"Keep aware, you two!" Reisz shouted. His words were met with even more laughter. The Harper shook his head sourly as he turned to Myrmeen. "They never listen."
"Perhaps that's just as well," Myrmeen said with a weariness that made her sound and feel older than her thirty-four years. "I don't think Krystin's ever had the chance just to be a child, not to have to worry about survival."
"Ord has never had that chance either," Reisz said.
"I should ask her about it. In all the time we've been together, I've never allowed her to be herself. I think I've been putting expectations on her. You understand, it's as if I've been saying to her, This is what I want my daughter to be. If you don't measure up, well, then, I suppose you can take the next caravan out.' "
"Were you allowed to be a child?" he asked.
She laughed. "Most of my adult life, it seems." With a sigh, she added, "Reisz, I don't know what to do."
The swarthy-skinned Harper looked over his shoulder and said, "For one thing, you could tend to that situation before it gets even more out of control."
Myrmeen had no idea what he was talking about. Glancing back in the direction he had indicated, Myrmeen was stunned to see Krystin and Ord riding side by side, their mounts close enough that they were able to hold hands as they rode. Krystin brought Ord's hand to her lips and kissed it gently.
A hammer blow to the forehead would have been less jarring to Myrmeen. She looked away and gripped the reins of her mount so tightly that her knuckles became white.
"How long has this been going on?" she asked.
Raising an eyebrow, Reisz said, "How long have they known each other? You, of all people, couldn't see what was going on?"
Swallowing hard, Myrmeen said, "I thought they were just friends. I wanted her to have someone she could confide in. She certainly wasn't embracing me in that regard."
"You weren't doing much to encourage her, Myrmeen. And I don't believe you had much to do with this situation either-other than pushing Krystin away whenever she needed you, that is."
Myrmeen tensed. "Have you forgotten she stole from us?"
"She stole from you. Perhaps it was the only way to get your attention."
"Strange words, coming from a Harper."
"The situation is not exactly normal, Myrmeen. Perhaps when we stop next to make sure we are not being followed, I'll take Ord to the side and give him a few gentle urgings about how he should conduct himself with impressionable young ladies, and you can have a discussion with Krystin."
Myrmeen frowned as she considered how Krystin would take it. "One of the things I've always hated most is having someone else tell me what to do."
"Then you won't accept my suggestion?"
"No, you're right," she said. Myrmeen set her gaze toward his face, noting the obvious compassion that softened his scarred features. "Reisz, there was a time when I needed to be taken care of and you were-"
"I think I should see how Shandower is faring. He could still get delirious from his wound."
Abruptly, Reisz prodded his mount forward and left Myrmeen to ride alone for a time.
Night had fallen before Myrmeen had a chance for a quiet moment alone with Krystin. Despite Shandower's warnings that they all should remain together, Myrmeen took Krystin to the shore, where they waded into the gulfs cool, refreshing waters after removing their leathers and boots. Both women were expert swimmers, and before long they were tussling in the waters, holding each other's heads below the surface and racing each other back to shore. Afterward, they lay on the beach, the cool white sand clinging to their bare bodies in the strong moonlight. They stared up at the pinpricks of light visible beyond the layer of drifting clouds that sometimes stepped in front of the waiting moon.
"Your arm," Myrmeen said. "It's bleeding again."
Krystin tensed visibly. "The healer said it might from time to time-nothing to worry about."
Myrmeen picked up a sheer dressing gown she had taken from her bags and returned to the waters. She wetted the gown and wrung it out as if it were a worthless rag rather than an expensive import. When she returned, Myrmeen took Krystin's arm and dabbed at the gash, cleaning out any sand that may have lodged in the wound.
Krystin was surprised by the softness of her mother's hands. From what she had gathered about the woman's past, she had expected Myrmeen's skin to be hard and worn by her trials, as toughened and leathery as her demeanor had been after their first day together. What she had seen tonight had made her question the validity of that appearance.
Both women could sense that the walls separating them were finally beginning to fall. They shared an excitement that was laced with trepidation as they stood together on the brink of a new and terrifying journey.
Myrmeen talked about her childhood in Calimport, her father's death, her involvement with the Harpers, her service as a ranger, and her marriage to Dak. Krystin rolled over and stared into the older woman's eyes. For a moment she thought she could become lost in the deep blue recesses of Myrmeen's eyes, or sail away forever on the sails of the bright golden ships that made anchor there.
The older woman held nothing back. She answered Krystin's every question, no matter how personal or intimate. At last Krystin relaxed and admitted that much of her imposing demeanor was nothing more than a facade, particularly in the area of romance.
"Then you've never-" Myrmeen began.
"No," Krystin replied sharply. "But you've done it a lot, haven't you?"
"If you want the truth, then I don't know how many men I've thrown myself into bed with over the last ten years, since my second husband was killed. But I can tell you this: I know exactly how many of them I've made love with."
"It's the same thing."
"It isn't. That's my point."
"How many?"
She thought of Reisz. "Only one."
Krystin closed her eyes and began to shiver. "Do you think Ord is too old for me? Too experienced, maybe? I think he wants more than I'm ready to give. Do you think?"
"What do you think?" Myrmeen asked softly.
"Yes," Krystin replied. "I don't think I'm ready."
Myrmeen stroked the child's hair, which was much like her own. If you were a little older, we could be sisters, Myrmeen thought. She had barely mentioned the sister she had lost and her mother's tale of the Night Parade when she was a child, and she purposely avoided mentioning the night her daughter had been taken during the great storm.
"Let's go back," Myrmeen said. "You're shaking."
They dressed and returned to camp, where Shandower handed Krystin her emerald locket. The girl fastened the clasp behind her head as Myrmeen lifted her hair out of the way. Reisz came back with Ord ten minutes later, and the young man did not seem pleased. He smiled weakly to Krystin, announced that he was tired, and curled up on the other side of the small fire they had built.
"Have you seen anything?" Myrmeen asked. "Any hint that we are being shadowed?"
"Nothing," Shandower said.
"I wish Lucius were with us," Krystin said.
"We all wish that," Myrmeen said quickly, realizing she missed him deeply. He had been more than their protector; he had become a trusted friend. "Burke and Varina, too."
"I'll take first watch," Reisz said. "The rest of you, try to get some sleep."
"We should change first," Myrmeen urged as she took Krystin's hand and glanced at one of her travel bags. "My leathers became damp, yours too. Neither of us will be worth anything if we get sick sleeping in wet clothes."