In reply to Sileas (msg # 375):

"Adultress? Yer mean a married bint 'oo goes sleepin' wiv uvver men?" Questa asked. "Why'd they write that?"

In reply to Liadan Buckley (msg # 376):

"I told her when she was conscious I was going to get you to help her. She is strong and that's what got her this far but she needs support. We can't let her...we can't...we can't let her do what I did. I thought it was the strong thing to deal with it on my own and it was the worst decision ever. I'm still struggling and if I would have had support from the strat, I don't think it would still be this hard."

In reply to Questa Cort (msg # 377):

"Papa said her husband was insane. If she spoke to another man or if a man tried to help her, he assumed Pinja was sleeping with them , from what I understand. Look at the destruction they wrought in revenge. It's not the work of a sound mind."

"She won't hide or run off." Liadan promised. "I made that mistake too." Liadan added under her breath.

"Big mistake ter marry that bloke." Questa said darkly. "He needs 'is froat slit proper."

In reply to Liadan Buckley (msg # 380):

"Papa won't The difference is there are five of us already who know what happened. No one knew with you or I before we hid."

In reply to Questa Cort (msg # 381):

"I agree. I've already told Wulfsen I wish to be in on the hunt. Vengeance needs to be mine." Sileas looked at Questa. "From what little Papa said, Pinja had little choice in the matter. From what I gather, either she was stolen from her family or bought from them."

Liadan found another cup. She filled it with water and began slowly trickling it into James's mouth.

Sileas went back to comforting Brie, holding her hand and lightly stroking her hair.

In reply to Sileas (msg # 383):

Yehudit curled up next to Sileas, snuggling into her side. The tea had not been strained and she had actually swallowed some of those herbs- they had her thoroughly drugged.

Sileas's eyes widened a bit but she welcomed the warmth in the cold night air since she was cloakless. In fact, as long as Yehudit remained calm, Sileas could take comfort in the closeness. As she spoke softly to her mother, Sileas checked on Pinja from time to time while Lia cared for James.

Because her cheeks were torn it was harder to get water into Pinja. Liadan found some clean cloth, wet it and loosely wrapped the lower half of Pinja's face in it.

Quiet tears streaked down Sileas's cheeks at all the damage and pain, the suffering to be endured yet to come. She ached to lay down and curl up against her mother but worried she would cause her pain.

Liadan handed Sileas the cup of water. "Brie is probably thirsty."

Sileas accepted the cup with a nod. "Thank you." She slipped her arm under her mother and gently lifted her. She held the cup to Brie's lips. "Mama, here's some water. I know you must be thirsty. Easy now, just a little at a time. I know you're thirsty," she said when her mother tried to gulp down some water. "That's right, little sips."

Wulfsen was trying to keep watch for raiders as he drove the wagon, but he could not help looking back at Sileas.

After Brie had drank, Sileas handed the cup back to her aunt.

Questa pulled out a small pouch of jewelry she had found while looting. It was not a lot, but it was the most jewelry she had ever had at once.

"Mama? Papa?" a tiny voice called out from near the inn. A little girl, about the age of five, covered in dirt and soot peeked her head out from the rubble of the inn. "MAMA! PAPA!" she cried.

The sailboat scraped onto the shallows. A bedraggled (and HUNGRY) Liadan jumped off the little sailboat and waded to the beach. Thanks to their non-existent navigational skills they did not find a port to get more food and water. If it had not rained they would have died of thirst. If they had not come across a large shoal of fish that literally leaped into their boat they probably would have drawn straws and resorted to cannibalism- or all died of starvation.

They managed to sail near the mainland and went up the coast until they spotted a familiar landmark- the beach near Buckley Village. They all wanted to get on dry land and did not want to try finding Portside. The village was closer to the keep than Portside anyways.

Liadan staggered across the beach to the river. She flopped on her stomach and drank. It was a little brackish this close to the sea but it was fresh enough. After drinking a couple gallons Liadan filled a canteen and went back to the boat. She manged to climb back in to give Nelek the canteen of water.

"I don't know if we'll be able to find any food in the ruins, the raiders took most of it and at least two parties from the keep scoured the village for supplies since the raid... But there are always rats. I've lived on rats, and while I prefer chicken they do not taste that bad." Liadan said to Aron and Nelek.

Nelek accepted the canteen and drank. He was stronger than when Liadan and Aron had first rescued him, but he was still not in the best shape. He was still very underweight and the voyage had been taxing. While he did not relish the idea of eating rats he knew he had to eat to build up his strength.

"We might be able to find crabs, and also dig for clams." Nelek suggested. "And I see a lot of seaweed... That's what I lived off of."

He tried not to look beyond the beach to the ruins of the village, but his eyes kept being drawn towards where the inn used to be. Where his children were murdered. He felt his eyes fill with tears and he took another gulp from the canteen.

The little girl was growing weaker by the day, not knowing how to fend for herself. After sitting on a charred tree stump for a while and crying, she stood. Where was her family? She headed down toward the beach area. "Mama? Papa? Lek? Where is everyone?" Had they gone off and left her behind? Was that her punishment for hiding. Finally, she released a weak scream. "Mama! Papa! Unca Shawn!"

When Nelek heard the scream he instinctively tried to run towards it. Unfortunately he was too weak to get off the boat by himself and fell sprawling into the surf.

Aron helped him back up to his feet. "We'll have to go slowly but the sound wasn't far from here."

Nelek tried to move faster then he was able to. "It sounded like-" He fell and got a mouthful of beach sand.