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He recoiled, and the shock of it got hi stood up Lillywhite’s back was to hi to his flesh He lunged, grunting, then flung back, beat, riposted

Roger shook his head, trying to clear it of the idiotic ter with pain Jarin, teeth bared with effort as he followed his opponent’s weapon He’d seen Roger, though

"Roger!" he shouted, breathless with the fight "Roger, a charaid!"

Lillywhite didn’t turn, but flung hi back in tierce

"Notstupid" he gasped

Roger realized di to es again, and he grabbed for a tree, gripping hard to stay upright The foliage et; his grip was slipping

"Hey" he called hoarsely, unable to think of any words He raised his sword, the tip tre "Hey!"

Lillywhite stepped back and whirled around, eyes ith shock Roger lunged blindly, with no aim, but with all the power left in his body behind it

The sent into Lillywhite’s eye, and a slithering crunch ran up Roger’s ar softer, where it stuck He tried to let go, but his hand was trapped in the basket-hilt Lillywhite went stiff, and Roger could feel the h his hand, and up his ar as an electric current

Panicked, he jerked and twisted, trying to get the sword free Lillywhite spase dead fish as Roger wrenched and yanked, vainly trying to free himself froot hi and blind with panic and pain Held his head and rubbed his back,nonsense in Gaelic while he puked and heaved Wiped his face and neck with handsful of wet leaves, wiped the snot froer mumbled, somewhere in the ain "You’re fine, too, all right?"

At length he was on his feet again His head had gone past the point of pain; it still hurt, but the pain see so hier closed his eyes and sed He heard Jarunt, a rustling of leaves, and a s face-down, the back of his shirt sot hier lifted his free hand, waved it vaguely toward the bodies

"Them What should we do withtheer could walk by hih he had a tendency to drift to one side or the other, unable to steer quite straight as yet Wylie’s house lay before them, a handsome construction in red brick They picked their way across the lawn, ignoring the stares of several house-servants, who clustered at the upstairs s, pointing down at the for a moment to shake some of the leaves froy wad of cloth that had once been a handkerchief from his sleeve and swished it in the ornamental fountain He used it to mop his face, looked critically at the resultant streaks of filth, and soused it in the fountain again

"The first I kneas the thud when Anstruther clubbed ye--here, your head’s still bleedin’ I turned round to see ye lyin’ on the ground, and the next instant, a sword caht across h a large rent in his shirt, wiggling theot my own blade out in tier pressed the proffered handkerchief gingerly to the back of his head He sucked air through his teeth with a hiss as the cold water touched the wound

"Shit Is it only that my head’s cracked, or does that make no sense? Why in Christ’s name try so hard to kill us?"

"Because they wanted us dead," Ja up his sleeves to wash his hands in the fountain "Or someone else does"

The pain had decided to take up residence in Roger’s head again He was feeling sick again

"Stephen Bonnet?"

"If I were a gaer closed one eye in order to correct a tendency for there to be two of Ja man I’ve seen ye do it"

"Well, there ye are, then"

Jah his matted hair, and turned toward the house Karina and her sisters had appeared at the , and aving ecstatically

"What I want verra ton"