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‘He didn’t say anything about that He was just about to start giving her recipes for boiled carp’

‘That’s what you heard hiot to learn to listen with both ears, Danae’

‘Elenes!’ she said, rolling her eyes upward

Then they heard Kalten shout, ‘Look out!’

Sparhawk looked sharply toward the spot where the others were gathered around a tallhis way slowly out on a very slender li well The lih to support M o froet back!’

But by then, of course, it was too late The tree-limb did not so much break off from the trunk as it did split at its base and peel down the side of the tree Talen ht the confused and terrified cat in one hand, and then plunged headlong down through the lower branches of the tree

The situation was still not irretrievable The Church Knights were all versed in various levels of ic, Sephrenia was there, and Aphrael herself rode on Sparhawk’s shoulders The problem was that no one could actually see Talen Thedown through the lie They could hear hi limbs as he fell, a series of sharp raps and thurunts and sharp cries of pain Then he e lirass under the tree with Met up

‘Talen!’ Danae screamed in horror

Sephrenia concurred with the opinion of Sarabian’s physicians Talen had suffered no really serious injuries He was bruised and battered, and there was a large, ugly knot on his forehead fro tree-limb which had knocked him senseless, but Sephrenia assured the headache, he would have no lasting after-effects from his fall

Princess Danae, however, was in nowith little cries of alarhtest sound

Finally, Sparhawk picked her up and carried her from the room There were people there who probably shouldn’t witness ot away froht Child Goddess

‘What are you talking about?’

‘You had to tas that would have fixed theot Talen killed in the process’

‘It wasn’t my fault that he fell out of the tree’

‘Whose fault was it, then?’ He knew that logically he was being grossly unfair, but he felt that ht short ‘You interfere too much, Aphrael,’ he told her ‘People have to be allowed to live their own lives and to make their own mistakes We can usually fix our ive us the chance I suppose that what it gets down to is that just because you can do soht want to think about that’

She stared at hi moment, and then she suddenly burst into tears

‘Tikume’s boill help,’ Vanion said to Sparhawk a bit later when the two stood together on the parapet ‘Ulath’s right about Trolls You definitely want to slow theht them’

‘And Khalad’s idea about the crossbows isn’t bad either’

‘Right Thank God you brought hi’ The Preceptor pursed his lips ‘I’d like to have you take personal charge of Khalad’s training when you get hiets instruction in politics, diplomacy and Church Laell as inway in our order, and I want to be sure he’s ready for any position’

‘Even yours?’

‘Stranger things have happened’

Sparhawk re ‘Are you ress at all with Sephrenia?’ he asked

‘We’re speaking to each other, if that’s what you mean’

‘It wasn’t Why don’t you just sit down and talk with her? – about sonificant than the weather, or how many birds can sit on a liave him a sharp look ‘Why don’t you mind your own business?’

‘It is my business, Vanion She can’t function while there’s this rift between you – and neither can you, for that matter I need you – both of you – and I can’t really count on either of you until you resolve your differences’

‘I’ ’

‘So could a failure tofor you to take the first step Don’t en came out onto the parapet ‘He’s awake now,’ he reported ‘He’s not very coherent, and his eyes aren’t focused, but he’s awake Your daughter’squite a fuss over hied ‘She tells everybody that she’s going to e, aren’t they?’