Pinja wished her father had been like that. So many bad things could have been avoided. She looked down and fidgeted with a corner of her blanket.

Millie sat knelt next to her. "I wish all fathers were like mine. Or like Uncle Shawn and Uncle Aron. The truth is, not all men are good, but there are good men out there."

Pinja shrugged. "Maybe."

"I doubt they are the only three good men in the world. Four, including Lek," she added. "I want to spend a bit more time with Papa and see Mama. I'll be back in a little while."

"Okay." Pinja nodded. "Don't forget to get that gem back to Lek."

"I'll give it to Mama to give him. She'll take care of it," Millie promised. She gave her friend a gentle smile, and hoped one day she might be able to hug her. Then she got up and went back into the hallway.

Nelek had backed further down the hallway, closer to the room his wife and Kadey were in than the one occupied by Pinja.

"Is she all right?" Nelek asked.

"As all right as she can be," Millie admitted. "Her parents basically forced her into a marriage with a horrible, abusive man. He and his family were the raiders that tore the village apart, all because she ran from him."

"I had heard some of the horrible things the poor girl has had to endure." Nelek said. "Your brother seems to care about her a lot. Is there any way...?"

"I wish there was. But she is terrified of men after what Jack did to her. In fact...she gave me the jewel Lek gave her, to make certain it gets back to him. I promised to give it to Mama so she can make certain he gets it." Millie sighed. "I know Lek would be so good for her."

"You're brother wants to become a knight." Nelek said.

"I know. It worries me since he has always been so peaceful." Millie glanced at her father. "Surely Mama told him no."

"She tried, but Lek is old enough to decide for himself." Nelek said. "Lord Thornblade took him on."

Millie wrung her hands. She glanced at her father. "How do you think he will do? Truthfully? Will he be able to stay in one piece?"

"Lord Thornblade said he would work Lek hard in hopes of making him quit before he can see combat." Nelek said.

"I hope he succeeds," Millie replied. "Lek is such a gentle soul. I can't imagine him in battle."

"Lek is determined, he thinks becoming a knight will help him protect Pinja." Nelek said.

"I know. That's probably the furthest removed from the type of man she would be interested in when she is ready."

"When I saw her... I know she had been hurt, I just hadn't expected her to have been so badly scarred..." Nelek said. "There was never anything between her and Lek before the raid?"

"She knew him from when he would come to the shop, but she had already been terribly abused when she arrived at the village. She wouldn't let him close, in fact, she liked to hide in our rooms a lot."

"I see." Nelek did not think that sounded promising there was never any relationship between them before the raid, it looked less likely to happen after the raid. "She was never interested in him?"

"Men have frightened her the entire time I've known her, but it's far worse now. Jack was particularly brutal to her during the raid."

It sounded like a lost cause.

"Lek was never interested in any other girls?" Nelek asked.

"If he was, he never mentioned it to me. But only after the raid did he really mention interest in Pinja to me, to be truthful."

"Maybe he just thinks he's in love with her because of what happened to her?" Nelek asked.