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IN THE DISTaNCE a dog barked It was a forlorn, searching sound Matthew looked over the darkened town fro that even the dogs knew Fount Royal was lost

Five hours had passed since the suicide of alan Johnstone Matthew had spentin a chair by Woodward&039;s bed and reading the Bible in a soleht Not any particular chapter, just bits and pieces of coes without seeing thelean their illuood between his hands

The ht not last until , so it was best that Matthew stay close Bidwell and Winston were in the parlor, talking over the recent events like survivors of a soul-shaping battle The doctor hi in Matthew&039;s roo tea, polishing silver, and doing odds and ends in the kitchen She had told Matthew she ought to do so off for a while, but Matthe she was standing the deathwatch too Little wonder Mrs

Nettles couldn&039;t sleep, though, as it had been her task to h Mr Green had volunteered to put the brains and skull pieces in a burlap bag and dispose of the - he supposed - in Mrs Nettles&039;s room She had come to the library after the sound of the shot, and had asked to see the face of the man who&039;d murdered Daniel It was not Matthew&039;s place to deny her Though Matthew had previously explained to her how the murders were done, by whom, for what reason, and all the rest of it, Rachel yet had to see Johnstone for herself

She had walked past Winston, Dr Shields, and Bidithout a glance She had ignored Hiras, who&039;d rushed in at the shot, armed with their axes Certainly she&039;d passed Green as if the red-bearded, gap-toothed giant was invisible She had stood over the dead htless eyes Matthew had watched her as she contemplated Johnstone&039;s departure at last, she had said very quietly, "I suppose I should rant and rave that I spent so many days in a cell and he has fled But" She had looked into Matthew&039;s face, tears in her eyes now that it was over and she could allow thee of his own , every day of his life, wasn&039;t hei"

"He was, " Matthew had said "Even when he knew he&039;d found the key to escape it, all he did was eon"

Green had retrieved the pistol, which had belonged to Nicholas Paine It occurred to Matthew that all the ht of their arrival were accounted for in this room "Thank you for your help, Mr Green, " Matthew had said "You were invaluable"

"My pleasure, sir anythin&039; to help you" Green had taken to fawning at Matthew, as if the clerk had a giant&039;s stature "I still can&039;t believe such a blow as you gave ed his jaw at the memory of it "I saw you cock the fist back, and then runted and looked at Rachel "It took a right champion to lay me out, I&039;ll swear it did!"

"Ulance at Mrs Nettles, who stood nearby listening to this exchange, her face an unreveal-ing sculpture of granite "Well, one never knows froth Does onei"

Matthew had watched as Jennings and abercrombie had lifted the corpse, placed it facedown on a ladder to prevent any further leakage, and then covered a sheet over the deceased Its destination, Bidwell told Mattheas the barn down in the slave quarters Tomorrow, Bidwell said, the corpse - "foul bastard" were the exact words he used - would be taken into the swaht applaud his performance

To end up, Matthew realized, like the dead men in the muck at Shawcombe&039;s tavern Well: dust to dust, ashes to ashes, andfact of another death that concerned hi potion had finally reached the liiven out, and nothing could reverse the process Matthew didn&039;t beat a grudge against the doctor; Shields had done the best he could do, given the li had been excessive, or perhaps it had been a grievous error to istrate attend his duties while so sick, or perhaps so else was done or not done but today Matthew had come to accept the hard, cold truth

Just as seasons and centuries ood, equal in their frailty of flesh - pass away fro

Out there Out in one of the trees that stood around the pond It was a noonti, and presently it was joined by a second For their kind, Matthew , loneliness, and fear For the

and such a sweetness in it, to hear these notes trilled as the land slept, as the stars hummed in the immense velvet black Such a sweetness, to realize that even at this darkest hour there was yet joy to be known

"Matthew"

He heard the feeble gasp and immediately turned toward the bed

It was very hard now to look upon the istrate To knohat he had been, and to see what he had becory beast It had consules

"Yes, sir, I&039;m here" Matthew pulled his chair nearer the bed, and alsotoward the skeletal figure "I&039;ht here"

"ah Yes I see you" Woodward&039;s eyes had shrunken and retreated They had changed froray, the color of the fog and rain he had journeyed through to reach this town Indeed, the only color about the ray was the ruddy hue of the splotches on his scalp Those jealous inity, even as the rest of Woodward&039;s body had fallen to ruin

"Would you hold istrate asked, and he reached out in search of co, and hot with merciless fever "I heard it, " Woodhispered, his head on the pillow "Thunder Does it raini"

"No, sir" Perhaps it had been the shot he&039;d heard, Matthew thought "Not yet"

"ah Well, then" He said nothing more, but stared past Mattheard the laistrate had surfaced from the waters of sleep since Matthew had been in the roo the day, but except for a few brief istrate had been unresponsive

"It&039;s dark out, " Woodward said

"Yes, sir"

He nodded around his nose glistened the pine-oil - based linies On his thin and sunken chest was a plaster, also soaked in the lini on Matthew&039;s are - of cloth, which Dr Shields had applied after Johnstone&039;s departure - on his clerk&039;s forever-to-be-scarred forehead, he istrate could see his face as anything but a blur, as the fever had alers tightened "She&039;s gone, then"

"Siri"

"The witch Gone"

"Yes, sir, " Matthew said, and didn&039;t think he was telling an untruth "The witch is gone"

Woodward sighed, his eyelids fluttering "I aht have to pass the sentence but don&039;t have to watch it carried out Ohhhhh, et Dr Shields" Matthew attempted to stand, but Woodward steadfastly refused to release hi his cheeks "Stay seated Just listen"

"Don&039;t try to talk, sir You shouldn&039;t - "

"I shouldn&039;t!" Woodward blustered "I shouldn&039;t I can&039;t mustn&039;t! Those are the words that that put you six feet under!"

Matthew settled into his chair again, his hand still grasping the rim sone "I shall have Plenty of time to refrain When my mouth is full of dirt"

"Don&039;t say such as that!"

"Why noti It&039;s true isn&039;t iti Matthehat a short rope I have been given!" He closed his eyes, breathing fitfully Mattheould have thought he&039;d drifted to sleep again, but the pressure on his hand had not relaxed Then Woodward spoke again with his eyes still closed "The witch, " he whispered "The case pains ht, Matthewi Tell hti"

Mattheered, "You were correct"