"Does your life matter so little that swearing it away in an instant is so inconsequential?" Olivia frowns, tapping a finger against the back of her other hand. "I will not take on anyone who view death as a release from this world. What good is a guard who would rather die than fight? It is useful as a final victory, when all has already been lost, but not a quality I am looking for in anyone who would pledge themselves to me." She knows her fate should the Cetagandans take her husband, threaten to take her -- she would rather die by her own hand and rob them of the satisfaction of her capture. They will not use her, and she will not submit to them.

As for the matter of Beth's question, well. "Then you are not beholden to me, and I to you. You leave the knife and go your own way. On Barrayar it is a custom to consider taking oaths and swearing loyalty as an unbreakable contract. But you are not of this planet." Yet Olivia would approach it with the same level of seriousness, of dedication. It wouldn't work, otherwise.