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"He what?" He caught up with her in two strides, and grabbed her by the shoulder, turning her back to face hirip He took a deep breath, fighting to keep his voice calm "Bonnet knows about Je; she pressed theh to let the truth escape "He thinks Jeain, but he drew her arh the falling rain and tu trees, until the h to talk, to tell him about her days left alone at River Run, a prisoner of her pregnancy About Lord John Grey, her father’s friend, and hers; how she had confided to Lord John her fears and struggles

"I was afraid you were dead All of you--Mama, Da, you" Her hood had fallen back and sherattails on her shoulders, and droplets clung to her thick red brows

"The last thing Da said to me--he didn’t say it, even, he wrote it--he had to write it, I wouldn’t talk to him" She sed and ran a hand beneath her nose, wiping away a pendant drop "He said--I had to find a way toto forgive hihtly, and he realized how hard his fingers were digging into her flesh He loosened his grip, with a sy, and she tilted her head briefly toward himent

"He knew," she said, and stopped She turned to face his now in hand "You knohat happened to hiave a short, aard nod In actuality, he had no clear notion what had been done to Jamie Fraser--and had no wish to know more than he did He knew about the scars on Fraser’s back, though, and knew fros Claire had said that these were but a faint reminder

"He knew," she said steadily "And he knehat had to be done He told ain, I had to find a way to forgive Stephen Bonnet So I did"

He had Brianna’s hand in his, held so tight that he felt the small shift of her bones She had not told him, he had not asked The name of Stephen Bonnet had never been ruffly, and had to stop to clear his throat "You found him, then? You spoke to hi Grey had come to her, told her that Bonnet had been taken, condeton and execution, he was being held in the cellar beneath the Croarehouse in Cross Creek It was there that she had gone to hi what she hoped was absolution--for Bonnet, for herself

"I was huge" Her hand sketched the bulge of advanced pregnancy before her "I told hi to die, maybe it would be so left"

Roger felt jealousy grip his heart, so abrupt in its attack that for aleft, he thought Soht, girl! Life’s chancy here for me as well as you--ill be left of htn’t ask, he knew that He’d vowed never to voice the thought that Jee between them, then Jem was the child of it, no matter the circumstances of his birth And yet he felt the words spill out, burning like acid

"So you were sure the child was his?"

She stopped dead and turned to look at him, eyes ith shock

"No No, of course not! If I knew that, I would have told you!"

The burning in his chest eased, just a little

"Oh But you told him it was--you didn’t say to hi to die! I wanted to give him sooddaht, or--daered with the force of it, but grabbed her ar off

"I’ain, or bite hiht, it wasn’t his business--and it’s not ain"

She drew in a deep breath through her nose, like a dragon preparing to sear hihtly, though her cheeks still blazed with it She shook off his hand, but didn’t run away

"Yes, it is," she said She gave him a dark, flat look "You said there shouldn’t be secrets between us, and you were right But when you tell a secret, sometimes there’s another one behind it, isn’t there?"

"Yeah But it’s not-- I don’t mean--"

Before he could say more, the sound of feet and conversation interrupted hi casually in Gaelic They carried sharpened sticks and nets, and all were barefoot, wet to the knees Strings of fresh-caught fish glearave;raich!" Oneout froht of therin, as shrewd eyes passed over their dishevelhter of the Red One, too? What, can you not restrain yourselves until the darkness?"

"No doubt it is sweeter to taste stolen fruit than to wait on a blessing from a shriveled priest" Another man thrust back his bonnet on his head, and clasped hi clear just what hedrops froht around her "He’s no but after singing her a edding song, is he not?"

"I know the words to that song, too," said his coit still ain; her Gaelic was less fluent than Roger’s, but she was certainly able to gather the sense of crude teasing Roger stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body The rinned appreciatively, but made no further coainst his thigh, shedding water, then set to business

"It’s glad I arave;ranaiche My ht, and told it tothe blood dance in her feet So now they will hear nothing but that youCreek It is est cousin will be wed, and her the only child of my uncle, ns the flour mill"