"Then don't act like it was our fault," Sonia says angrily, feeling tears prick at the corners of her eyes. Why is she arguing with this woman? Why is she bothering? And Byerly had called her a one-woman Embassy. Ha. "It wasn't our fault we got sick and had no medicine. I don't -- I don't even see what point you're trying to make. If you're counting atrocities, then maybe you should look at your hosts. Chemical warfare, turning people's own homes into ghettoes -- a war we never even asked for."

A hot breath escapes Sonia, and she knows she's getting worked up, too emotional, and she should just stop and walk away from this, but she can't. She hates being here, hates this war and how alone she is here, and she can't contain it. "We are desperate," she bursts out, and it stings her Barrayaran pride to admit it, but it's no secret. "Ten years of this. What wouldn't you do to save your home?"