Stone of Tears

Mosle, no more who he had been, dropped to his knees in the wet snow before her. His brow wrinkled with panic that, because of the gag, he would not be able to ask her to command him. He sucked air through his nose, trying to breathe with the terror that he might displease her. The camp around her had fallen into stunned silence, with her the heart of all attention. Kahlan pulled the gag from his mouth.

Tears of relief flooded from his eyes. “Mistress,” he whispered hoarsely. “Please, Mistress, command me. Please tell me what I can do to serve you.”

In trepidation, hundreds of stunned faces around her watched. Kahlan gazed down at the man on his knees before her. She wore her Confessor’s face. “It would please me, William, if you would tell me the truth of what you planned to do after you left this camp.”

He beamed with joy, more tears running down his cheeks, and would have clutched at her legs in gratitude had his arms not been bound behind his back.

“Oh yes, Mistress, please let me tell you.”

Tell me then.”

It all came babbling out in a rush. “I was going to the camp of those other men, the Imperial Order you called them, and I was going to ask to join them. I was going to take all my men with me so they could join too. I was going to tell them of the presence of the Galean recruits, and of your plans, so they would be pleased with us, and would let us join with them. I thought they had a better chance than you, and I didn’t want to die, so I was going to join with them. I thought they would be pleased if I brought them men to add to their ranks. I thought they would be pleased with us if we could help them crush you.”

He burst suddenly in sobs. “Oh, please, Mistress, I’m so sorry I thought to do you harm. I wanted them to kill you. Oh, please, Mistress, I’m so sorry I intended you harm. Please, Mistress, tell me how I can gain your forgiveness. I will do anything. Please command me and it will be done. Please, Mistress, what do you wish of me?”

“I wish for you to die,” she whispered in the icy silence. “Right now.”

William Mosle crumpled forward, against her boots, and thrashed in racking convulsions. After a few long, agonizing seconds, he was still, his last breath rattling from his lungs.

Kahlan’s gaze slid over a wide-eyed Captain Ryan, to Prin-din, standing behind a still ashen Lieutenant Hobson. Chan-dalen was glaring at him, too. She spoke in his tongue.

“Prindin, I told you to make sure they were all killed. Why did you not do as I said?”

He shrugged self-consciously. “They were of a mind to do this. Captain Ryan told them to kill the others but to bring this one to you. I did not know this when we left, or I would have told you. They had two hundred men on foot, and another one hundred on horses. As I told you, they were of a mind to do this, and I did not think I would be able to prevent it, except by killing him myself, and then I realized they might kill me for doing it, and then I would not be able to be near you, to protect you. Besides that, I knew you were right, and I thought it would do them good to learn a lesson.”

“Did any escape?”

“No. I was a little surprised at how well they did the job. They are good men. They did a hard thing, a thing they wept to do, but they did it well. None escaped them.”

Kahlan let out a long breath. “I understand, Prindin. You were right to do as you did.” She cast a sideways glance at Chandalen. “Chandalen will be satisfied, too.” It was an order.

Prindin gave her a tight smile of relief. Her glare slid to Captain Ryan.

“Satisfied?”

He stood stiff, pale and wide-eyed. “Yes, Mother Confessor.”

She swept a glance over the gathered men. “Is everyone satisfied, now?”

There came from them all an uncoordinated, mumbled chorus of “Yes, Mother Confessor.”

If there had been some before who were not terrified of her, there were none now who were not. The lot of them looked as if, were a twig to snap unexpectedly, they would bolt for the hills like frightened rabbits. This was probably the first time most had seen magic, and it wasn’t wonderful, beautiful magic, but daunting, ugly magic.

“Mother Confessor?” Captain Ryan whispered. His arm was still held out, frozen, the knife he had offered her still in his hand. “What are you going to do to me for disobeying your orders?”

She looked to his bloodless face. “Nothing. This is your first day of being men in the war against the Order. Most of you didn’t believe in the importance of what I had commanded. You have not fought in war before, and did not understand the need. I will be satisfied that you have learned something from this, and leave it at that.”