Stone of Tears

That was what Kahlan saw. And she had sent him away in a collar to be tortured. Because he was a monster that needed to be collared, a beast.

Tears ran down his face. The sword slowly sank until the tip touched the ground. He stood staring at the Sister as she slept, shivering with the cold. He stood a long time, watching.

Richard finally slid the sword quietly back into its scabbard. He retrieved his blanket and laid it over Sister Verna, tucking it carefully around her, being gentle so as not to wake her. He sat and watched until she stopped shivering and then he lay down, wrapping himself in his cloak.

He was exhausted, and he hurt all over, but he couldn’t sleep. He knew they were going to hurt him. That was what the collar was for. When she got him to the palace, they were going to hurt him.

What difference did it make?

Memories danced and darted through his mind, memories of what Denna had done to him. He remembered the pain, the helpless agony, the blood: his blood.

The visions went on and on. As long as he lived he would never be able to forget them. It had only just ended, and now it was going to start all over again. There would never be an end to it.

There was only one thought in all the turmoil of his mind that comforted him. He had learned from Sister Verna that he was wrong about the Keeper escaping. That meant Kahlan was safe. She was safe, and that was all that really mattered. He tried to keep everything else away and think only of that. That thought allowed him to drift, at last, into sleep.

Chapter 19

His eyes opened. The sun was just breaking the horizon. When he sat up, the pain from his burn caught his breath short. He put his hand over his shirt, where the bandage was, and held it there until that pain subsided. The residual effects of the Agiel left the rest of him feeling as if he had been beaten with a club. He ached everywhere. He remembered from the time when Denna had “trained” him using the Agiel, feeling a lot worse when he awoke, only to have her start using the Agiel on him all over again.

Sister Verna was sitting on her blanket, her legs folded beneath her, watching him as she chewed something. She had her cloak around her shoulders with the hood down. Her curly brown hair looked freshly brushed.

She had neatly folded Richard’s blanket, and placed it back next to where he slept. She said nothing about it. Richard pushed himself to his feet, taking a moment to steady himself and stretch his hurting, cramped muscles. The sky was a clear, cold, deep blue. The grass smelled sweet and damp with dew. The vapor of his breath drifted lazily in the still, crisp air.

“I’ll go saddle the horses, and we can be on our way.”

“Don’t you want something to eat?”

He shook his head. “I’m not hungry.”

“What happened to your arm?” she asked without looking up.

There was dark, dried blood all down his arm and hand. “I was polishing my sword. It was dark. I cut myself. It’s nothing.”

“I see.” She glanced up as he scratched the stubble on his face. “I hope you are more careful when you shave your neck.”

Richard decided in that instant that as long as he was held captive in a collar, he would not shave. It would be his way of proclaiming to them that a collar was unjust, that he knew he was nothing more than their prisoner, and that he would not believe their spurious protestations to the contrary. There could be no justification for a collar, and there would be no compromising of that basic truth—none, not ever.

Richard glowered at the Sister. “Prisoners don’t shave.” He turned toward the horses.

“Richard.” He looked over his shoulder. “sit down.” Her voice was gentle, but he glared at the order nonetheless. She gestured to a place in front of her. “sit down. I was thinking about what you said. You are here; I am here. Sit down and I will begin teaching you how to control the gift.”

He was caught off-guard. “Now? Here?”

“Yes. Come and sit.”

He didn’t really care about using the gift; he hated magic. He had only asked about it before because he had been trying to ease the tension. His eyes darted about before he finally sat and folded his legs, imitating the way she was sitting.

“What do you want me to do?”

“There is much to teach you about using the gift. You will learn about balance in all things, especially magic. You must heed all our warnings, and follow what we tell you. There are dangers to using magic. Perhaps you already know this from using the Sword of Truth, yes?” Richard didn’t move. She went on. There is greater danger in using the gift. It can have unanticipated results. Results that can be disastrous.”

“I have already used the gift. You said I used it in three specific ways.”

She leaned forward a little. And look what happened. It brought an unanticipated result. It resulted in you having that collar around your neck.”