Through the Darkness

Herka  Waddo s wife in Zossen

Kyot  Swemmel's twin brother; deceased

Leudast*  Sergeant south of Aspang

Melot  Major in Sulingen

Merovec  Marshal Rathar's adjutant

Munderic  Resistance leader west of Herborn

Obilot  Woman resistance fighter west of Herborn

Rathar*  Marshal of Unkerlant in Cottbus

Recared  Lieutenant northwest of Sulingen

Rual  Villager from Pirmasens; collaborator

Sadoc  Resistance fighter west of Herborn; would-be mage

Swemmel  King of Unkerlant

Vatran  General in southern Unkerlant

Waddo  Firstman of Zossen, Garivald's home village in Grelz

Ysolt  Woman cook by Sulingen

Valmiera

Bauska  Krasta's maidservant in Priekule

‘Butcher’  Resistance fighter in Ventspils; a nom de guerre

‘Cordwainer’  Resistance fighter in Ventspils; a nom de guerre

Enkuru  Former count near Pavilosta; deceased;Simanu's father

Gainibu  King of Valmiera

Krasta*  Marchioness in Priekule

Maironiu  Resistance fighter outside Pavilosta

Malya  Bauska's daughter by an Algarvian

Merkela  Resistance fighter outside Pavilosta; Skarnu's lover

‘Painter’  Resistance fighter in Ventspils; a nom de guerre

Raunu  Resistance fighter outside Pavilosta; former sergeant

Simanu  Former count near Pavilosta; deceased Enkuru's son

Skarnu*  Marquis; resistance fighter outside Pavilosta

Valnu  Viscount in Priekule

‘Zarasai’  Resistance fighter; a nom de guerre

Yanina

Broumidis  Colonel of dragonfliers in the land of the Ice People

Caratzas  Lieutenant colonel of dragonfliers on the austral continent

Iskakis  Yaninan minister to Zuwayza

Tsavellas  King of Yanina

Zuwayza

Goscinnio  Portraitist of Algarvian blood in Bishah

Hajjaj*  Zuwayzi foreign minister in Bishah, the capital

Ifanji  Captain in Bishah

Ikhshid  Commanding general in Bishah

Mehdawi  One of Hajjaj's house servants

Mustanjid  "Prince" collaborating with Unkerlant

Qutuz  Hajjaj's secretary

Saadun  Colonel in Najran

Shazli  King of Zuwayza

Tewfik  Hajjaj's majordomo

Uderzo  Florist of Algarvian blood in Bishah

One

Ealstan was still shaky on his feet. The young Forthwegian gauged how sick he’d been by how long he was taking to get better. He also gauged how sick he’d been by the medicine with which Vanai had helped him break his fever.

When his wits came back, he scolded her: “You went out. You shouldn’t have done that. You shouldn’t have taken the chance. The Algarvians might have grabbed you and . . .” He didn’t want to go on.

Vanai glared at him. Her gray-blue eyes flashed. People said Kaunians didn’t get so excited as Forthwegians. Living with Vanai had proved to Ealstan that people didn’t know what they were talking about. “What should I have done?” she demanded. “Stayed here and watched you die and then tried to go out?”

“I wasn’t going to die.” But Ealstan’s comeback wasn’t so persuasive as he would have wanted, even to himself. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so sick. When he looked at himself in the mirror, he saw how the flesh had melted from his swarthy, hook-nosed face. Circles almost as dark as his eyes lay under them.

“Anyhow, it worked out all right,” Vanai said. “I went out, I found an apothecary, I got what you needed, and I came back. Nothing else happened.”

“No?” Ealstan said, and now she had trouble meeting his gaze. He pointed at her. “What was it? How bad was it?”

“Nothing else happened,” she repeated, and slamming doors and falling bars were in her voice. A long time before, when they’d first got to know each other, he’d decided he would be wise not to ask her what she’d gone through in Oyngestun. This was liable to be another time when trying to force truth from her would do more harm than good.

“Let it go, then,” he said with a weary nod. He was still weary all the time. He was so weary, a couple of days could go by without his having any interest in making love. Before he got sick, he wouldn’t have believed such a thing possible.

But, weary or not, he had to go out to buy food, for the cupboards in the flat were nearly empty. If he didn’t go out, Vanai would have to. She’d done it once. He didn’t want her to have to do it twice, not when the redheaded occupiers of Forthweg had made her kind fair game.

Moving like a man four times his age, he walked to the market square to buy beans and dried peas and barley and lentils. As long as he and Vanai had enough of those, they wouldn’t starve. The trouble was, he couldn’t carry so much as he had before, either. That meant he had to make two trips to bring back the food he should have been able to take in one. By the time he finally got through, he felt ready for the knacker’s yard.

Vanai fixed him a cup of mint tea. After he’d drunk it, she half dragged him to the bedroom, peeled his shoes off him, and made him lie down. He hoped she would lie down beside him, or on top of him, or however she chose. Instead, she said, “Go to sleep.”