'To make something of it, anyway.' She drew closer still. He had to force himself to stay where he was. She looked into his eyes. She reached up, slowly, and touched his cheek, and set his eyelid flickering.

Foolishness. How many women have touched me before? And yet that was another life. Another—

Her hand slid round his face, her fingertips pressing tight into his jaw. His neck clicked as she pulled him close. He felt her breath warm on his chin. Her lips brushed against his, gently, and back the other way. He heard her make a soft grunt in her throat, and it made his own breath catch. Pretence, of course. How could any woman want to touch this ruined body? Kiss this ruined face? Even I am repulsed at the thought of it. Pretence, and yet I must applaud her for the effort.

His left leg trembled and he had to cling tight to his cane. The breath hissed fast through his nose. Her face was sideways on to his, their mouths locked together, sucking wetly. The tip of her tongue licked at his empty gums. Pretence, of course, what else could it be ? And yet she does it so very, very well…

The First Law

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Ferro sat, and she stared at her hand. The hand that had held the Seed. It looked the same as ever, yet it felt different. Cold, still. Very cold. She had wrapped it in blankets. She had bathed it in warm water. She had held it near the fire, so near that she had burned herself.

Nothing helped.

'Ferro…' Whispered so quiet it could almost have been the wind around the window-frame.

She jerked to her feet, knife clutched in her fist. She stared into the corners of her room. All empty. She bent down to look under the bed, under the tall cupboard. She tore the hangings out of the way with her free hand. No one. She had known there would be no one.

Yet she still heard them.

A thumping at the door and she whipped round again, breath hissing through her teeth. Another dream? Another ghost? More heavy knocks.

'Come in?' she growled.

The door opened. Bayaz. He raised one eyebrow at her knife. 'You are altogether too fond of blades, Ferro. You have no enemies here.'

She glared at the Magus through narrowed eyes. She was not so sure. 'What happened, in the wind?'

'What happened?' Bayaz shrugged. 'We won.'

'What were those shapes? Those shadows.'

'I saw nothing, aside from Mamun and his Hundred Words receiving the punishment they deserved.'

'Did you not hear voices?'

'Over the thunder of our victory? I heard nothing.'

'I did.' Ferro lowered the knife and slid it into her belt. She worked the fingers of her hand, the same, and yet changed. 'I still hear them.'

'And what do they tell you, Ferro?'