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Back Bleak Seasons Save as PDF
Chapters (102)
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Sahra seemed untroubled. I suppose, after Dejagore, it was hard to imagine a turn for the worse. She even smiled.

I assume the prison pen is where I left it? I remembered that part of my previous visit perfectly.

We will keep you more comfortably, Blade promised.

Mather volunteered, Ill show you where to bunk.

We were far enough away not to overhear, Swan thought. He told Blade, You look at her good? Thats one spooky woman.

I glanced at Sahra. I assumed she heard, too, but her expression told me nothing.

If Blade answered Swan he spoke more softly.

I continued to study Sahra, wondering what Swan had seen.

81

81

The tent was decent. It must have belonged to a middle-grade Shadowlander officer. We were not unhonored guests. And the tent came with a man assigned to make us comfortable and bring us our supper. Blades troops were foraging successfully, it seemed. I ate better than I had for a long time.

What I want more than anything in the world, I told our man, whose name I never learned, is a bath. Sahra hit him with a smile guaranteed to melt armor plate. She was enthusiastic about that idea. Im so filthy my fleas have lice, I said.

Must have been a real ration of guilt going around at high levels. An hour later several soldiers showed up humping a looted stone horse trough. With them came guys lugging buckets of hot water. I told Sahra, We must of died and come back as princes.

Our tent was big enough to contain the trough and water with room left over.

Swan turned up. What do you think of that, eh?

If I didnt have friends over there fighting and dying Id ask for a life sentence.

Take it easy, Murgen. Itll all work out.

I know that, Swan. I know that. But some of us arent going to be happy how it does.

Yeah, well. Good night.

It was. Beginning with the bath Sahra made it clear her definition of our relationship was exactly what others feared or suspected. She astounded me with her ability to communicate without spoken words, amazed me that in the midst of such unrelenting hell a flower of such beauty could bloom and defy the night.

I slept longer and better than I had for months. Maybe some part of me just resigned and let go.

Water in the face wakened me.

What? I cracked an eyelid. And popped upright. Sahra sat up as I did. To Tan? Whatre you doing, kiddo? The little guy was leaning over the edge of the horse trough, spanking the water. He looked at me and grinned, said something in Nyueng Bao baby talk that sounded like Dada.

Whats going on?

Sahra shrugged. To Tan said Dada again and headed out of the tent.