That was the very first moment — there were countless more to follow — when I shuddered at the realisation that, whatever kind of award I’d received, even if I’d been not just a contributor in a group discussion but had the entire TV network for a day, with every member of the government wishing me peace and comfort while I broadcast all the humiliations I had suffered to the four corners of the world — even then I should never have left Emerence alone, to face whatever it was that had happened.
