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His daughter would have been a pretty girl. The thought twisted in her like a
knife, and she fought to set it aside.
Where is everyone? he asked cautiously, looking around again.
Papa and the boys are up cutting hay, Mama is out giving the chickens a
dusting with that antilice powder she got from your uncle, and Aunt Nattie s
bad knee hurt so she went to lie down after lunch.
Nattie s blind, she won t see me anyhow. Good. He loomed nearer, staring
hard at her. No just at her belly. She resisted an impulse to slump and push
it out.
His head cocked. As little as you are, I d have thought you d be popping out
by now. Clover sure would have bleated about it if she d noticed.
You talk to her?
Saw her at noon, down in the village. He shifted restlessly. It s all the
talk there, you turning up again. He turned again, scowling. So, did you
come back to fuss at me some more? It won t do you any good. I m betrothed to
Violet now.
So I heard, said Fawn, in a flat voice. I actually hadn t planned to see
you at all. We wouldn t have stayed on today except for Dag s broken arm.
Yeah, Clover said you had some Lakewalker fellow trailing you. Tall as a
flagpole, with one arm wooden and the other broke, who didn t hardly say boo.
Sounds about useless. You been running around alone with him for three or four
weeks, seemingly. He wet his lips. So, what s your plan? Switching horses in
the middle of the river? Going to tell him the baby is his and hope he can t
count too good?
A cast-iron frying pan was sitting on the drainboard. Swung in an appropriate
arc, it would just fit Sunny s round face, Fawn thought through a red haze.
No.
I m not playing your little game, Fawn, said Sunny tightly. You won t pin
this on me. I meant what I said. His hands were trembling slightly. But then,
so were hers.
Her voice went, if possible, even flatter. Well, you can put your mind and
your nasty tongue to rest. I miscarried down near Glassforge the day the
blight bogle nearly killed me. So there s nothing left to pin on anyone,
except bad memories.
His breath of relief was visible and audible; he squeezed his eyes shut with
it. The tension in the room seemed to drop by half. She thought Sunny must
have gone into a flying panic when he d heard of her return, watching his
comfortable little world teeter, and felt grimly recompensed.Her world had
been turned upside down. But if she could now turn it back upright, make all
her misery not have been, at the cost of losing all she d learned on the road
to Glassforge would she?
She could not, she thought, in all fairness judge Sunny for acting as though
his daughter weren t real to him; she d scarcely seemed real to Fawn a deal of
the time either, after all. She asked instead, So where did you think I d
gone?
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He shrugged. I thought at first you might have thrown yourself in the river.
Gave me a turn, for a while.
She tossed her head. But not enough of one to do anything about it,
seemingly.
What would there have been to do at that point? It seemed like the sort of
stupid thing you d do when you get a mad on. You always did have a temper. I
remember how your brothers d get you so wound up you could scarcely breathe
for screaming, sometimes, till your pa d tear his hair and come beat you for
making such awful noise. Then the word got around that some of your clothes
had gone missing, which made it seem you d run off, since not even you would
take three changes to go drowning. Your folks all looked, but I guess not far
enough.
You didn t help look then, either, I take it.
DoI look stupid? I didn t want to find you! You got yourself into this fix,
you could get yourself out.
Yeah, that s what I figured. Fawn bit her lip.
Silence. More staring.
Just go away, you awful lout. I haven t forgotten what you said to me that
night, Sunny Sawman. You aren t welcome in my sight. In case you d any doubt.
He shrugged irritably. His golden brows drew together over his snub nose. I
figured the blight bogle was a tall tale. What really happened?
Bogles are real enough. One touched me. Here and there. She fingered her
neck where the dents glowed an angry red, and, reluctantly, laid her palm over
her belly. Lakewalkers make special knives to kill malices that s their name
for blight bogles. Dag had one. Between us, we did for the bogle, but it was
too late for the child. It was almost too late for the two of us, but not
quite.
Oh, magic knives, now, as well as magic monsters? Sure, I believe that. Or
maybe some of those secret Lakewalker medicines did the job, and the rest is a
nice tale to cover it, make you look good in front of your family, eh? He
moved closer to her. She moved back.
They don t even know I was pregnant. I didn t tell them that part. She drew
a long breath. Do you really care which, so long as it s not on you? Feh!
She gripped her hair, then drew her hands down hard over her face. You know,
I really don t give two pennies what you think as long as you go think it
somewhere else. Aunt Nattie had once remarked that the opposite of love was
not hate, but indifference. Fawn felt she was beginning to see the point of
that.
Sunny edged closer again; she could feel his breath stir the sweat-dampened
hairs on her neck. So& have you been letting that patroller fellow poke you?
Does your family knowthat ?
Fawn s breath clogged in rage. She wouldnot scream& After amiscarriage ? You
got no brains at all, Sunny Sawman!
He did hesitate at that, doubt flickering in his blue eyes.
Besides, she went on, you re marrying Violet Stonecrop. Are you poking her
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yet?
His lips drew back in something like a smile, except that it was devoid of
humor. He stepped closer still. I was right. Youare a little slut. And
grinned in countertriumph at the fury she knew was reddening her face. Don t
give me that scowl, he added, lifting a hand to squeeze her breast. Iknow
how easy you are.
Her fingers groped for the frying-pan handle.
Long footsteps sounded from the weaving room; Sunny jumped back hurriedly.
Hello, Spark, said Dag. Any more of that cider around?
Sure, Dag, she said, backing away from Sunny and escaping across the room [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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His daughter would have been a pretty girl. The thought twisted in her like a
knife, and she fought to set it aside.
Where is everyone? he asked cautiously, looking around again.
Papa and the boys are up cutting hay, Mama is out giving the chickens a
dusting with that antilice powder she got from your uncle, and Aunt Nattie s
bad knee hurt so she went to lie down after lunch.
Nattie s blind, she won t see me anyhow. Good. He loomed nearer, staring
hard at her. No just at her belly. She resisted an impulse to slump and push
it out.
His head cocked. As little as you are, I d have thought you d be popping out
by now. Clover sure would have bleated about it if she d noticed.
You talk to her?
Saw her at noon, down in the village. He shifted restlessly. It s all the
talk there, you turning up again. He turned again, scowling. So, did you
come back to fuss at me some more? It won t do you any good. I m betrothed to
Violet now.
So I heard, said Fawn, in a flat voice. I actually hadn t planned to see
you at all. We wouldn t have stayed on today except for Dag s broken arm.
Yeah, Clover said you had some Lakewalker fellow trailing you. Tall as a
flagpole, with one arm wooden and the other broke, who didn t hardly say boo.
Sounds about useless. You been running around alone with him for three or four
weeks, seemingly. He wet his lips. So, what s your plan? Switching horses in
the middle of the river? Going to tell him the baby is his and hope he can t
count too good?
A cast-iron frying pan was sitting on the drainboard. Swung in an appropriate
arc, it would just fit Sunny s round face, Fawn thought through a red haze.
No.
I m not playing your little game, Fawn, said Sunny tightly. You won t pin
this on me. I meant what I said. His hands were trembling slightly. But then,
so were hers.
Her voice went, if possible, even flatter. Well, you can put your mind and
your nasty tongue to rest. I miscarried down near Glassforge the day the
blight bogle nearly killed me. So there s nothing left to pin on anyone,
except bad memories.
His breath of relief was visible and audible; he squeezed his eyes shut with
it. The tension in the room seemed to drop by half. She thought Sunny must
have gone into a flying panic when he d heard of her return, watching his
comfortable little world teeter, and felt grimly recompensed.Her world had
been turned upside down. But if she could now turn it back upright, make all
her misery not have been, at the cost of losing all she d learned on the road
to Glassforge would she?
She could not, she thought, in all fairness judge Sunny for acting as though
his daughter weren t real to him; she d scarcely seemed real to Fawn a deal of
the time either, after all. She asked instead, So where did you think I d
gone?
Page 145
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
He shrugged. I thought at first you might have thrown yourself in the river.
Gave me a turn, for a while.
She tossed her head. But not enough of one to do anything about it,
seemingly.
What would there have been to do at that point? It seemed like the sort of
stupid thing you d do when you get a mad on. You always did have a temper. I
remember how your brothers d get you so wound up you could scarcely breathe
for screaming, sometimes, till your pa d tear his hair and come beat you for
making such awful noise. Then the word got around that some of your clothes
had gone missing, which made it seem you d run off, since not even you would
take three changes to go drowning. Your folks all looked, but I guess not far
enough.
You didn t help look then, either, I take it.
DoI look stupid? I didn t want to find you! You got yourself into this fix,
you could get yourself out.
Yeah, that s what I figured. Fawn bit her lip.
Silence. More staring.
Just go away, you awful lout. I haven t forgotten what you said to me that
night, Sunny Sawman. You aren t welcome in my sight. In case you d any doubt.
He shrugged irritably. His golden brows drew together over his snub nose. I
figured the blight bogle was a tall tale. What really happened?
Bogles are real enough. One touched me. Here and there. She fingered her
neck where the dents glowed an angry red, and, reluctantly, laid her palm over
her belly. Lakewalkers make special knives to kill malices that s their name
for blight bogles. Dag had one. Between us, we did for the bogle, but it was
too late for the child. It was almost too late for the two of us, but not
quite.
Oh, magic knives, now, as well as magic monsters? Sure, I believe that. Or
maybe some of those secret Lakewalker medicines did the job, and the rest is a
nice tale to cover it, make you look good in front of your family, eh? He
moved closer to her. She moved back.
They don t even know I was pregnant. I didn t tell them that part. She drew
a long breath. Do you really care which, so long as it s not on you? Feh!
She gripped her hair, then drew her hands down hard over her face. You know,
I really don t give two pennies what you think as long as you go think it
somewhere else. Aunt Nattie had once remarked that the opposite of love was
not hate, but indifference. Fawn felt she was beginning to see the point of
that.
Sunny edged closer again; she could feel his breath stir the sweat-dampened
hairs on her neck. So& have you been letting that patroller fellow poke you?
Does your family knowthat ?
Fawn s breath clogged in rage. She wouldnot scream& After amiscarriage ? You
got no brains at all, Sunny Sawman!
He did hesitate at that, doubt flickering in his blue eyes.
Besides, she went on, you re marrying Violet Stonecrop. Are you poking her
Page 146
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
yet?
His lips drew back in something like a smile, except that it was devoid of
humor. He stepped closer still. I was right. Youare a little slut. And
grinned in countertriumph at the fury she knew was reddening her face. Don t
give me that scowl, he added, lifting a hand to squeeze her breast. Iknow
how easy you are.
Her fingers groped for the frying-pan handle.
Long footsteps sounded from the weaving room; Sunny jumped back hurriedly.
Hello, Spark, said Dag. Any more of that cider around?
Sure, Dag, she said, backing away from Sunny and escaping across the room [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]