Elkeira came rushing into the tent. ‘I’ve just heard. What happened? Somebody told me Max has been hurt, is she going to be all right?’ She noticed Max lying on the bed and immediately went to her side, pushing the men out of her way. ‘The healer has been and believes Max will be fine, we just need to wait for her to wake up,’ said Roki. ‘I need to explain something to Haven and Gilster, can you stay with Max, for awhile?’ ‘Of course I can father,’ said Elkeira, ‘and as I have now come of age, I give Tallon’s protection to Max, she needs it more than me.’ ‘Thank you daughter, that is very generous of you but we will speak of this later.’ Seeing a snarl beginning to appear on Haven’s face, Roki quickly ushered him and Gilster into the next room. Tallon stood silently in the corner hearing nothing of what was being said, his eyes only for Max. ‘I don’t want to leave Max,’ protested Haven, ‘she needs me. And I definitely don’t want to leave him in there with her,’ he added with jaw clenched. ‘She is unaware of her surroundings,’ said Roki gently, ‘she will not know if you are there or not, and Tallon is only there for her protection, nothing more. But it is important I explain something to you about her pregnancy.’ ‘I can’t believe she only has a few weeks to go,’ said Gilster, she doesn’t show at all, she must have been pregnant before we even met her.’ ‘No, that can’t be true,’ said Haven, ‘she had not slept with anyone for a long time before me, she told me so.’ ‘On this world,’ said Roki, ‘women are pregnant for anywhere from four to six weeks, they only begin to show in the last stages, so Max will start to show very soon. Our gods decided on such a short time because we are a nomadic people and to have a woman pregnant for longer would put not only the mother in danger but also the clan. When was the last time you were with Max as man and woman?’ said Roki, speaking to Haven. ‘One night before we left Max’s world,’ answered Haven. Roki continued, ‘it does not matter where the child was conceived, it will be born here and as such is subject to the magic of this world. You have been in our world about four weeks, have you not?’ ‘Yes,’ said Haven. ‘Then it is possible you are the father.’ ‘What do you mean . . . possible, of course I am the father,’ said Haven angrily. Gilster put a steadying hand on Haven’s arm. ‘Tallon!’ called Roki, ‘come in here please.’ Tallon entered the room. Gilster’s hand tightened on Haven’s arm. ‘Have you lain with Max as man and woman since her arrival?’ Tallon did not answer. ‘If you’ve touched her . . . ,’ began Haven taking a menacing step forward. Gilster tightened his grip still more. Tallon met Haven’s angry glare with one of his own. ‘Whatever has happened between Maxine and me stays between us,’ he said cryptically and left the room. ‘What in the name of Apollo does that mean,’ shouted Haven at the empty doorway, ‘have you or haven’t you?’ A larger more comfortable travois was built for Max which was then covered in soft furs and blankets; the journey continued. Haven was not happy about moving Max, but Roki had explained to him, time was running out and they needed to be at the meeting place soon. Each night when camp was made they noticed Max’s belly growing larger. Elkeira had taken to her new job as Max’s nurse exceedingly well. She tenderly cared for Max during the day and slept in the tent with her each night. Haven and Tallon also spent time with Max, but each time they crossed paths the tension between the men grew worse, until one day Elkeira could stand it no longer. ‘Get out, both of you,’ she yelled to Haven and Tallon, ‘I can’t have either of you in here upsetting my patient anymore.’ Both men complained to Roki who refused to rescind Elkeira’s order. ‘She is doing a wonderful job caring for Max and if she doesn’t want you in there, then you are to stay out.’ After the incident Haven spent more time with Gilster, talking about the next world and discussing what they would do when they arrived, but Gilster could see Haven’s heart wasn’t in it. He felt sad knowing there was nothing he could do for his old friend, other than be there for Haven when he was needed. Tallon was seen less and less, some mornings he would come back to camp, covered in blood, with gashes, cuts and abrasions covering his body. His demeanour began to change too; he became more aggressive and short tempered, until most people just kept out of his way altogether. Gossip started that he was spending longer and longer in animal form, until it eventually reached Elkeira’s ears. Becoming concerned and no longer able to ignore the camp gossip she decided to speak with Tallon. One night after Max was settled and left in the care of some camp women, Elkeira went to look for Tallon. She found him on the edge of camp sitting on a log staring off into the forest, lost in thought. ‘Going somewhere?’ she asked, sitting down next to him. ‘Soon,’ he said. Elkeira looked down at her hands clasped together in her lap. ‘I am worried about you,’ she said quietly, ‘people say you are staying too long in animal form. Why? You know how dangerous it is, I would be devastated if I ever lost you.’ Tallon remained silent. ‘Please, promise me you will not leave tonight,’ said Elkeira, ‘stay and talk with me.’ ‘You asked me why I stay longer in animal form,’ he said, still looking off into the forest, ‘because it is easier, I feel no pain when I am in animal form, no hate, no love, just my animal instincts. I can forget about Maxine and the baby and everything that has happened. I have never met anyone like her before, how can I go on if she is not in my life. I can’t think about it.’ ‘But she is in your life and will be for a long time. When she wakes and we all go on to the next world and look for the Chosen, she will need you more than ever, as will I. Who will protect us, who will save us from the Anubians . . . you will. How do you think she will feel when she wakes up to find you gone, you know she will blame herself, how can she live with that, no . . . if you care for her you will carry on no matter how much it hurts.’ Tallon smiled weakly, ‘when did you get to be such a wise woman?’ Elkeira smiled back, ‘I love you Tallon, if you had been a brother of my blood, I could not love you more than I already do.’ ‘And I you little sister,’ he said kissing the top of her head. ‘And who knows,’ said Elkeira, ‘when Max wakes up she may not feel the same about Haven anymore.’ ‘That is a dream I’m holding on to,’ said Tallon wistfully. ‘I have a surprise for you, if it doesn’t upset you too much,’ continued Elkeira. ‘And what would that be?’ asked Tallon, still thinking about Max. ‘When I came looking for you, I noticed Haven leaving to go hunting with the other men,’ said Elkeira. ‘And that is of interest to me because . . .,’ ‘Would you like to go and spend some time with Max? I promise I will keep a look out for you.’ Tallon jumped up, the joy on his face almost making her cry. ‘I love you little sister.’ He took off, sprinting through the camp with Elkeira right behind him until he reached Max’s tent. ‘Wait,’ said Elkeira, ‘let me get the other women to leave first, you hide.’ She entered the tent and Tallon could hear muffled talking, the tent flap opened and he dived into the shadows; the women left. Elkeira poked her head out of the tent flap, ‘psst,’ he heard, ‘you can come in now.’ He entered the tent, frightened of what he might find. Max was lying on her bed, the flickering candle-light playing on her face; she looked so small and lost amongst all the pillows and skins. ‘My little precious one,’ said Tallon softly. He climbed onto the bed next to Max. Elkeira silently left. Tallon had been in the tent with Max for about an hour, it was the happiest hour of his life. He held her hand; his head resting on her pillow, his eyes closed, breathing in her scent, his body lying next to hers. Suddenly he felt the slightest twitch of her fingers; he tensed, waiting to see if it would happen again, it did, stronger this time. He opened his eyes, ‘Maxine?’ he said softly, ‘Maxine, are you awake?’ Her head moved almost imperceptibly; a small moan escaped her lips. He got off the bed, ‘Elkeira,’ he whispered, ‘come in here, I think something is happening, I think Maxine may be waking up.’ Elkeira came in immediately. Tallon knelt next to the bed, taking Max’s hand in his; slowly she opened her eyes and smiled. ‘Hello Tallon,’ she said, her voice husky from disuse. ‘What’s happened, where am I?’ she asked, seeing the concern in his eyes. Tallon found it hard to speak. ‘You are in your tent little one,’ he said gazing into her eyes not wanting to look away even for a second. ‘You have been gone awhile, but now you have come back to me.’ Max, tried to sit up, her baby-bump hampering her movements. ‘What! Oh my god, I have been gone a while,’ she said looking down at her belly. ‘Please, start from the beginning and tell me what happened.’ Tallon told her everything that had happened since she had fallen from his horse, never mentioning Haven once. When he finished Max couldn’t believe what he had told her. Just then shouts came from outside the tent, it was Haven. One of the women had seen Tallon enter the tent and had told Haven on his arrival back at camp. ‘What is he doing in there, how dare you do this the minute my back is turned. I want to see Max and I want to see her now.’ Gilster had coming running over as soon as Haven had started shouting. ‘Calm down,’ he said, ‘you can go in, go on, go and see Max.’ This seemed to quieten Haven. He entered the tent to see Max awake and sitting with Elkeira and Tallon. Haven barged in, pushing Tallon aside. ‘Max, I can’t believe it,’ he said, ‘you’ve come back. I’ve missed you so much, I’m so sorry about what happened before, I never should have left you behind.’ Max looked at him, a quizzical expression on her face. She glanced over Haven’s shoulder at Tallon who was standing behind watching the proceedings. ‘Who’s this Tallon?’ she asked. ‘I’m sorry . . . I don’t know you,’ she said, returning her gaze to Haven, ‘should I?’ A strange look passed between Tallon and Elkeira. ‘What,’ said Haven shocked, ‘is this some kind of joke, what do you mean you don’t know me, you’re carrying our child. I love you Max, you must remember me.’ Haven stood up and faced Tallon, ‘what have you done to her,’ he said, his voice low and menacing, ‘why doesn’t she remember me.’ Elkeira stepped between the two giant men. ‘He has done nothing, I let him come in for a short time, just to see her.’ ‘Well someone has done something, or she would know who I am.’ said Haven. ‘Not necessarily,’ said Roki, speaking for the first time since entering the tent. ‘Remember the bump on her head? The old woman said we wouldn’t know if it had caused any problems until Max woke. Well I think this may be what she was talking about.’ Haven was frantic. Gilster quickly ushered him out of the tent, away from everyone so they could speak in private. ‘Gil,’ said Haven, distraught, ‘I can’t believe this is happening, it’s like a nightmare, nothing good has happened since we entered this world.’ His hands covered his face. ‘I promise, everything will work out in the end,’ said Gilster. ‘I don’t need my telepathic abilities to know that’s not true,’ said Haven sadly. ‘You couldn’t possibly know.’ ‘Ah, but I do, only you may have to wait a little longer.’ ‘What do you mean,’ said Haven looking up, his anguish mixed with a little hope. Gilster continued. ‘In all possibility Max’s memory will return in good time --,’ he held up his hand to stop Haven from speaking. ‘But, if it doesn’t, I can always use my singing to heal her when we leave this world.’ Hope returned to Haven’s face. ‘I forgot about that, can you be sure it will work?’ ‘No, I can’t but at least it’s something to hang on to, for now.’ ‘I can’t stand seeing her with Tallon,’ said Haven, ‘every time I see his face I want to rip him limb from limb.’ ‘I don’t think that would be a good idea,’ said Gilster, ‘this is his world and his people might retaliate. I think the best thing, is to go along with what Max remembers for now, you don’t want to have anymore arguments with her, perhaps her memory will return sooner rather than later,’ he added. Haven smiled, ‘you’re a good friend Gil, ‘I hope you’re right.’ The journey continued uneventfully. Roki had given permission for Haven and Gilster to spend time with Max each day, but they were not to upset her or his permission would be revoked. It was very difficult for Haven to remain detached and talk only of mundane every day matters, but he forced himself not to mention the relationship he and Max had shared, not wanting to lose the small amount of time he was allow with her. Tallon kept his distance when Haven was with Max. Elkeira was Max’s constant companion, the teenager and the young woman had built a strong bond together, enjoying each other’s company. ‘Soon we will arrive at the meeting place,’ said Elkeira sitting behind Max brushing her hair one evening after camp had been made. ‘It will be so much fun, I know the time is short until we leave Naturine but I intend to enjoy myself before we go.’