Chapter 7
Confusion tinged with fear sped through Birk’s mind as he saw the woman collapse across the room. How had she gotten up here when he’d left explicit orders not to let her out of her room? Had she somehow hurt herself, reaggravating her injuries from the crash? Had she perhaps done some irreparable harm to the delicate surgery the robots had performed? Would she die? And most important, was it his fault? Arthur had relayed her increasing complaints about being cooped up. Had the confinement, which he’d ordered for the best of motives, done more harm than good?
He shook off the paralysis that had momentarily gripped him, rose from his chair, and dashed across the room to the fallen woman’s side. He knelt beside her and felt at her throat for a pulse; a distant part of his mind wa
