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Jahns had long since stopped s She stood close to Marnes He turned back to the plants, watched a worker snip off a red ripe tomato and place it in her basket

"I think Holston wanted to let the air out of the silo, you know? I think he wanted to co me every day for reports like a life depended on it"

"I’ a hand on his shoulder

Marnes turned and looked at the back of her hand His bottom lip was visible below hisher hand She pulled it away

"It’s fine," he said "Without all that baggage, I guess it is pretty funny" He turned and continued down the hallway

"Did they ever figure out how it got in here?"

"Up the stairwell," Marnes said "Had to be Though I heard one person suggest that a child could’ve stolen one to keep as a pet and then released it up here"

Jahns laughed She couldn’t help herself "One rabbit," she said, "confounding the greatest lawreens"

Marnes shook his head and chuckled a little "Not the greatest," he said "That was never me" He peered down the hallway and cleared his throat, and Jahns knew perfectly ho he was thinking of

• • • •

After a large and satisfying dinner, they retired a level down to the guest rooms Jahns had a suspicion that extra pains had been taken to accommodate them Every room was packed,had been scheduled well before this last-minute interview adventure of theirs, she suspected rooms had been buiven them separate rooms, the mayor’s with two beds, e to be more…inconvenienced

And Marnes must’ve felt the same way Since it was still hours before bedti wine, he asked her to his sardens settled down

His roole twin bed, but nicely appointed The upper gardens were one of just a dozen large private enterprises All the expenses for their stay would be covered by her office’s travel budget, and that money and the fares of the other travelers helped to afford finer things, like nice sheets from the looms and a mattress that didn’t squeak

Jahns sat on the foot of the bed Marnes took off his holster, placed it on the dresser, and plopped onto a changing bench just a few feet away While she kicked off her boots and rubbed her sore feet, he went on and on about the food, the waste of separate roo his mustache doith his hand as he spoke

Jahns worked her thu to need a week of rest at the botto a pause

"It’s not all that bad," Marnes told her "You watch You’ll be sore in the , you’ll find that you’re stronger than you were today And it’s the same on the way up You just lean into each step, and before you know it, you’re hoht"

"Besides, we’ll do it in four days instead of two Just think of it as an adventure"

"Trust me," Jahns said "I already a back on the pillows, Marnes staring off into space She was surprised to find how cal in a room, alone, with hie, no office Two people

"You don’t take a priest, do you?" Marnes finally asked

"No" She shook her head "Do you?"

"I haven’t But I’ve been thinking about it"

"Holston?"

"Partly" He leaned forward and rubbed his hands down his thighs like he was squeezing the soreness out of theone"

"It’s still with us," Jahns said "That’s what they’d say, anyway"

"What do you believe?"

"Me?" She leaned up fro him watch her "I don’t know, really I keep too busy to think about it"

"Do you think Donald’s soul is still here with us?"

Jahns felt a shiver She couldn’t remember the last tione more years than he was ever host than to hi to say"

Jahns looked down at the bed, the world a little blurry "I don’t think he’d mind And yes, he’s still with ood person I feel hi me all the time"