windows, I happen to like fresh air. When it gets too hot and humid inside, I close everything up again. Nothing really dangerous ever intrudes. In the morning, I go around and add to the station’s collection of small flying arthropods.”
    He twitched at the thought of something small, alien, and buggy landing on his face while he slept. “I’ll keep my quarters sealed, if you don’t mind.”
    She shrugged. “Suit yourself. Makes me claustrophobic.”
    Thankfully, she hadn’t even bothered to inspect either of the two unused sleeping areas. The standard room was typical in nearly every aspect, its familiarity a great comfort to the weary and troubled xenologist. It was a little musty from disuse, but everything was where and as it should be, and there were no extraneous decorations of either Senisran’s or Seaforth’s making. He reveled in its reassuring sterility.
    He hastened to shut the door behind him to keep out any small uninvited locals that might be crawling about. “It looks fine. Let’s get my case.”
    “After you, my honored guest.” As her left hand swept out in a gesture of invitation, she executed a mock bow.He forced himself to smile at the harmless, mild sarcasm. The bow took his mind off her words anyway.
    He spent the remainder of the day unpacking and putting up his equipment and personal gear. Several times he paused to ensure that the door