Was it the strangely pellucid light that gave the effect, I wondered; and knew it was not, for as I scanned her covertly, there fell upon her face that shadow of inhuman tranquillity, of unearthly withdrawal which, I guessed, had more than anything else maddened Ventnor into his attack upon the Disk.
I watched her fight against it, drive it back.

White lipped, she raised her head and met my gaze.

And in her eyes I read both terror and--shame.
It came to me that painful as it might be for her the time for questioning had come.
"Ruth," I said, "I know it's not necessary to remind you that we're in a tight place.

Every fact and every scrap of knowledge that we can lay hold of is of the utmost importance in enabling us to determine our course.
"I'm going to repeat your brother's question--what did Norhala do to you?
And what happened when you were floating before the Disk ?" The blaze of interest in Drake's eyes at these questions changed to amazement at her stricken recoil from them.
"There was nothing," she whispered--then defiantly--"nothing.

I don't know what you mean." "Ruth!" I spoke sharply now, in my own perplexity.