She stirred, opening her eyes to stare into the shadows of the woods, here mostly beech, elm, and red oak, with an occasional towering cottonwood, or, in more open areas around the stream, stubby dogwood or redbud, long past their blooming. Splashes of the climbing sun spangled the leaves of the upper branches, sparking off lingering water drops.

“How will you find your patrol in Glassforge?” she asked.

“There’s this hotel patrols stay at—we make it our headquarters when we’re in this area. Nice change from sleeping on the ground. It’ll also be our medicine tent. I’m pretty sure that more patrollers than my partner Saun took blows when we jumped those bandits the other night, so that’s where they’ll be holed up. They’re used to our ways, there.”

“Will you be there long?”

“Not sure. Chato’s patrol was on their way south over the Grace River to trade for horses when they got waylaid by this trouble, and my patrol was riding a pattern up northeast, when we broke off to come here. Depends on the injured, I suspect.”

She said thoughtfully, “Lakewalkers don’t run the hotel, do they? It’s Glassforge folks, right?”

“Right.”

“What all jobs do they do in a hotel?”

He raised his brows. “Chambermaid, cook, scullion, horse boy, handyman, laundress…lots of things.”

“I could do some of that. Maybe I could get work there.”

Dag tensed. “Did Petti tell you about her cousin?”

“Cousin?” She peered up at him without guile.

Evidently not. “No—never mind. The couple that run the place have owned it for years; it’s built on the site of an old inn, I think, which was his father’s before. Mari would know. It’s brick, three floors high, very fine. They burn brick as well as glass in Glassforge, you know.”

She nodded. “I saw some houses in Lumpton Market once, they say were built from Glassforge brick. Must have been quite a job hauling it.”

He shifted a little beneath her. “In any case, there’ll be no work for you till you stop fainting when you jump up. Some days yet, I expect. If you eat up and rest.”

“I suppose,” she said doubtfully. “But I don’t have much money.”

“My patrol will put you up,” he said firmly. “We owe you for a malice, remember.” We owe you for your sacrifice.

“Yes, all right, but I need to look ahead, now I’m on my own. I’m glad I met all those Horsefords. Nice folks. Maybe they’ll introduce me around, help get me a start.”

Would she not go home? Neither the picture of her dragging back to the realm of Stupid Sunny nor the notion of her as a Glassforge chambermaid pleased him much. “Best see what Mari has to say about that knife, before making plans.”

“Mm.” Her eyes darkened, and she huddled down again.