*I saw what my parents had before they died,* Karla said, looking steadily at her desk, Jaenelle murmuring quietly beside her. *I don't want to settle for anything less than that. And that kind of love is rare, even for people who aren't difficult.*

She'd spent several years listening to the things her uncle and his Ruling Council had to say about females in general and her in specific. Internalizing at least a little of that had been practically guaranteed, even if she didn't consciously realize it.