“No, of course not.” Her voice raked at her throat. “Do you have water? Where are the others? What time is it?”

Rapt handed her his algaskin. “Get up,” he said. “We’re over there behind that pile of rubble. I heard when you fell – so I came to look. It’s nearly dusk.”

“Take me to Caroni. And Arc.”

The Tribals sat in groups in the gully at the base of the collapsing wall. Emrallie got up. “Sorrel,” she said. “Guata. Why’d you leave us?”

“I wanted to –” She stopped.

“Give her some room,” Caroni said and Emrallie stepped back. “And keep your voices down.” She turned to Sorrel. “Now talk.” Sorrel heard the mistrust in the Zorah’s voice.

“I wanted to warn my mother. Thought maybe I could bring her back and leave her in the valley. But then I wondered if the Lowlanders would join us. That would improve our chances.”

“She talked to me about it,” Rapt said. “She asked if inside help would work. I told her it was a good idea.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me?” Caroni said. “It’s a decent plan – not the part about rescuing your mother but – ”

“I knew that once I said Bibi’s name you wouldn’t listen.” She looked around at the others and met Emrallie’s eyes. “Nobody would’ve listened. You’d have tried to talk me out of trying.”

“Why’re you here without your mother, then?” Arc said, standing beside Caroni.

“Colonel Drax has her in his torture room – that’s what the women told me. I figured getting help would be easier.”

“Go on,” Caroni said.

She told them what she’d learned – the numbers, the Lowlander women locked in from the outside, the second cabin of women she’d not seen, the basic layout of the camp, including the parade ground, the patrols, the drain she’d used to escape, and the sunken building near the south wall, where Colonel Drax held her mother.

“You said this Colonel has your mother? What do you mean?” Caroni said.

Sorrel looked up at the Zorah. “He tortures them. Chooses one every month. Takes them into that building and hurts them. Cuts them. Blinds them. Some have awful scars. He even blinded his own brother. They’re afraid of him but I think some of them will join us. Some think the brother – Ganan – would make a better leader. We have to go now, Caroni. The dust is bad, but not as bad as it’s going to get.”

“We don’t know anything about this brother and we can’t trust Toplanders,” Rashelope said.

“It’s not a bad idea to get rid of a leader,” Arc countered.

“Stealth is easier than outright attack,” Rapt said, surprising everyone. ‘Do you know where this brother is?”

“No,” Sorrel said.

“Pity,” Arc said. “We could split up. Some of us make the attack on Drax. Others find Ganan.”

“Why?” Emrallie asked.