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Her mother slowly shook her head. "This does not make me feel safe at all-knowing that a man carrying this was near us. Je
Her mother's eyes showed that she was on to worries bigger than the man Je
"Mother, Sebastian is sick. Can he stay in the cave? I led him to believe that he has more to fear from us than we from him."
Her mother glanced up with a sly smile. "Good girl." They both knew that in order to survive they had to work as a team, with well-practiced roles they fell into without the need for formal discussion.
She let out a sigh, then, as if with the burden of knowing all the things her daughter was missing in life. She ran a hand tenderly down Je
"All right, baby," she said at last, "we'll let him stay the night."
"And feed him. I told him he would have a hot meal for helping me."
Her mother's warm smile widened. "And a meal, then."
She drew the blade from its sheath, finally. She gave it a critical appraisal, turning it this way and that, inspecting its design. She tested the edge, and then the weight. She spun it between her slender fingers to get the feel of it, the balance.
At last she held it in her open palm, contemplating the ornate letter "R." Je
"Dear spirits," her mother whispered again to herself.
Je
"Mother," Je
Her mother slid the blade home into its sheath, looking to put a panorama of painful memories away with it.
"Yes, I suppose you had better go get him. Take him to the cave. Make a fire for him. I'll cook some fish and bring some herbs along to help him sleep with his fever. Wait there with him until I come out. Keep your eye on him. We will eat with him, out there. I don't want him in the house."
Je
"Mother," she said in a voice barely above a whisper, "we are going to need to go from this place."
Her mother looked startled.
"I found something on the D'Haran soldier."
Je
Her mother's gaze took in the two words on the paper.
"Dear spirits. ." was all she said, was all she was able to say.
She turned and looked at the house, taking it all in, her eyes suddenly brimming with tears. Je
"Dear spirits," her mother whispered to herself again, at a loss for anything more.
Je
Her mother wiped a finger under each eye as she looked back at Je
It broke Je
Je
Her mother caught her up in her arms then, cradling Je
Je
But then she pushed away from her mother's embrace. "Mama, Sebastian is from far away. He told me. He said that he's from beyond D'Hara.
There are other places-other lands. He knows of them. Isn't that wonderful? There is a place that isn't D'Hara."
"But those places are beyond barriers and boundaries that can't be crossed."
"Then how can he be here? It must be so, otherwise he could not have traveled here."
"And Sebastian is from one of these other lands?"
"To the south, he said."
"The south? I don't see how it could be possible. Are you sure that's what he said?"
"Yes." Je
As levelheaded as her mother was, Je
"Why would he do this for us?"
"I don't know. I don't even know if he would consider it, or what he would want in return. I didn't ask him. I didn't dare even to mention it until I talked to you, first. That's part of why I wanted him to stay here-so you could question him. I feared to lose this chance to discover if it really is possible."
Her mother looked around again at the house. It was tiny, only one room, and it was nothing fancy, built from logs and wood they had shaped themselves, but it was warm and snug and dry. It was frightening to contemplate striking out in the dead of winter. The alternative of being caught, though, was far worse. le
At last, her mother gathered herself and spoke. "That's good thinking, Je
"Mother, where will we go, this time, if Sebastian won't lead us away from D'Hara?"
Her mother smiled. "Baby, the world is a big place. We are only two small people. We will simply vanish again. I know it's hard, but we're together. It will be fine. We'll see some new sights, now won't we? Some more of the world.
"Now, go get Sebastian and take him to the cave. I'll get started on di
Je
Sebastian was still sitting on the rock, waiting. He stood as she rushed up to him.
"My mother said it was all right for you to sleep in the cave with the animals. She's started on cooking up the fish for us. She wants to meet you.»
He looked too tired to be happy, but he managed to show her a small smile. Je
What she wasn't sure of was if he would help them.