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"Excuse uise his voice "Istrides taking hiasp behind him, and moved faster

"Arlen?" she called, and he started to run

But even as he took off, he heard her following "Arlen, stop! Please!" she cried, but he paid no heed, seeking only to escape, his strong legs easily outpacing her

There was a broken cart in the road, tipped over with twoaround, and Mery shortened the gap between theh, but the egress he re now in a stone wall too high to ju hie, but the sun was upon hiic would not come He doubled back, but it was too late He ran face-first into Mery as she turned into the alley, and the both of theround The Painted Man kept his wits as he fell,to hold his hood in place as he struck the cobbled street He tensed, ready to spring back to his feet, but Mery threw herself upon hihtly in her aro once I swore to the Creator I would never do it again" She clutched hi into his robes, and he held her in his arround in the alley’s reat and small, that embrace terrified hiained herself, sniffing and wiping her nose and eyes with a sleeve "I must look a mess," she croaked

"You’re beautiful," he said, the words less a cohed self-consciously, dropping her eyes and sniffing again "I tried to wait," she ht," he said

But Mery shook her head "If I thought you were co back, I would have waited forever" She looked up at hi into the shadows of his hood "I would never have…"

"Married Jaik?" he asked, perhaps less kindly than he had ain, even as they both rose aardly to their feet "You were gone," she said, "and he was here He’s been good to me all these years, Arlen, but…" She looked up at hiut wrenched If he asked her what? Would she leave with him? Or stay in Miln but leave Jaik to be with him? The visions from his dreaed "Don’t say it" There was no going back for him now

She turned away as if he had slapped her "You didn’t co deeply as if to hold back tears "This was just a stop to see your old friend Jaik, to offer a slap on the back and a tale before taking to the road again"

"It’s not like that, Mery," he said, co her shoulders in his hands The sensation was strange; familiar, yet alien He could not remember the last time he had touched soone I heard that you had, and didn’t want to spoil it" He paused "I just didn’t expect it to be Jaik"

Mery turned and eood to me Father spoke to the baron ns the mill, and they made him a supervisor I went to the Mothers’ School to do the slates so we could afford the house"

"Jaik’s a good reed

She looked up at hi your face?"