A Gathering Of Stones

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Simms hauled off a boot, upended it and shook out the water. “Sling me one of those tow’ls, eh Laz?”

“Make it Danny, Lazul was for the duration only.”

“Sure. Why not.” He pulled off the other boot, dried his feet and legs, then the inside of the boots. “Us’ly I don’ bath with m’ clothes on.”

“Better I dump you than I fry you. I could’ve, you know.”

“I ‘spect you could. I ‘spect you din’t ‘cause you’d fry yourself with me.”

“Maybe so.” Danny stomped his feet down in his boots, ran a towel over his hair, scooped up Korimenei’s clothing. “On your feet, Simmo. She should be ready for you by now.^,,

In the Bath Room he tossed the shirt and trousers to Kori. There was a pile of knives, poison rings and other weapons on the tiles. Felsrawg stood on the far side of the pool, glowering at nothing in particular, hands thrust in her trouser pockets. She turned that scowl on Danny a moment, then looked away.

“Gracefully grateful, I see,” he said.

Kori grinned at him. “Yes, oh man, you did it much better. You, Simms, if you roll up that towel, you can stick it under your head and be a bit more comfortable. Stretch out where she was and I’ll get to work on you.”

Danny dropped to a squat, began examining the collection of weapons, trying the balance of the knives, testing the mechanisms in the rings. He felt eyes on him and lifted his head. Felsrawg was glaring at him, indignant at the insult he was offering her. He looked down at the ring he was fingering, then at her; he got the feeling he might as well have been fingering her naked body. He set the ring down and got to his feet, embarrassed at his boorishness, annoyed at the woman for challenging him. Muttering under his breath he moved to stand behind Kori; once again the waves of power she was outputting swept through him, pleasuring him. He drifted in that borrowed glow for a few moments, felt a wistful deprivation when the power abruptly cut off. Kori continued to kneel for a short time longer, head bent. Slowly, with visible reluctance, she reached for Frunzacoache and lifted it off Simms. The way she handled the talisman, it was far heavier than it looked. And hotter. She slid the chain over her head, slipped the pendant under her shirt.

“Want a hand, Kori?”

“I could use one.” She swiveled round on her knees, held up her arms and let him pull her onto her feet. “What are we going to do with this pair?”

He swung her against him, her back to his chest, folded his arms under her breasts. “If they don’t behave,” he murmured into her ear, “you can send them to join your feline pet.”

“Certainly not, he’s a friend, I wouldn’t do that to him.”

Simms sat up, grimaced at his unexpected weakness. “A thought I wish you’d keep firmly in mind, Angyd Sorcelain. Why do I feel like the end of a long fast?”

Danny felt her relax against him; her ribs moved as she took a deep breath, let it out. “The poison has been working in you,” she said. “I stripped fat and muscle from your bones to heal that damage. You’ll get it back with a few good meals and some sleep.”

“Sleep, sounds good.” He got heavily to his feet. “You going to boot us out of here?”

“And waste my work? No.”

Felsrawg snorted and came strolling around the end of the pool; she was pale and drawn, there were dark smudges under her eyes, but she refused to give in to her weakness. “Laz, where do you go, come the morning?”

“Where do I go, Kori?” He slid his hand down her side, rested it on her hip.

“Where you want. Why ask me?”

He chuckled. “I wouldn’t touch that if you paid me.” He eyed Felsrawg. “South,” he said. “We go south all the way to water. Why?”

“We can’t go back to Arsuid, not for a while anyway.” She turned to Simms; he nodded. “This isn’t a good time for traveling, the wolves are out, four legs and two. I want to come with you. Simms? Yes. We’re not begging, Laz. We’ll pay our way.” She ran her eyes with slow insolence from Danny’s bare feet to his stubble-shadowed face. “You look a fool on that pony. We can mount you. Her too, if she wants.”

“The horses we had?”

“No, the ones from Soholkai-ots, the next stage on. You left us on foot, remember? We had to steal a fishboat to get to Soholkai. The Esmoon must have gone off with yours. Look,” she said, “we were a good team before, we could do it again and four will scare off trouble better than two. I’m not saying you couldn’t handle anything that came up, just that it’d be easier if it didn’t. Come up, I mean.”

Kori pulled loose, started for the door. “See me in the morning. I’m too tired to think. Danny, where you want. Read me?” She didn’t wait for an answer.

“Not too early in the morning,” Danny told Felsrawg and left.