Blood From a Stone (36 page)

T
hey’d
kno
w
n  each  o
t
her  s
i
nce  ch
il
dhood 
w
hen
t
hey
had
secre
tl
y
m
et
one
a
ft
ernoon
w
hen
he
and
h
i
s
f
a
t
her had
co
m
e
i
n
t
o
t
he
v
ill
age.
H
e
had
m
arve
l
ed at
t
he
si
gh
t
s a
l
l around
of 
t
he  s
m
a
l
l  hove
l
s,
open
fi
res
and
peop
l
e
m
illi
ng abou
t
…so
un
li
ke
t
he
con
fi
nes
of
h
i
s
she
lt
ered 
lif
e
at
h
i
s
f
a
m
ili
es
es
t
a
t
e.

T
he
i
r
carr
i
age s
t
opped as h
i
s papa had go
tt
en out
t
o check
on
t
he
new
s
w
ord
t
he s
m
it
hy
w
as
w
ork
i
ng on
f
or h
i
m
. A spec
i
al
w
eapon
he
’
d
co
mm
i
ss
i
oned,
and
a
lt
hough he
d
i
dn
’
t usua
ll
y
deal
w
it
h
t
he
peasan
t
s
d
i
rec
tl
y,
i
n
t
h
i
s
par
ti
c
u
l
ar
case
t
he
b
l
acks
m
it
h
w
as
t
he
fi
nest
i
n a
l
l
t
he
surround
i
ng
l
ands
and he
w
an
t
ed
t
o check h
i
s
w
ork persona
ll
y.
A
nd so
w
hen h
i
s papa had
gone
i
ns
i
de
t
he
s
m
a
l
l
hu
t
,
Sa
m
son
had go
tt
en o
u
t
of
t
he carr
i
age.
H
e
’
d
not
w
andered
f
ar
w
hen a
li
t
tl
e g
i
rl
approached h
i
m
and
o
ff
ered
h
i
m
her
hand.
She
m
o
ti
oned
f
or
h
i
m
t
o
co
m
e p
l
ay
and so he had run o
f
f
w
it
h her.

T
hey
ran
hand
i
n
hand
v
i
s
iti
ng
several
s
m
a
l
l ho
m
es
w
here
t
he  g
i
rl
see
m
ed 
t
o  be  kno
w
n  and 
w
e
l
co
m
e,  and, sa
m
p
li
ng
t
he
cu
li
nary
w
ares
t
hat so
m
e of
t
he e
l
der
l
ad
i
es had cook
i
ng
i
n po
t
s, or
f
o
w
l
roas
ti
ng over
an open
fl
a
m
e.
O
ne
had o
ff
ered
t
hem
so
m
e
f
resh
l
y
baked bread
w
h
i
ch
t
hey g
l
ad
l
y d
e
voured
be
f
ore
runn
i
ng
back
i
n
t
o
t
he s
m
a
l
l
group of
grassy h
ill
s
beh
i
nd
t
he v
ill
age.

T
hey
e
l
uded
t
he adu
lt
s
f
or several
hours and she
’
d sho
w
n h
i
m
such
w
onders
as
he
w
as
never
a
ll
o
w
ed
t
o
s
ee
i
n h
i
s she
lt
ered
lif
e
as
t
hey
w
a
l
ked
f
ree
l
y
i
n
t
he pas
t
ure and p
i
cked
fl
o
w
ers,
c
li
m
bed
t
rees
and
drank
f
rom
t
he
s
t
rea
m
,
p
l
ay
i
ng h
i
de and seek and
t
ag.
N
o servan
t
s, no paren
t
s, no po
m
pous nob
l
e
’s
ch
il
dren. Just
t
he
s
i
m
p
l
e
p
l
easures
of
lif
e
w
it
h
t
h
i
s
l
ove
l
y
and s
i
m
p
l
e peasant
g
i
r
l
.

W
hen
t
he
search
par
t
y
fi
na
ll
y
f
ound
t
hem
t
hey
f
e
i
g
n
ed be
i
ng
l
ost
so
as
not
t
o get
i
n
t
o
t
roub
l
e
t
he
m
se
l
ves
and Sa
m
son had
m
ade
sure
t
o
t
e
l
l
h
i
s
papa
t
hat
he
w
as
t
he one
w
ho
’
d
l
e
f
t
t
he
carr
i
age
of
h
i
s
o
w
n
f
ree
w
ill
,
so
t
hat
D
a
n
i
a
’
s
f
a
m
il
y
w
ou
l
d not
be he
l
d accoun
t
ab
l
e and pun
i
shed.

A
s
he
’
d
w
a
l
ked
grudg
i
ng
l
y
back
t
o
t
he
carr
i
age
w
it
h h
i
s
f
a
t
her,
he
broke
f
ree
f
rom h
i
s
f
a
t
her
’
s
hand
t
o
run
t
o
hug
t
he
pre
tt
y
young
g
i
rl
w
ho
’
d
sho
w
n
h
i
m
t
h
i
s
day
of
s
w
eet
f
reedo
m
.
H
e pu
ll
ed her
c
l
ose
t
o h
i
m
and
w
h
i
spered in her
ear.