Temple of the Winds

"Then, the baby would come. Suddenly, she'll be in a panic. The time has come. She'll be terrified that it's really happening, at last. Sometimes they'll scream just from that fear, the fear of the pain. That's when I can help them. I'm there with them. I reassure them that it will be all right.

"For the first time, for some of them, they finally believe it's happening. I guess it's only natural to dread such a profound change in their lives. Until it's over, until the day is upon them, some of them are miserable with dread."

Together, in the silence of the hall, they sat, resting, listening to the moans from the sick room.

"Nadine, you still think you will end up marrying Richard, don't you?" Nadine glanced over, scratching her freckled nose, but she didn't answer. "I didn't ask that to-to start in on you, or anything. I just meant, well, like you said, you might end up on one of those beds in there. I was just thinking. . it could be me, too. I could get the plague, or something." Nadine watched her. "You won't. Don't say that. You won't get it." Kahlan ran her thumbnail along a joint in the floorboards. "But I could. I was just thinking that if I did, or something, well, what about Richard? He'd be alone." "What are you saying?"

Kahlan looked into Nadine's soft brown eyes. "If for some reason you ended up being the one with him, instead of me, you'd be good to him, wouldn't you? You'd always be good to him?" Nadine swallowed. "Of course I would."

"I'm serious, Nadine. There's so much happening. I want to know that you wouldn't ever hurt him." "I'd never hurt Richard." "You hurt him before."

Nadine turned away and scratched her shoulder. "That was different. I was trying to win him. I would have done anything to get him to be with me. I already explained it to you."

"I know." Kahlan picked at a little stone stuck in the crack between the floor-boards. "But if something happened, and it turned out that you were. . the one, the one to marry him, I want to know that you'd never do anything like that to him again.

"I'd like to hear it from you, that you would never do anything to hurt Richard. Anything."

Nadine met Kahlan's eyes for a moment before glancing away. "If I ever ended up with Richard, I would make him the happiest man in the world. I'd take the best care of him that any woman ever took of any man. I would love him better than-well. I'd do my very best to make him happy."

Kahlan felt the familiar pain gnaw at her insides. She endured it. "Do you swear that that's the truth?" "Yes."

Kahlan looked away and wiped at her eyes. "Thanks. Nadine. That's what I wanted to know." "Why are you asking me such a thing?"

Kahlan cleared her throat. "As I said. I'm worried that I might get the plague, too. If anything happens, I could bear it better if I knew that there was someone who would take care of Richard."

"Near as I can figure, Richard pretty much takes care of himself. Do you know that that man can cook better than me?" Kahlan laughed. Nadine laughed with her.

"Isn't that the truth?" Kahlan said. "I guess, where Richard is concerned, a woman can only hope to go along with him for the ride."

"Lord Rahl!"

Richard turned to see General Kerson calling out for him. He let go of Kahlan's hand. Cara glided to a stop behind Kahlan. "Yes, what is it, general?"

The general came to a halt, waving a letter. A dusty, tired-looking soldier followed behind, along with the general's usual guard.

"A message from General Reibisch, with his army to the south." The general lifted a thumb. "Grissom here just rode in."

Richard glanced to the young soldier, still panting to get his breath. He smelled like a horse. Richard thought he would much rather smell like a horse and be out riding than sitting in a little room day after day translating the mad account of a trial and execution. He guessed that if his labors were doing him any good, he might feel differently.

He broke the seal and opened the letter. When he finished reading it. he handed the letter to Kahlan.

"Take a look." While Kahlan read the letter, Richard turned to the messenger. "How is our army to the south doing?"

"Fine when I left them, Lord Rahl." Grissom said. "The Sisters of the Light caught up with us, as they said you told them to do. They're all together with our men. We're awaiting orders."

The letter had said much the same thing. When Kahlan had finished reading, Richard took the letter and handed it to General Kerson. The general idly scratched his graying hair as he read the letter. He looked up when he had finished. "What do you think. Lord Rahl?"

"Makes sense to me. I don't think we should bring all those men back up north right now. As General Reibisch says, they would be in a position to know about it if the Order moves very far into the New World. What do you think?" Richard asked, as he passed the letter back to Cara.