Page 95 of Circle of Days

Han spread his arms out, palms upward to show he held no weapons, and said: “We come in peace.”

The second woodlander said: “I know you. You’re Han.”

Han stared at him for a long moment, then said: “Are you Bez?”

“Yes.”

“And this is your brother, Fell.”

Fell heard his own name and smiled broadly, nodding.

“I should have known by the necklace,” Han said.

Pia was looking at Han in surprise.

Han said: “You told me you came from West Wood. I remember now.”

Bez said: “You were kind to me and my brother when we were hungry and destitute. You behaved to us as a member of our tribe would. So now I welcome you as a fellow tribesman.” He looked at Pia. “And your companion.”

Pia said: “Thank you.”

Fell looked hard at their clothes and said: “You need to get dry. Come with us.”

We should be looking for a hiding place, Pia thought nervously. But perhaps these woodlander friends of Han can help us with that, too.

She and Han followed Bez and Fell through the wood to a clearing where there were seven huts. A woman came out of the middle one, and Bez introduced her as Gida. She was attractive and middle-aged, and something in Bez’s tone made Pia think Gida was special to him.

Gida invited them into the hut. At least eight people were lying on the floor around a fire. The air was stuffy and the smell of unwashed bodies was ripe, but Pia did not care, because the warmth was blissful.

Gida spoke to the inhabitants, and Pia heard the note of authority in her voice. She was no doubt telling them who thevisitors were, and they smiled and nodded, evidently accepting her view that Han should be treated as a member of the tribe. They made room near the fire, and Pia and Han sat down. Soon steam was rising from Pia’s coat. She slipped it off and let the heat of the fire warm her bare arms.

Bez and Fell sat with them, and Gida ladled soup from the pot on the fire into four bowls and handed them round. Pia drank it without thinking what might be in it.

When she had finished the soup, she spoke to Bez. “We’re running away,” she said. “The farmers will come chasing us to take us back to Farmplace.”

Bez nodded understanding.

“We need a place to hide.”

“This is the best place to hide,” he said. “Lie down here among the others with your back to the door. We won’t let them come in. They will just look through the door and see a lot of woodlanders.”

“What if they insist on coming in?”

“They won’t. We have clubs.”

Pia looked at Han. “What do you think?”

“It makes sense to me. And while we are here we have allies, should things go wrong.”

Pia was not much reassured, but guessed this was their best chance. She nodded. “Thank you, Bez.”

The rain continued heavy, and no one left the hut. Han fell asleep on the floor and Pia did the same soon afterward, despite her anxiety.

They were awakened by a commotion: dogs barking, men shouting, people running around outside. Thunder stood up, thehair sticking up on the back of his neck. Two woodlanders stood at the door of the hut, holding clubs.

Pia peeped out through a hole in the wattle-and-daub wall. Coming into the clearing were Stam and four of his Young Dogs, all with bows slung over their shoulders and quivers of arrows hanging from their belts. Rain was pouring down their faces and they had lost their customary swagger—in fact they looked scared. They were outnumbered by woodlanders. They could not throw their weight around here.

Pia bit her lip. She had known that something like this might happen. She could not tell how it might end. She only knew that she would rather die here and now than return to Farmplace.