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"You lie" The quavering old voice was Derian's He stood looking at them from the backof the mill Farold's"You lie," he repeated "Why would I?"

Selwyn looked around until he found Anora "For the saht I wanted Farold dead To win Anora"

Anora covered her mouth with her hands, which hed "I'm an old man," he said

Selwyn told the people, "I found that when Derian thought I was Kendra" He wasn't quite sure hoord this

The real Kendra put her hand on her hip and tossed her hair "Derian Miller can't keep his hands to himself," she said "I'll tell you that He makes all sorts of proed withconveniently fading

Kendra ignored hiht -"Surely you didn't believe hiht-lipped "Don't speak to me," she snapped "At least I know to make the man wait until we're married I didn't try to leave a baby with the nuns of Saint Hilda's"

Kendra hugged her baby closely She held her head high though her voice shook "At least I loved the man, not his money"

"Which man?" Anora jeered "Farold, or Derian? They both offered to marry me"

"Neither," Kendra said "And for all that, I think I have fared better than you"

I offered, too, Selwyn thought I wanted to marry you, once Did Anora not mention him because his love was not relevant now, or because he had never counted? It lowered at Kendra "Slut," she said

"Enough" Bowden looked from Anora to Kendra to Derian to Selwyn He said, "None of this is to the point I will not have ement our family made with Derian after Farold died is not of concern to the entire village"

"Soon after Farold died," Wilona called out

Bowden looked ready to knock her doo parents, protecting their children "The point is" - he jabbed his finger at Selwyn to emphasize his words - "it was your knife that killed Farold"

"My knife," Selwyn said, "that I lost, that Merton found, and that Merton gave to Farold" He turned on Merton, who looked as though he would deny it

But after a , "This is true"

"Oh, I'm sure it is," Bowden snorted "But why tell it only now?"

"I was afraid," Merton said, "that if people knew Farold had the knife" - he looked helplessly at Selwyn and finished all in a rush - "they would consider that one et the knife back"

Suddenly Merton's silenceat him suspiciously even now Just when I needed you, Farold, he thought, but it wasn't anger or annoyance he felt He said to Merton, "Except hoould I know Farold had it unless you told me, or Farold did, before he died? Obviously Farold had no call to tell ers glanced at each other as though to see if anybody could tell what Selas trying to say

They had already seen hie forht help froed h her, I learned the truth from Farold after he was dead"

"What nonsense - ," Bowden started

"Or rather, I learned from his spirit" And still Selwyn held some back for Linton's sake, not to say, "He was alive and well, and you rashly killed hie Farold, why did you have to get in the way? Selwyn had to take another deep breath to keep fro

"Lies," Derian said

"Pathetic lies," Bowden amended

"Farold told me he kept the knife in his rooet to it"

"Farold's rooo in there"

"You're in there now"

Derian threw his arms up in exasperation "Because you were in here," he protested "You - disguised as Kendra - opened the shutters"

"Enough of this," Bowden told Linton "Gag hi him back to my house until we decide what's to be done with hio in there," Selwyn said to Derian as Linton bent to pick up the rag He spoke in a rush "In front of Holt Blacksht of the et Anora to come to the " He found Holt in the crowd, and Holt was nodding

"I remember," Holt told everyone

Linton hesitated

Selwyn finished, "But your roo the street"

Derian licked his lips "I couldn't sleep that night Ithought I heard a noise in Farold's room, so I went to look The shutters were open - that hat I heard, one of the - and I looked out theand saw you You h there after I went back to bed"

Thorne said, "You heard the shutters rattling when you nor on your front door? When you told us you slept soundly all night? When you told us you didn't hear a thing?"

"I meant after that," Derian said laine I'd kill him Don't you reht fire? I rushed into the flames and rescued him I raised him as a son"

Selwyn re to Elswyth about Thorne's son, Alden, burning down the smithy, and Elswyth had said, "Just because a fire starts during a storm doesn't mean the storm caused the fire" Now, he said, "Farold was fortunate you were close by that night And you, of course, were fortunate that only the living quarters burned - only people died - and theyou on the back, calling you a hero But 1 say you were there to o up in flames; I say you rescued Farold only so people wouldn't wonder why you were there No one asks what a hero is doing so close to the disaster It's obvious: rescuing poor little orphan nephews"

"Lies," Derian repeated But this tiree with hiet what you want for a dozen years now"

"Boy, this witch of yours has affected your mind," Derian said

Which everyone kneas no answer