"She always was dangerous," Bert said after a moment, grimacing. "Mind if I sit down?" He didn't wait for an answer, striding over to flop down next to her. "Honestly, I think that's half the reason Ro' fell for her. You ever notice how he spends his whole life going down the path of most resistance? The one woman in the whole of Mejis he needed not to fuck, and he fucked her. Nothing against her, she made big sacrifices for us, but, hells..."

He fell silent for a moment, chewing on the inside of his cheek, then said thoughtfully, "She's a good woman. She's suffered a lot, and she's come through it kind enough, which is more than can be said for most of us. But you're right. If there's one person more likely to hate you for having Roland's heart than I am, it's sai Delgado." Again, his hand scraped back through his hair. "But right now, Ro' thinks you're going to leave him out of some kind of pity, and you know how he hates to be pitied. And Susan, I don't even know what she wants. But the tension's so thick it's like breathing molasses, and I can't take much more of this. Also, I'm curious about those uncomfortable scenarios."