context. This was not one of those times.
When Kilian finished his speed-speak, he turned to me and asked if he and I could have a moment alone. Tibor folded his arms and looked away.
Surprised by the request, I agreed, leading the Saardiscan back toward the refrigeration area. “This should be sufficiently private,” I said. “What’s on your mind?”
Kilian’s smile rose and fell quickly in that fake way people do when they’re working hard to minimize tension. “You must forgive my friend Tibor. He is a master chef in his province, as I am in mine. It was difficult to decide between us who was to be in charge during this voyage, but the decision was made to make me our official leader. This has not set well with Tibor.”
That explained a good deal of the man’s surliness. “Go on,” I said.
“If he were in charge of making decisions for all of us, he would never agree to take time away from working.”
“And if we didn’t allow you access to the White House? What could he do then?”
“With Tibor in charge, he would no doubt find work for us to do in our hotel rooms. You must forgive him. He is driven to succeed. He will stop at nothing to see that we achieve many goals here.”
“I have no doubt that success, whatever you take that to mean, will be yours as long as we work together,” I said. “Our goal here, remember, is to exchange knowledge and forge a bond. We don’t intend to submit a report to your government on any of you. A little time off isn’t going to hurt anyone.”
Kilian’s expression shifted in a way that I didn’t understand. He glanced back the way we’d come, as though to assure himself that no one else was nearby. Lowering his voice, he stepped closer. “You, Bucky, and Marcel have been kind to us. I realize we have only been here for little more than a day, but I sense no animosity from any of you.”
“Did you expect to?”
His expression was earnest. “Of course.” He held both hands out. “The kitchen is a place of great competition. Only he who works hard to be the best will survive.”
“Or she.”
His brow furrowed. “May I speak plainly?”
“Of course.”
“You are female.”
“So I’ve noticed.”
He either didn’t understand the humor or chose to ignore it, and continued without missing a beat. “In our country, females rarely hold such a position. We expected to encounter more difficulty with you. How is it that you have come to this level? How is it that you are above men in your field?”
“I don’t understand your confusion,” I began. “I may be the executive chef here, but there are many women—hundreds, if not thousands—who hold positions far more impressive than mine. Not only chefs, of course. There are female lawmakers, scientists, artists, ambassadors, and businesswomen all over this country. All over the world, in fact. You can’t possibly be surprised by that. Saardisca has a woman running for president, for heaven’s sake. You do know that, don’t you?”
He waved that away. “She will not win.”
I thought about my discussion with Sargeant earlier. “How can you be so sure?”
“If she were to gain the presidency, it would be only because many men have helped put her in that position. And when she is there, they will demand a share of her power.”
“That’s very cynical. Maybe her message is resonating with voters more than you realize.”
“The changes she speaks of would be wonderful for our citizens,” he said. “But how can I believe that she is not merely a puppet?”
“I don’t know,” I said, for I truly didn’t. “All I can tell you is that when I vote in an election, I choose the candidate whose views most closely align with my own. Maybe I’m naïve, but I tend to believe that most men and women running for office do so because they hope to improve the world.”
“We should all be so naïve,” he said. “When we have access to your news,” he said in a hushed voice, “we are
When Kilian finished his speed-speak, he turned to me and asked if he and I could have a moment alone. Tibor folded his arms and looked away.
Surprised by the request, I agreed, leading the Saardiscan back toward the refrigeration area. “This should be sufficiently private,” I said. “What’s on your mind?”
Kilian’s smile rose and fell quickly in that fake way people do when they’re working hard to minimize tension. “You must forgive my friend Tibor. He is a master chef in his province, as I am in mine. It was difficult to decide between us who was to be in charge during this voyage, but the decision was made to make me our official leader. This has not set well with Tibor.”
That explained a good deal of the man’s surliness. “Go on,” I said.
“If he were in charge of making decisions for all of us, he would never agree to take time away from working.”
“And if we didn’t allow you access to the White House? What could he do then?”
“With Tibor in charge, he would no doubt find work for us to do in our hotel rooms. You must forgive him. He is driven to succeed. He will stop at nothing to see that we achieve many goals here.”
“I have no doubt that success, whatever you take that to mean, will be yours as long as we work together,” I said. “Our goal here, remember, is to exchange knowledge and forge a bond. We don’t intend to submit a report to your government on any of you. A little time off isn’t going to hurt anyone.”
Kilian’s expression shifted in a way that I didn’t understand. He glanced back the way we’d come, as though to assure himself that no one else was nearby. Lowering his voice, he stepped closer. “You, Bucky, and Marcel have been kind to us. I realize we have only been here for little more than a day, but I sense no animosity from any of you.”
“Did you expect to?”
His expression was earnest. “Of course.” He held both hands out. “The kitchen is a place of great competition. Only he who works hard to be the best will survive.”
“Or she.”
His brow furrowed. “May I speak plainly?”
“Of course.”
“You are female.”
“So I’ve noticed.”
He either didn’t understand the humor or chose to ignore it, and continued without missing a beat. “In our country, females rarely hold such a position. We expected to encounter more difficulty with you. How is it that you have come to this level? How is it that you are above men in your field?”
“I don’t understand your confusion,” I began. “I may be the executive chef here, but there are many women—hundreds, if not thousands—who hold positions far more impressive than mine. Not only chefs, of course. There are female lawmakers, scientists, artists, ambassadors, and businesswomen all over this country. All over the world, in fact. You can’t possibly be surprised by that. Saardisca has a woman running for president, for heaven’s sake. You do know that, don’t you?”
He waved that away. “She will not win.”
I thought about my discussion with Sargeant earlier. “How can you be so sure?”
“If she were to gain the presidency, it would be only because many men have helped put her in that position. And when she is there, they will demand a share of her power.”
“That’s very cynical. Maybe her message is resonating with voters more than you realize.”
“The changes she speaks of would be wonderful for our citizens,” he said. “But how can I believe that she is not merely a puppet?”
“I don’t know,” I said, for I truly didn’t. “All I can tell you is that when I vote in an election, I choose the candidate whose views most closely align with my own. Maybe I’m naïve, but I tend to believe that most men and women running for office do so because they hope to improve the world.”
“We should all be so naïve,” he said. “When we have access to your news,” he said in a hushed voice, “we are
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