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After only a few moments, I hear the door to Oker’s office open I expect hi time for Leyna to leave, but instead he stands there as if frozen, his eyes narrowed in thought "Ca that he’s trying to remember the names of the sorters for some reason, but then he cuts me off

"No," he says "Camassia It’s a plant We haven’t done , as if he doesn’t remember that we can hear him "It’s edible Nutritious, even It tastes like potatoes, only sweeter The flower is purple It’s where Caets its naht atsoh on the sorters’ list," Leyna says

"This isn’t the Society," Oker growls "We don’t have to go by the nuence in this village, don’t we? We can find a cure faster than the people in the Provinces, but only if we stop thinking the way they would"

Leyna shakes her head I know sheto decide on the best way to deal with this, and she’s asking herself the sah asset that she can let him do what he wants, even when it’s in direct opposition to what she thinks is best?

"How about this," Oker says "You gather the other ingredients and I’ll make the cures you want, too" He looks at Noah and Tess "You stay and keep the bags going"

"We have extra," Noah points out

"We’re going to need a lot more," Oker says impatiently "Do not let any of the patients run out, especially that newest one" Then he turns to "

"We only have seven patients available for trial now," Leyna says as Oker points out things he wants --clean burlap straps, canteens, and two set the most recent cure trial out of their systems"

"Then we’ll only use seven patients," Oker says, barely able to control his frustration

"The Pilot will need ins

"Then give them allin circles I’ll ets theet the one lances over his shoulder at Leyna "You should ask the sorters to calculate the odds that we’re going to figure this out before the people back in the Provinces do We’re not the Pilot’s best hope He’s throwing everything he can into the air on the chance that soht And we’re the smallest, weakest bird"

"Your medications made a difference," Leyna says firmly "The Pilot knows that"

"I didn’t say we couldn’t still be the ones to figure it out," Oker says "But only if you let me do what I need to do"

"We have camassia in our stores," Leyna says, one final protest "You don’t need to walk all the way to the caround," Oker tells her

"Then I’ll send solean the field," Leyna says "That will be faster than you going yourself"

"No," Oker says "No" He takes a deep breath "I don’t want anything to coh fro a real Pilot would say I follow Oker out the door

I don’t trick myself that Oker’s picked me to come with him because he trusts me the most He can count on Noah and Tess to prepare the s for the patients, but he can’t trust e that yet without supervision He just needs so for him

And he likes to talk to me about the mutation because I’m the most recent person to work firsthand with the still I’ve seen theto him He’s the one who caue before al?" I ask

"A few miles," he says "The field I want isn’t near here It’s closer to the other stone villages, toward Carass and rock to o to the other villages often anyathering to Endstone," Oker says "We’ve sent people out to harvest different wild crops since then, but it doesn’t take long for the mountain to reclaim the path"

Every now and then we pass a round stone pressed flat into the ground Oker says the stones indicate we are on the right track "I walked all the way out here," Oker says His voice sounds peaceful, contemplative, but he moves as fast as he can "Back then, the pilots often flew you as far as the first stone village and then it was up to you where you went after that I decided on Endstone since it was the farthest away Thought Ito the Society I was old enough to be dead, but I kept going" He laughs "I walked through the day of my own Final Banquet"

"That’s what my friend tried to do," I say to Oker "He tried to keep walking through the , he wouldn’t go still"

"Where’d he get an idea like that?" Oker asks

"I think it’s because Cassia walked through a blue tablet once She took one and kept on going"

I expect him to say that’s iht Stranger things have happened" Then he smiles "Cassia is an unusual name It’s botanical The bark is used as a spice"

"Is it any relation to the plant we’re looking for now?" I ask "The names sound so sie"

"She helped with that list," I say "You should look at it again after we’re done with the ca up the fact--yet--that she, not Oker, should be the one who decides which cure Ky gets

Oker stops to get his bearings I could go faster than this, but he’s in excellent shape for someone so old "The camassia should be near here," he says "This is where the villagers come to harvest But they won’t have taken it all Always have to leave sorow for next year, even if you hope you won’t be here" He leaves the path and starts down through a stand of trees

I follow him The trees on the mountainside are pines and soreen leaves I like the sound alk under them

Oker points down "See it?"