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Tavi slowed his pace to a walk then, breathing in swift pants He held a hand to his side, where a slow, throbbing pain was starting to rise "I haven&039;t ever done thiscraions, run March Train" Fade said The slave looked behind them, and the shadows fell over the coward&039;s brand on his ions, run lots"

Tavi had never heard so ether, and he tilted his head to one side "Fade? Were you in the Legions?"

Fade&039;s expression barely ht he detected a sense of deep, slow pain there, nonetheless "Fade Coward Ran"

"Ran from what?"

Fade turned away fro his way east Tavi looked after hiood tiet Fade to talk with several other small questions, he did not respond to them As they moved, the wind continued to rise, and it roan Tavi saw movement around him, in the branches and the hollows of the trees-the furies of the wood, restless as the ani back and forth and watching silently frohten Tavi-he was as used to them as to the animals of the steadholt But his hand stayed close to the knife at his belt, just in case

Soon, the sound of running water ca the lead from Fade They came out on the banks of the Rillwater, a sh the Calderon Valley from just east of Garados and raced off into the ht," Tavi said "We need to find the ford Uncleas we start froh the woods and out the other side Otherwise, the furies there will twist us around and we&039;ll get lost Uncle said that when he was young, a couple of people got lost in the twisty woods and never caain He found them starved to death less than a bowshot from the causeway, but they&039;d never found it"

Fade nodded, watching Tavi

"I can get us through, but we have to start with the path Uncleup and down the river "And with this stor into his makeshift pack and passed the second sack of salt back to Fade "Hold on to that, in case we need it Don&039;t drop it"

"Don&039;t drop it," Fade repeated, nodded solemnly

Tavi turned and started upstrea the streaht settled over them entirely Tavi could barely see to walk, and Fade stumbled and muttered behind him

"Here," Tavi said, finally "Here&039;s where we cross See that white rock? Uncle had Brutus set it there so it would be easier to find" Tavi slipped down the bare, chill earth of the bank to the stream

Fade let out a yelp

"Fade?" Tavi turned around in ti hit his face, hard, and he felt his legs go loose and relax He fell back, into the swift, shallow, chilling flow of the Rillwater, blinking and trying to focus his eyes He tasted blood in his h to drag hiain, another hot flash of pain Tavi yelped and tried to throw up his arer boy&039;s fists landed with a cool, sadistic precision, again and again

"Enough," Kord&039;s voice rumbled "Get out of the daain"

Tavi looked up, blearily He could see Kord hulking on the bank, his lank and greasy hair swinging as he turned his head to look at the strearound before him, motionless: Fade

Bittan hauled Tavi out of the water and threw hi his handsome face "Climb out yourself, freak"

Tavi clian to shriek and howl overhead The storht numbly The storm was on the, though he didn&039;ton Fade&039;s scarred face

Bittan followed Tavi up fro hiht, Pa"

Kord grunted "Figured they&039;d send word to Graure they&039;d send the freak and the idiot, though"

Aric&039;s voice came to them quietly Tavi looked up to see the tall, slender man, a dark shadow a bit separated from the other two "The boy&039;s ses"

"Doesn&039;t add up," Kord said "Maybe they would send hi"

"Unless Bernard&039;s dead, Pa," Bittan said, spiteful "Maybe that bitch died trying to save him He looked like a dead ed the boy with his boot "Well, freak?"

Tavi thought furiously There had to be a way to stall for enough time for Amara to catch up to the about? A fracas the other night? Had so happened when his uncle came home wounded? That had to have been it Had they tried to kill Bernard? Is that why they would be concerned with soes with Count Graain and said, "Talk, boy Or I&039;ll bury you right now"

Tavi sed "If I tell you, will you let us go?"

"Us?" Kord asked, warily

Aric said, "He runted "Depends on what you say, freak And if I believe you"

Tavi nodded and said, without looking up, "A Marat warrior injured Uncle He got hurt protecting ot away One of the First Lord&039;s Cursors caet to Count Gra and that he has to rouse the garrison and prepare to fight"

There was a uffawed, a quiet, hoarse sound Tavi felt a hand grip his hair, and Kord said, "Even a freak should be s like that would foolwith a sudden panicked terror "It&039;s the truth! I swear to all the furies it&039;s the truth!"

Kord dragged hi mouth, freak" Then he shoved Tavi&039;s head into the freezing water and bore doith all of his strength