Wizard's First Rule

She took another deep breath. "They want to know if you think they are pretty."

"Of course! They're beautiful! All of them. That's why I can't decide. Don't you think they're beautiful?"

She didn't answer his question, instead assuring the four that the Seeker found them appealing. They gave their typical shy laughs. The Bird Man and the elders seemed pleased. They were still all smiles; they were in control of events. She stared numbly at the celebration, watched the dancers without seeing them.

The four girls fed Richard with their fingers and giggled. He told Kahlan it was the best banquet he had ever been to, and asked if she didn't think so, too. She swallowed the lump in her throat and agreed it was wonderful as she looked away blankly, at the fiery sparks swirling up into the blackness.

After what seemed like hours, an older woman with her head bowed approached carrying a large round woven tray in front of her. It was neatly arranged with dark strips of dried meat.

Kahlan snapped out of her distant thoughts.

With her head still bowed, the woman respectfully approached the elders, silently offering each the tray. They Bird Man took some first, pulling off a piece with his teeth as each of the other elders took a strip. A few of the wives took some as well. Weselan, sitting beside her husband, declined.

The woman held the tray in front of Kahlan. She politely declined. The woman held the tray out to Richard. He took a strip. The four young women shook their bowed heads, declining, then watched Richard. Kahlan waited until he took a bite, met the Bird Man's eyes briefly, then turned once more to watch the fires.

"You know, I'm having a hard time deciding which one of these fine young women to pick;" Richard said after he swallowed the first bite. "Do you think you could help me, Kahlan? Which one should I choose? What do you think?"

Struggling to slow her breathing, she looked over at his grinning face. "You are right, it is a difficult choice. I think I would rather leave it to you."

He ate some more meat as she clenched her teeth and swallowed hard.

"This is kind of strange, I've never had anything like it before." He paused, his voice changed. "What is it?" The question had an edge to it that frightened her, almost made her jump. He had a threatening, hard look in his eyes. She hadn't intended to tell him, but the way he looked at her made her forget that pledge.

She asked the Bird Man, then turned back to him. "He says it is a firefighter."

"A firefighter." Richard leaned forward. "What kind of animal is a firefighter?" Kahlan looked into his piercing gray eyes. In a soft voice she answered, "One of Darken Rahl's men."

"I see." He leaned back.

He knew. She realized he had known before he asked her the question. He wanted to see if she would lie to him.

"Who are these firefighters?"

She asked the elders how they had come to know about the firefighters. Savidlin was only too eager to tell the story. When he finished, she turned back to Richard.

"Firefighters are enforcers who travel the country to bring Rahl's decree that people are not allowed to use fire. They can be quite brutal in their task. Savidlin says two of them came here a few weeks back, told them fire was outlawed, and then threatened them when the Mud People wouldn't agree to follow the new law. They feared the two would go back and bring more men… So they killed them. The Mud People believe they can gain their enemies' wisdom by eating them. To be a man among the Mud People, to be one of them, you must eat it also, so you will have the knowledge of their enemies. It is the main purpose of banquets. That, and to call the ancestors' spirits."

"And have I eaten enough of it to satisfy the elders?" The expression in his eyes cut through her.

She wished she could run away. "Yes."

With deliberate care, Richard laid down the piece of flesh. The smile returned to his lips, and he looked to the four young women as he spoke to her, wrapping his arms around the two closest to him.

"Kahlan, do me a favor. Go and get me an apple out of my pack. I feel like I need something familiar to clear this taste out of my mouth."

"Your legs work," she snapped.

"Yes, but I need to devote some time to deciding which one of these beautiful young women I will lie with."

Rising to her feet, she shot the Bird Man a furious glare, and then stormed off toward Savidlin's house. She was glad to be away from Richard, to be away from watching those girls pawing him.

Her fingernails dug into her palms, but she didn't notice as she marched past the happy people. The dancers danced, the drummers drummed, the children laughed. People she passed wished her well. She wanted one of them to say something mean so she would have an excuse to hit someone.