Page 113 of Circle of Days

Katch looked at Pia. “He’s scared of you.”

Pia was incredulous. “Heis scared ofme?”

“He says you glare hatred at him all the time.”

Pia thought that was probably true. If so, she was not going to stop.

Katch said: “He’s afraid you’ll cut his throat in the night.” She glanced at Yana, doubtless remembering that Yana had once made such a threat.

Pia said: “Well, if I glare at him, it’s hardly surprising. He murdered my man, the father of my child, the love of my life.” She started to cry. “What do you expect?”

“Murder?” said Katch. “I expect there was a fight—”

Pia became indignant. “There was no fight! I was there. Stam shot him with an arrow in cold blood. It penetrated Han’s throat and he bled to death quickly. If my hatred is Stam’s only punishment, he’s getting off lightly.”

“An accident, perhaps…”

Pia made a scornful noise. “Stam also shot an innocent woodlander. And a dog. And he picked up baby Olin by the foot and threatened to cut him with a knife.”

Yana gasped with horror. Pia had not told her that part of the story.

Katch winced. As a mother herself she could hardly help reacting to talk of hurting babies. But she said: “You can’t live with hatred in the air. Can’t you put this behind you? Forgive him and start again.”

“What?” Pia could hardly contain her incredulity. She was momentarily silenced.

Yana spoke. “Katch, did Troon ask you to come here and talk to us about this?”

Katch looked embarrassed. “Yes, he did.”

“And he told you to ask us to forgive Stam?”

“Yes.”

That explained it, Pia thought. Katch was not expressing her own thoughts or feelings, she was saying what Troon had ordered her to say.

Katch said: “Troon’s awfully cross.”

Pia felt a pang of pity for the woman, living with that horrible man.

Yana said: “Look, Katch, why don’t you go home and tell Troon that we listened to you attentively and we promised to think very hard about what you said.”

Katch brightened. “Yes, I think he might be mollified by that.”

Pia gave her mother a glance of admiration. That had been very diplomatic.

Katch stood up. “May I say to Stam that you would welcome him if he wanted to come home for the night?”

Certainly not, Pia thought; but she left it to her mother to reply.

Yana said: “Best perhaps not to say anything along those lines. Words can be so easily misunderstood.”

“All right,” said Katch. “Anyway, thank you for listening. May the Sun God smile on you.”

“And on you,” said Pia and Yana together; and Katch left.

Pia stepped outside and watched her walk across the fields. It was full dark, but the nights were usually bright nowadays, because the stars were rarely hidden by clouds. When Katch was out of sight, a voice close to Pia shocked her. “It is I, Bez. Don’t be afraid.”

She spun around. It was him. “You surprised me,” she said.