“You been on the water before?” I ask her.

Her mouth presses into a straight line as she peers across to the Amparan shore. “A few times.”

She flinches away when I offer her a hand in. It’s not the first time she’s been jumpy around me.

I roll my eyes. “I may be a barbarian, but I promise I won’t kill you. It’d be hard for me to complete my mission if I did.”

She’s puzzled for a moment, and then she shakes her head. “It’s not that,” she says. “I just keep forgetting you’re immune.”

Her answer seems obvious now that she’s said it. I wonder how long it’s been since she’s been allowed to touch someone. But now, Zivah takes my hand, tightening her grip when the boat rocks under her weight.

“Sit here,” I say, pointing to the stern. As soon as she’s settled, I bend down and brace my weight against the hull. The water’s ice-cold around my feet, and then my shins as I push the boat deeper. I jump into the boat before my toes go numb, and take the oars.

The boat is well-balanced and responsive. The current carries us west and I’m fighting the wind, but we move along at a decent clip. For a while, it’s just the sound of my paddles hitting the water, and the waves against our boat. Zivah stares off the side, looking toward the opposite shore, and I concentrate on the rowing. There’s something about the rhythm that kneads the tension out of my muscles.

“How well do you know Central Ampara?” she asks.

It takes me a while to realize she’s spoken. “I grew up on that side of the strait. I was twelve when we fled across to Monyar.”

“Have you been back since then?”

“A few times.” I attack the water with my oars. The boat lurches. If Zivah thinks removing my memories gives her permission to go digging through my past, she’ll be sorely disappointed.

She returns her gaze to the waters. She looks dignified, sitting there with her hands folded in her lap, like a queen or a priestess. I catch myself staring at her profile, and she turns toward me before I can look away.

“You know what they do to traitors in Ampara, don’t you?” I blurt out.

It’s her turn to be surprised. But then a hint of a smile touches her lips. “You need me on this mission, Dineas. Educating me on Amparan torture strategies might not be in your best interest.”

“Everyone should know what they’re facing.”

Zivah pulls a splinter off the side of the boat and tosses it into the water. “What can they take away from me?” she asks quietly. “My life? That’s already gone. This way, at least I can help my people. At least I can heal again.”