Temple of the Winds

Kahlan, with Cara following behind, came to the door of the small room Richard used as an office at the same lime as a young woman with short, black hair arrived carrying a small silver tray with hot tea. Raina, standing guard beside the door along with Ulic and Egan, yawned. "Richard ask for tea, Sarah?"

The young woman curtsied, as best she could holding the tray. "Yes, Mother Confessor."

Kahlan lifted the tray from the woman's hands. "That's all right, Sarah. I'm going in-I'll take it in to him."

Sahara blushed, trying to hold on to the tray. "But, Mother Confessor, you shouldn't have to do that."

"Don't be silly. I'm perfectly capable, of carrying a tray for ten feet." Kahlan backed away a step, gaining full possession of the tray. Sarah didn't know what to do with her hands, so she bowed.

"Yes, Mother Confessor," she said before departing. Rather than being pleased to have been relieved of a small task, she looked as if she had just been ambushed and robbed. Sarah, like most of the staff, was fiercely vigilant about her duties. "Has he been up long?" Kahlan asked Raina.

Raina gave her a sullen look. "Yes. All night. I finally left a squad of guards and went to bed. He had Berdine up with him all night, too." The reason, no doubt, for the sullen look.

"I'm sure it was important, but I'll she if I can't get him to stop at night for some sleep, or at least let Berdine get hers."

"I would appreciate it," Cara muttered. "Raina gets grumpy when Berdine doesn't come to bed."

"Berdine needs her sleep," Raina said defensively.

"I'm sure it was important, Raina, but you're right; if people don't get enough sleep, they won't be any good to him. I'll remind him-he sometimes gets lost in what he's doing and forgets about what other people need." Raina's dark eyes brightened. "Thank you. Mother Confessor." Kahlan balanced the tray in one hand as she opened the door. Cara took up station beside Raina, peering after Kahlan, to make sure she didn't have any trouble with the tray, and then closed the door.

Richard had his back to her as he stared out the window. A low fire in the hearth did a poor job banishing the chill from the room.

Kahlan smirked to herself. She would put the lie to his boast. Before she had a chance to set the tray on the table, and let the cup ping against the pot to catch his attention and make him think it was the serving woman, Richard spoke without turning.

"Kahlan, good. I'm glad you came." Frowning, she set down the tray.

"You have your back to the door. How could you know it was me, and not the woman bringing the tea you ordered?"

Richard turned around with a puzzled look. "Why would I think it was the woman with the tea, when it was you bringing it in?" He truly looked bewildered by her question.

"I swear, Richard, sometimes you give me the shivers." She decided that he had to have seen her reflection in the window. He lifted her chin with a finger and kissed her. "I'm glad to see you. It's been lonely without you." "Sleep well?"

"Sleep? I… I guess not. But at least the riots seem to have ceased. I don't know what we would have done if the moon had risen red again. I can't believe people would go wild simply because of something like that." "You have to admit that it was odd. . frightening."

"I do, but that didn't make me want to run screaming through the streets breaking windows and setting fires."

"That's because you're Lord Rahl, and you have more sense." "I'll have some order, too. I'll not have people doing that kind of damage, to say nothing of injuring innocent people. The next time it happens I'm going to have the soldiers put it down immediately, rather than wait, hoping people will be suddenly stricken with reason. I have more important matters to worry about than childish reactions to superstition."

Kahlan could tell by his smoldering tone that he was on the verge of losing his temper.

His eyes were bleary. She knew that if a person didn't get enough sleep, forbearance could quickly evaporate. One night was one thing, but three in a row was quite another. She hoped it wasn't affecting his judgment. "More important matters. You mean your work with Berdine?" He nodded. Kahlan poured a cup of tea and held it out to him. He stared at the cup a moment before taking it.

"Richard, you have to let the poor woman get more sleep. She'll be no good to you if you don't let her have enough sleep."

He took a sip. "I know." He turned to the window and yawned. "I had to send her over to my room to take a nap. She was making mistakes." "Richard, you need to get some sleep, too."

He stared out the window toward the massive stone walls of the Wizard's Keep up on the mountain. "I think I may have found out what the red moon meant." The somber quality in his voice gave her pause. "What?" she finally asked.

He turned to the table and set down the cup. "I had Berdine looking for places where Kolo used the word moss, or maybe mentioned a red moon, hoping that we might find something to help us."