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"Goewin, Goewin! What happened? Why are you crying so hard?"

"You ainst me so fiercely that he choked, and tried to break free "Pestilent son of a demon! Where have you been all this tihtened me!"

"I’m not so stupid," he said defensively, and put into , half filled with fine wool thread

"You cah ," caed at a length of wool He was right

"Anyway, I could sot such a different air to the tunnels; and Mother packed raisin cakes for us"

"Give me your hand," I said firly I looped the thread around his wrist, three ti?" he whispered

"Binding you toto loop the thread around my own hand as well

"Do not--"

He tried to pull his hand away, too late; I held hiain, I promise!"

"You will not I will see to it"

Our wrists were back to back noebbed in wool floss

"Is that too tight?"

"I’ to pull away again, he curled hiainst my side in the dark and finally whispered, "I’ the hour I tried tohiinably aard, but I would sooner have been stripped and flogged in the cathedral square than I would have let hiain

We were asleep when Turunesh caent Ethiopic She repeated the coo, let us go My father is growing suspicious, wondering why he has not seen you I don’t want to co in the Council, or with Ella A, than be cast as a collaborator Ai, this is proving atekeeper to let ht"

She closed the door of the to with sure efficiency in the dark Then she tried to take my hand

"Mercy on us, what is this?"

She plucked at the wool that bound Tele," I uttered through tight lips

"Ai, you wretched child!" she exclaiame!"

Briefly, Turunesh tried to unpick the knots, but she quickly dropped our hands and gave up "What a tangle! Come up out of the dark and we’ll cut you apart"

Turunesh steered us around like a tea ahead of her up the stairs I could hear her hand brushing lightly upon the walls behind me as she felt her way "We are nearly there," she said "I will not ht; it will only blind us and hurt your eyes I’ve horses waiting for us at the reservoir at Mai Shuht and be away to the east to has it been since you left us?"

"Just more than a day Look, the far stairway You see the stars where the door stands open at the top?"

We caly beautiful; the spangled sky see I had ever seen The city below the Necropolis glittered also I could hted streets in the ht of oil lamps and torches Turunesh led us to a decorative arbor, and we sat in its shelter on ain her satchel and finally produced a flint fire-lighter

"I haven’t a knife This will have to do"

When the wool cord was pulled taut beneath the flint, it seerow razor-sharp, and Telemakos screwed his eyes shut and turned his face away, silent and cowed, as hisus free

"Maybe on’t have you whipped after all," she said at last, with sympathy, when finally Telemakos and I were parted from each other "Remind me to take a knife with us e leave Adwa"

Teleled threads away froround," Turunesh warned "I don’t want to leave tracks"

She put the flint away and produced an earthen flask stoppered with cork

"Have solanced up at her then with a hopeful half-s "It should be hot still Some punishment, eh? This is no precedent, boy, don’t expect more tomorrow But you need to wake properly, if we are to start"

The three of us shared the bitter drink in the dark, beneath the shadow of the carveddead

"Will we be followed, do you think?" I asked