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Caleb advanced a rook three spaces, taking Peter’s other knight, which he had inadvertently left open "Watch," he said

A quick exchange of pieces and Peter’s king was boxed in "Checkmate," the boy declared

Peter stared hopelessly at the board "How did you do that so fast?"

Beside hihed-a warrin stretched a mile wide Peter understood what had happened; first the swi, now this His nephew had effortlessly turned the tables on hi Peter what he was capable of

"You just have to think ahead," Caleb said "Try to see it like a story"

"Tell ave a"A few of the older kids used to beat ain, youngster I want ht victory, each more mercilessly decisive than the last, when the bell sounded, su him to the dormitory The tiirls’ quarters, leaving Peter to escort the boy to bed In the large roohtshirt, then knelt on the stone floor at the side of his bed, hands pressed together, to say his prayers, a long series of "God bless"es that began with "my parents in heaven" and concluded with Peter himself

"I always save you for last," the boy said, "to keep you safe"

"Who’s Mouser?"

Mouser was their cat Peter had seen the poor creature lounging on a sill in the co over his brittle old bones like laundry on a line Peter drew the blanket up to Caleb’s chin and bent to kiss hi up and down the lines of cots, shushing the other children The roouished

"When are you co back, Uncle Peter?"

"I’ain?"

A warh his entire body "Only if you pro of it yet I could use a few pointers"

The boy bea for hi around her feet He had to report to the barracks at 2100; he and A," Peter said "Why doesn’t anybody put hi the animal’s spine A faint purr trembled from him as he arched his back to receive her touch "It’s past time, I suppose But the children adore him, and the sisters don’t believe in it Only God can take a life"

"They’ve obviously never been to New Mexico"

A joke, but not entirely Aarded his aren’t going very well Do you want to know about it?"

She considered the question She seeht

"Maybe some other time" Her eyes searched his face "He loves you, you know He talks about you all the tiuilty Probably I deserve it"

She lifted Mouser to settle hi you so you kno i okay here?"

She nodded "On the whole, it suits me I like the company, the children, the sisters And of course there’s Caleb Maybe for the first time in my life I actually feelI don’t know Useful It’s nice to be just an ordinary person"

Peter was struck by the frank, easy flow of the conversation Some barrier between the, I mean"

"A few do, or maybe just suspect I’ve been here for five years, and they’d have to notice I’, sos But she doesn’t say anything about it to me" Amy smiled "After all, I make a mean barley soup"

Too quickly, the moment of his departure was at hand Amy walked him to the entrance, where Peter pulled the wad of bills from his pocket and held it out to her

"Give this to Sister Peg, all right?"

Amy nodded without coain she pulled hi, more forcefully this tiainst his chest "Be safe, all right? Proht in her insistence, a feeling, al What wasn’t she saying? And so off a feverish heat He could actually feel it pulsing through the heavy fabric of his uniform

"You don’t have to worry abouthappened, I couldn’t " Her voice trailed away, as if pulled to the currents of a hidden wind "I just couldn’t is all"

Noas certain: there was so hilaze of perspiration shone on her brow

"Are you okay?"

Taking his hand in her own, she lifted theainst his so that the pads of their fingers were just touching It see, connection and separation

"Do you remember when I kissed you?"

They had never spoken of this-her quick, birdlike peck at thetoward theotten How could he?

"I alondered about that," he confessed

Their raised hands seemed to hover in the darkened space between them Amy studied the to divine aIt’s nothing I can even describe But all of a sudden, there you were I couldn’t believe it" Then, as if jarred from a trance, she withdrew her hand, her face suddenly flustered "That’s all You better go-you’ll be late"

He didn’t want to Like the kiss, the feeling of her hand seeer in his senses, as if it had taken up a perertips He wanted to say more but couldn’t find the words, and the ht?"

Her face assembled a sht "Well, I’ll be back in ten days"

Aht?" He wondered why he was asking this

"Of course, Peter Where would I go?"

After Peter had left, Amy made her way to the sisters’ residence, a smaller version of the dormitories where the children slept The other sisters were all asleep, a few of the older ones softly snoring She stripped off her tunic and lowered herself onto her cot

Solazed her body, drenching her nightshirt The turbulence of uneasy dreah her

A for you, Ao to him

She rose, seized with a sudden purposefulness The moment had come

Yet one duty remained, one final task to be performed in these last days of a life she had loved, if briefly Through the silent hallways she padded her way to the common roo on the couch Exhaustion radiated from his eyes; his limbs were limp, he could barely raise his head

Please, his eyes said I’

Gently she lifted hi his back, she turned so he could face the ith its view of the starry night