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Mendan settled into a crouch, watching her with startlingly blue eyes One of them stayed with her no matter what she said A strip of red cloth was tied around Mendan’s temples and marked with the ancient symbol of Aes Sedai Like the otherfor her to reat way froerous Seventyone years had passed since she had last ue smile and started to pull back into the tent, when suddenly soht her eye and held her like a vise If the Aielht not have noticed

Not far from where she stood stooped over in thethe grindstones on flat stone handht grain in baskets and took away the coarse flour The nine or ten women knelt in dark skirts and pale blouses, folded scarves holding their hair back One, noticeably shorter than the rest, the only one with hair that did not hang to her waist or beloore not even a single necklace or bracelet She glanced up, the resentaze Only for an instant, though, before she cringed hurriedly to her task

Verin jerked back into the tent, her stoain was Green Ajah Or rather, had been Green, before Rand al’Thor stilled her Being shielded dulled and fuzzed the bond to your Warder, but being stilled snapped it as surely as death One of Irgain’s two apparently had fallen over dead fro to kill thousands of Aiel without ain wished she also were dead Stilled Verin pressed both hands to her middle She would not sick up She had seen worse than a stilled woman Much worse

"There’s no hope, is there?" Turannainto the silver cup in her tre "No hope"

"There is always a way if you only look for it," Verin said, absently patting the wohts raced, and none touched Turanna Irgain’s stilling ht knew But as the worain? And dressed like the Aiel women! Had she been put to work just there so Verin could see? Foolish question; even with a ta’veren as strong as Rand al’Thor only a few miles away, there was some limit to the number of coincidences she would accept Had she e error Only, s could she hold out if Sorilea decided to break her? A distressingly short time, she suspected In some ways, Sorilea was as hard as anyone she had evershe could say that would stop it A worry for another day There was no point getting ahead of herself

Kneeling, she put a little effort into co words that sounded as hollow to her as they did to Turanna, judging by the bleakness in her eyes Nothing could change Turanna’s circumstances except Turanna, and that had to come fro no sound as her shoulders shook, tears strea down her face The entry of two Wise Ones and a pair of young Aiel of a relief For Verin, anyway She rose and curtsied smoothly, but none of thereeneyed worayeyed with dark hair that only showed glints of red in the sun, both headandshoulders taller than she, both wearing the expressions of worimy task they wished on soh to have any certainty of holding Turanna by herself, but they linked as though they had been forht of saidar around one see to blend with that around the other despite the fact that they stood apart Verin forced her face into a s Where had they learned that? She would have wagered all she possessed that they had not kno only a few days ago

Everything went quickly then, and s men lifted Turanna to her feet by the arms, she let the silver cup fall Ele, which was just as well, considering that either could have carried her off under one ar a wordless keening The Aiel paid no heed Daviena, focusing the circle, assuo of the Source coh to let her hold saidar without a known reason, no matter what oaths she had sworn Neither appeared to notice, but they surely would have had she held on Theacross the layered carpets that floored the tent, and the Wise Ones followed them out And that was that What could be done with Turanna had been done

Letting out a long breath, Verin sagged onto one of the bright, tasseled cushions A fine golden ropework tray sat on the carpets next to her Filling one of the mismatched silver cups from a pewter pitcher, she drank deeply This was thirsty work, and tiring Hours of daylight remained, yet she felt as if she had carried a heavy chest twenty miles Over hills The cup went back onto the tray, and she pulled the small, leatherbound notebook from behind her belt It always took a little time for them to fetch those she asked for A few moments to peruse her notes -- and make some -- would not be amiss

There was no need for notes about the captives, but the sudden appearance of Cadsuane Melaidhrin, three days ago now, gave cause for concern What was Cadsuane after? The woman’s coend, and even the believable parts of the legend erous and unpredictable She took a pen fro case she always carried, reached toward the stoppered inkbottle in its scabbard And another Wise One entered the tent

Verin scrambled to her feet so quickly that she dropped her notebook Aeron could not channel at all, yet Verinwoman than she had for Daviena and Losaine At the bottoo of her skirts to reach for her book, but Aeron’s fingers reached it first Verin straightened, cales

Sky blue eyes reat deal about plants and flowers," Aeron said coldly "I see nothing concerning the questions you were sent to ask" She thrust the book at Verin m