surface as they swam. Richard had never seen snakes this big. Kahlan was watching the island and
hadn't noticed them yet. The dry land was too far away. He knew they weren't going to make it
before the snakes reached them.

Richard turned and looked behind to see if they could make it back to high ground. Where they had
left the trail, the dark shapes of the heart hounds were gathered, snarling and growling. Heads held
low, the big black bodies paced back and forth, wanting to enter the water, to reach their prey, but
only howling instead.

Richard lowered the tip of the sword into the water, letting it drag a small wake behind, as he
prepared to strike at the-first snake that came close enough. Then a surprising thing happened.
When the sword dipped into the water, the snakes turned suddenly and squirmed away as fast as
they could go. Somehow, the magic in the sword frightened them away. He wasn't sure why the
magic would function this way, but was glad it did.

They worked their way among the large trunks of trees that stood like columns in the mire. Each in
turn brushed aside vines and streamers of moss as they passed. When they crossed shallower areas
of water, the tip of his sword no longer reached the water. The snakes returned immediately. He
leaned lower, the sword's tip dipping back in the water, and the snakes turned once more, wanting
nothing to do with them. Richard wondered what would happen when they reached dry land.
Would the snakes follow them there? Would the sword's magic work to keep them away out of the
water? The snakes might be as much trouble as the heart hounds.

Water ran off the underside of Kahlan's horse as it climbed up onto the island. There were a few
poplar trees at the high point in the center and cedars at the water's edge on the far side of the small
hump of dry ground, but mostly it was covered with reed and a smattering of iris. To see what
would happen, Richard took the sword from the water before he needed to. The snakes began to
come for him. When he left the water, some turned and swam away, some wandered the shoreline,
but none followed onto dry land.

In near darkness, Richard laid Zedd and Chase on the ground beneath the poplars. He pulled a tarp
from the packs and strung it between the trees to make a small shelter. Everything was wet, but
since there was no wind, the makeshift structure kept most of the rain off them: There was no
chance of a fire, for now, since all the wood that could be found was thoroughly soaked. At least
the night wasn't cold. Frogs kept up a steady chirping from the wet darkness. Richard placed a pair
of fat candles on a piece of wood so they could have some light under their shelter.

Together they checked Zedd. There didn't seem to be any sign of an injury, but he remained
unconscious. Chase's condition was unchanged, too.

Kahlan stroked Zedd's forehead. "It is not a good sign for a wizard's eyes to be closed like this. I
don't know what to do for them."

Richard shook his head. "Neither do 1. We can be glad they don't have a fever. Maybe there's a
healer in Southaven. I'll make litters the horses can pull. I think that would be better than having
them ride again the way they did today."

Kahlan retrieved two more blankets to keep their friends warm; then she and Richard sat together
by the candles, the water dripping around them. Glowing pairs of yellow eyes waited on the trail, in
the blackness back through the trees. As the heart hounds paced, the eyes moved back and forth.
Occasionally, Richard and Kahlan heard yelps of frustration. The two of them watched their
hunters off across the dark water.

Kahlan stared at the glowing eyes. "I wonder why they didn't follow us."

Richard glanced sideways at her. "I think they're afraid of the snakes."

Kahlan jumped. to her feet, quickly scanning around, her head pushing against the tarp. "Snakes,
what snakes? I don't like snakes," she said in a rush.

He looked 'up. "Some kind of big water snakes. They swam off when I put the sword in the water. I
don't think we have to worry; they didn't come up on the dry ground when we did. I think it's safe."

She looked around cautiously as she pulled her cloak tight and then sat down, closer to him this
time. "You could have warned me about them," she said with a frown.

"I didn't know myself until I saw them, and the hounds were right behind us. I didn't think we had
much choice in the matter, and I didn't want to scare you."

She didn't say anything more. Richard got out a sausage and a loaf of hard bread, their last one. He
tore the bread in half and cut pieces off the sausage, handing her a few. They each held a tin cup
under the rainwater that dripped off the tarp. They ate in silence, watching all around for any sign
of threat, listening to the rhythm of the rain.

"Richard," she asked at last, "did you see my sister, in the boundary?" "No. Whatever it was that
had you didn't look like a person to me, and. I would bet that the thing I struck down at first didn't
look like my father to you." She shook her head that it didn't. "I think," he said, "they just appear in
a form meant to re-create a person you want to see, to beguile you."

"I think you're right," she sighed, taking a bite of sausage. When she finished chewing, she added,
"I'm glad. I would hate to think we had to hurt them."

He nodded his agreement and looked over. Her hair was wet, and some of it was stuck to the side of
her face. "There's something else, though, that I think is odd. When that thing from the boundary,
whatever it was, struck out at Chase, it was fast and it hit him square the first time, and before we
could do anything it grabbed you with no trouble. Same with Zedd, it got him the first time. But
when I went back for them, it tried for me and missed, then it didn't even try again."

"I noticed that when it happened," she said. "It missed you by a good distance. It was as if it didn't
know where you were. It knew right where the three of us were, but it couldn't seem to find you."

Richard thought a moment. "Maybe it was the sword."

Kahlan shrugged. "Whatever it was, I am happy for it."

He wasn't at all sure it was the sword. The snakes had been afraid of the sword, and swam away
from it. The thing in the boundary had shown no fear; it seemed as if it simply couldn't find him.
There was one other thing that he wondered at. When he had struck down the thing in the boundary
that looked like his father, he had felt no pain. Zedd had told him there would be a price to pay for
killing with the sword, and that he would feel the pain of what he had done. Maybe there was no
pain because the thing was already dead. Maybe it was all in his head, none of it was real. That
couldn't be; it was real enough to strike down his friends. His self-assurance that it wasn't his father
he had cut down began to waver.

They ate the rest of the meal in silence while he thought about what he could do for Zedd and
Chase, which was nothing. Zedd had medicines along, but only Zedd know how to use them.
Maybe it was magic from the boundary that had struck them down. Zedd had magic along, too, but
he was also the only one who knew how to use that.

Richard took out an apple and cut it into wedges, removed the seeds, and gave half to Kahlan. She
moved closer and leaned her head on his arm as she ate it.

"Tired?" he asked.

She nodded, then smiled. "And I am sore in places I cannot mention." She ate another wedge of
apple. "Do you know anything about Southaven?"

"I've heard other guides mention it when they've passed through Hartland. From what they say, it's
a place of thieves and misfit,"

"It doesn't sound like the kind of place that would have a healer." Richard didn't answer. "What will
we do, then?"

"I don't know, but they'll get better, they'll be all right."

"And if not?" she pressed.

He took the apple away from his mouth, and looked at her. "Kahlan, what are you trying to say?"

"I am saying that we have to be prepared to leave them. To go on."

"We can't," he answered firmly. "We need them both. Remember when Zedd gave me the sword?
He said he wanted me to get us across the boundary. He said he had a plan. He hasn't told me what
that plan is." He looked out over the water at the hounds. "We need them," he repeated.

She picked at the skin of the apple wedge. "What if they were to die tonight? Then what would we
do? We would have to go on."

Richard knew she was looking up at him, but he didn't look back. He understood her need to stop
Rahl. He felt the same hunger, and would let nothing stop them, even if it meant leaving his friends,
but it hadn't reached that point yet. He knew she was only trying to reassure herself that he had the
necessary conviction, the required determination. She had given up much to her mission, lost much
to Rahl, as he had. She wanted to know he had the ability to go on, at any cost, to lead.

The candles lit her face softly, a small glow in the darkness. Reflections of the flames danced in her
eyes. He knew she didn't like saying these things to him

"Kahlan, I'm the Seeker, I understand the weight of that responsibility. I will do anything required
to stop Darken Rahl. Anything. You can place your faith in that. I will not, however, spend the
lives of my friends easily. For now we have enough to worry about. Let's not invent new things."

Rain dripped into the water from trees, sending hollow echoes through the darkness. She put her
hand on his arm, as if to say she was sorry. He knew she had nothing to be sorry for; she was only
trying to face the truth, one possible truth, anyway. He wanted to reassure her.

"If they don't get better," he said, holding her eyes with his, "and if there is a safe place to leave
them, with someone we can trust, then we will do so and go on."

She nodded. "That is all I meant."

"I know." He finished his apple. "Why don't you get some sleep. I'll keep watch."

"I couldn't sleep," she said, indicating the heart hounds with a nod of her head, "not with them
watching us like that. Or with snakes all around."

Richard smiled at her. "All right, then, how about if you help me build the litters for the horses to
pull? That way we can get out of here in the morning as soon as the hounds are gone."

She returned the smile and got up. Richard retrieved a wicked looking war axe from Chase and
found it worked as well on wood as on flesh and bone. He wasn't at all sure Chase would approved
of putting one of his prize weapons to use in this fashion; in fact, he knew he wouldn't. He smiled
to himself. He couldn't wait to tell him. In his mind he could picture his big friend's disapproving
frown. Of course, Chase would have to embellish the story with every telling. To Chase, a story
without embellishment was like meat without gravy; just plain dry.

His friends had to get better, he told himself. They just had to. He couldn't bear it if they died.

It was several hours before they were finished. Kahlan stayed close to him, as she was afraid of the
snakes, and the heart hounds watched them the whole time. For a while Richard had thought to use
Chase's crossbow to try to get some of the hounds, but finally decided against it: Chase would be
angry at him for squandering valuable bolts to no purpose. The hounds couldn't get them, and
would be gone with the light.

When they were finished, they checked the other two, then sat down together again by the candles.
He knew Kahlan was tired-he could hardly keep his own eyes open-but she still didn't want to lie
down to sleep, so he had her lean against him. In no time her breathing slowed and she was asleep.
It was a fitful sleep; he could tell she was having bad dreams. When she started whimpering and
jerking, he woke her. She was breathing rapidly, and almost in tears.

"Nightmares?" he asked, stroking her hair reassuringly with the backs of his fingers.

Kahlan nodded against him. "I was dreaming about the thing from the boundary that was around
my legs. I dreamt it was a big snake."

Richard put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her tight against him. She didn't object, but
pulled her knees up and put her arms around them as she nuzzled against him. He worried that she
could hear his heart pounding. If she did, she didn't say anything and was soon fast asleep again. He
listened to her breathing, to the frogs, and to the rain. She slept peacefully. He closed his fingers
around the tooth under his shirt. He watched the heart hounds. They watched back.

She woke sometime near morning when it was still dark. Richard was so tired he had a headache.
Kahlan insisted he lie down and sleep while she kept watch. He didn't want to; he wanted to
continue holding her, but was too sleepy to argue.

When she gently shook him awake it was morning. Weak, gray light filtered through the dark green
of the swamp and through heavy mist that made the world seem small and close. The water around
them looked as if it had been steeped with decayed vegetation, a brew that rippled occasionally
with unseen life beneath the surface. Unblinking black eyes pushed up through the duckweed,
watching them.

"The heart hounds are gone," she said. She looked drier than she had last night.

"How long?" he asked, rubbing the cramps out of his arms.

"Twenty, maybe thirty minutes. When it got light they suddenly went off in a rush." Kahlan gave
him a tin cup of hot tea. Richard gave her a questioning look.

She smiled. "I held it over the candle until it was hot."

He was surprised at her inventiveness. She gave him a piece of dried fruit and ate some herself. He
noticed the war axe leaning against her leg, and thought to himself that she knew how to stand
watch.

It was still raining gently. Strange birds called out sharply in rapid, ragged shrieks from across the
swamp, while others answered in the distance. Bugs hovered inches above the water, and
occasionally there was an unseen splash.

"Any change in Zedd or Chase?" he asked.

She seemed reluctant to answer. "Zedd's breathing is slower."

Richard quickly went and checked. Zedd seemed hardly alive. His face had a sunken, ashen look.
He put an ear to the old man's chest and found his heart to be beating normally, but he was
breathing slower, and he felt cold and clammy.

"I think we must be safe from the hounds now. We had better get going, and see if we can find
them some help," he said.

Richard knew she was afraid of the snakes-he was, too, and told her so-but she didn't let it interfere
with that they had to do. She put her trust in what he said, that the snakes wouldn't come near the
sword, and crossed the water without hesitation when he told her to go. They had to traverse the
water twice, once with Zedd and Chase, and a second time to retrieve the parts for the litters, as
they could only be used on dry land.

They hooked up the poles to the horses, but couldn't use them yet as the tangle of roots on the
swamp trail would-cause too jolting a ride. They would have to wait until they were on a better
road, once they were clear of the swamp.

It was midmorning before they reached the better road. They stopped long enough to lay their two
fallen friends in the litters and cover them with blankets and oilcloth. Richard was pleased to
discover that the pole arrangement worked well; it didn't slow them at all, and the mud helped them
slide along nicely. He and Kahlan ate lunch on their horses, passing food back and forth as they
rode next to each other. They stopped only to check on Zedd and Chase, and continued on through
the rain

-+---
Before night came they reached Southaven. The town was little more than a collection of
ramshackle buildings and houses fit crookedly in among the oaks and beech, almost as if to turn
themselves away from the road, from queries, from righteous eyes. None looked ever to have seen
paint. Some had tin patches that drummed in the steady rain. Set in the center of the huddle was a
supply store, and next to it a two-story building. A clumsily carved sign proclaimed it to be an inn,
but offered no name. Yellow lamplight coming from windows downstairs was the only color
standing out from the grayness of the day and the building. Heaps of garbage leaned drunkenly
against the side of the building, and the house next door tilted in sympathy with the rubbish pile.

"Stay close to me," Richard said as they dismounted. "The men here are dangerous."

Kahlan smiled oddly with one side of her mouth. "I'm used to their kind."

Richard wondered what that meant, but didn't ask.

Talking trailed off when they went through the door, and all faces turned. The place was about
what Richard expected. Oil lamps lit a room filled with a fog of pungent pipe smoke. Tables, all
arranged in a haphazard fashion, were rough, some no more than planks on barrels. There were no
chairs, only benches. To the left a door stood closed, probably leading to the kitchen. To the right,
in the shadows, leading up to the guest rooms, was a stairway minus a handrail. The floor, with a
series of paths through the litter, was mottled with dark stains and spills.

The men were a rough collection of trappers and travelers and trouble. Many had unkempt beards.
Most were big. The place smelled of ale and smoke and sweat.

Kahlan stood tall and proud next to him; she was a person not easily intimidated. Richard reasoned
that perhaps she should be. She stuck out among the riffraff like a gold ring on a beggar. Her
bearing made the room even more of an embarrassment.

When she pushed back the hood of her cloak, grins broke out all around, revealing a collection of
crooked and missing teeth. The hungry looks in the men's eyes didn't fit the smiles. Richard wished
Chase were awake.

With a sinking feeling, he realized there was going to be trouble.

A stout man walked over and halted. He wore a shirt with no sleeves and an apron what looked like
it could never have been white. The top of his shiny, shaved head reflected the lamplight, and the
curly black hair on his thick arms seemed in competition with his beard. He wiped his hands on a
filthy rag before flopping it over a shoulder.

"Something I can do for you?" the man asked in a dry voice. His tongue rolled a toothpick across
his mouth as he waited.

With his own tone and eyes Richard let the man know he would brook no trouble. "There a healer
in this town?"

The proprietor shifted his glance to Kahlan and then back to Richard. "No."

Richard noted the way, unlike the other men, the man kept his eyes where they belonged when he
looked at Kahlan. It told him something important. "Then we would like a room." He lowered his
voice. "We have two friends outside who are hurt."

Taking the toothpick out of his mouth, the man folded his arms. "I don't need any trouble."

"Nor do I," Richard said with deliberate menace.

The bald man looked Richard up and down, his eyes snagging for an instant on the sword. With his
arms still folded, he appraised Richard's eyes. "How many rooms you want? I'm pretty full."

"One will do fine."

In the center of the room a big man stood. From a mass of long stringy red hair he looked out with
mean eyes that were set too close together. The front of his thick beard was wet with ale. He wore a
wolf hide over one shoulder. His hand rested on the handle of a long knife.

"Expensive-looking whore you got there, boy," the red-haired man said. "I don't suppose you'd
mind if we came up to your room and passed her around some?"

Richard locked his glare on the man. He knew this was a challenge that would only be ended with
blood. His eyes didn't move. His hand did-slowly, toward the sword. His rage pounded, fully awake
even before his fingers reached the hilt.

This was the day he was going to have to kill other men.

A lot of other men.

Richard's grip tightened around the braided wire hilt until his knuckles were white. Kahlan gave a
steady pull on the sleeve of his sword arm. She spoke his name in a low tone, raising the inflection
at the end, the way his mother did when she was warning him to stay out of something. He stole a
glance at her. She gave a luscious smile to the red-haired man.

"You men have it all wrong," she said in a throaty voice. "You see, this is my day off. I'm the one
who hired him for the night." She smacked Richard on the rear. Hard. It surprised him so much he
froze. She licked her top lip as she looked at the red-haired man. "But if he doesn't give me my
money's worth, well, you will be the first I call to fill the breach." She smile lasciviously.

There was a thick moment of silence. Richard resisted mightily his need to pull the sword free. He
held his breath as he waited to see which way it was going to go. Kahlan continued to smile at the
men in a way that only made his anger deepen.

Life and death measured each other in the red-haired man's eyes. No one moved. Then a grin split
his face and he roared with laughter. Everyone else hooted and hollered and laughed. The man sat
down and the men started talking again, ignoring Richard and Kahlan. Richard breathed out in a
sigh. The proprietor eased the two of them back a ways. He gave Kahlan a smile of respect.

"Thank you, ma'am. I'm glad your head is faster than your friend's hand. This place may not seem
much to you, but it's mine and you just kept it in one piece for me."

"You are welcome," Kahlan said. "Do you have a room for us?"

The proprietor put the toothpick back in the corner of his mouth. "There's one, upstairs, at the end
of the hall, on the right, that has a bolt on the door."

"We have two friends outside," Richard said. "I could use some help getting them up there."

The man gave a nod of his head back at the roomful of men. "It wouldn't do if that lot saw you were
burdened with injured companions. You two go up to the room, just like they expect. My son's in
the kitchen. We'll bring your friends up the back stairs, so no one will see." Richard didn't like the
idea. "Have a little faith, my friend," the other said in a low voice, "or you may be bringing harm to
your friends. By the way, my name's Bill."

Richard looked at Kahlan; her face was unreadable. He looked back to the proprietor. The man was
tough, hardened, but didn't appear to be devious. Still, it was his friends' lives at stake. He tried to
keep his voice from sounding as threatening as he felt.

"All right, Bill, we will do as you ask."

Bill gave a small smile and a nod as he rolled the toothpick across his mouth.

Richard and Kahlan went up to the room and waited. The ceiling was lower than was comfortable.
The wall next to the single bed was covered with years of spit. In the opposite corner were a threelegged table and short bench. A single oil lamp sat glowing weakly on the table. The windowless
room was otherwise bare, and had a naked feel to it. It smelled rank. Richard paced while Kahlan
sat on the bed, watching him, looking slightly uncomfortable. Finally, he strode over to her.

"I can't believe what you did down there."

She stood up and looked him in the eyes. "The result is what matters, Richard. If I had let you do
what you were about to do, your life would have been at great risk. For nothing of value."

"But those men think . . ."

"And you care what those men think?"

"No . . . but . . ." He could feel his face redden.

"I am sworn to protect the life of the Seeker with my own. I would do anything required to protect
you." She gave him a meaningful look, lifting an eyebrow. "Anything."

Frustrated, he tried to think how to put into words how angry he was without making it sound as if
he was angry with her. He had been at the brink of lethal commitment. A brink only one wrong
word away. Pulling back was agonizingly difficult. He could still feel his blood pounding with the
lust for violence. It was difficult to understand the way the anger twisted his own rationality with
hot need, much less explain it to her. Looking into her green eyes was making him relax, though,
cooling his anger

"Richard, you have .to keep your mind where it belongs."

"What do you mean?"

"Darken Rahl. That is where your mind belongs. Those men downstairs are of no concern to us. We
must only get past them, that's all. Nothing else. Don't expend your thoughts on them. It's a waste.
Put your energy to our job."

He let out a breath, and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. You did a brave thing tonight. As much as
I didn't like it."

She put her arms around him, her head against his chest, and gave him as slow hug. There was a
soft knock at the door. After assuring himself it was Bill, he opened the door. The proprietor and
his son carried Chase in and laid him carefully on the floor. When the son, a lanky young man, saw
Kahlan, he fell instantly and hopelessly in love. Richard understood the feeling; nonetheless, he
didn't appreciate it.

Bill pointed with his thumb. "This is my son, Randy." Randy was in a trance, staring at Kahlan. Bill
turned to Richard, wiping the rain off the top of his head with the rag he kept over his shoulder. He
still had the toothpick in his mouth.

"You didn't tell me your friend was Dell Brandstone."

Richard's caution flared. "That a problem?"

Bill smiled. "Not with me. The warden and me have had our disagreements, but he's a fair man. He
gives me no trouble. He stays here sometimes when he's in the area on official business. But the
men downstairs would tear him apart if they knew he was up here."

"They might try," Richard corrected.

A slight smile curled the corners of Bill's mouth. "We'll get the other one."

When they left, Richard gave Kahlan two silver coins. "When they come back, give the boy one of
these to take the horses to the stables for us and tend to them. Tell him that if he will spend the
night watching them and have them ready for-us at sunrise, you will add the other."

"What makes you think he will do it?"

Richard gave a short laugh. "Don't worry, he'll do it, if you ask. Just smile."

Bill came back carrying Zedd in his husky arms. Randy followed, carrying most of their packs. Bill
gently laid the old man on the floor next to Chase. He gave Richard a look from under his curly
eyebrows, then turned to his son.

"Randy, go get this young lady a basin, and a pitcher of water. And a towel. A clean towel. She
might like to clean up."

Randy backed out of the room, smiling and tripping over his feet as he went. Bill watched him go,
then turned to Richard with an intense look. He took the toothpick out of his mouth.

"These two are in bad shape. I won't ask you what happened to them because a smart fellow
wouldn't tell me, and I think you're a smart fellow. We don't have a healer around here, but there's
someone who may be able to help, a woman named Adie. They call her the bone woman. Most
people are afraid of her. That bunch downstairs won't go near her place."

Richard remembered Chase saying Adie was his friend. He frowned. "Why?"

Bill glanced to Kahlan, and back to Richard, narrowing his eyes. "Because they're superstitious.
They think she's bad luck of some sort, and because she lives near the boundary. They say that
people she doesn't like have a bad habit of dropping dead. Mind you, I'm not saying it's true. I don't
believe it myself. I think it's all made up in their own heads. She's not a healer, but I know of folks
she's helped. She may be able to help your friends. At least you better hope she can, because they're
not going to last much longer without help."

Richard combed his fingers through his hair. "How do we find this bone woman?"

"Turn left down the trail in front of the stables. It's about a four-hour ride."

"And why are you helping us," Richard asked.

Bill smiled and folded his muscled arms across his chest. "Let's just say I'm helping the warden. He
keeps some of my other customers at bay, and the wardens bring me an income from the
government with their business, here and from my dry goods store next door. If he makes it, you
just be sure to tell him it was me that helped save his life." He chuckled. "That'll vex him good."

Richard smiled. He understood Bill's meaning. Chase hated to have anyone help him. Bill did
indeed know Chase. "I will be sure to let him know you saved .his life." The other looked pleased.
"Now, since this bone woman lives by herself, way out by the boundary, and I'm to ask for her
help, I think it would be a good idea if I took her some things. Can you get together a load of
supplies for her?"

"Sure. I'm an approved supplier; I get reimbursed from Hartland. Of course, that thieving council
takes most of it back in taxes. I can put it in my tally book for the government to pay, if this is
official business."

"It is."

Randy came back with the basin, water, and towels. Kahlan put a silver coin in his hand and asked
him about caring for the horses. He looked to his father for approval. Bill nodded.

"Just tell me which horse is yours, and I'll take extra good care of it," Randy said with a big grin.

Kahlan smiled back. "They are all mine. Take care with each, my life depends on it."

Randy's face turned serious. "You can count on me." Unable to decide what to do with his hands,
he finally jammed them in his pockets. "I won't let anyone near them." He backed toward the door
again, and when all but his head was through it, added, "I just want you to know I don't believe a
word of what those men downstairs are saying about you. And I told them so."

Kahlan smiled in spite of herself. "Thank you, but I do not want you to endanger yourself on my
account. Please stay away from those men. And do not mention that you talked to me, it will only
embolden them."

Randy grinned and nodded and left. Bill rolled his eyes and shook his head. He turned to Kahlan
with a smile.

"You wouldn't consider staying here and marrying the boy, would you? It would do him good to
have a mate."

An odd look of pain and panic flashed across Kahlan's eyes. She sat on the bed, looking down at
the floor.

"Just kidding, girl," Bill said apologetically. He turned back to Richard. "I'll bring you each a plate
of supper. Boiled potatoes and meat."

"Meat?" Richard asked suspiciously.

Bill chuckled. "Don't worry, I wouldn't dare serve those men bad meat.. I could lose my head." In a
few minutes he returned and set two steaming dishes of food on the table.

"Thank you for your help," Richard said.

Bill raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, it will all be in my tally book. I'll bring it -to you in the
morning to sign. There anyone in Hartland who will recognize your signature?"

Richard smiled. "I think so. My name is Richard Cypher. My brother is First Councilor."

Bill flinched, suddenly shaken. "I'm sorry. Not that your brother is First Councilor. I mean that I'm
sorry I didn't know. I mean that if I had known, I'd have given you better accommodations. You can
stay at my house. It's not much but it's better than this. I'll take your things over right now. ..:'

"Bill, it's all right." Richard went to the man and put a hand on his back, reassuring him. The
proprietor looked suddenly less fierce. "My brother is First Councilor; I am not. The room is fine.
Everything is fine."

"You're sure? Everything? You're not going to send the army here, are you?"

"You've been a big help to us, honest. I have nothing to do with the army."

Bill didn't look convinced. "You're with the head of the boundary wardens."

Richard smiled warmly. "He's a friend of mine. For many years. The old man, too. They're my
friends, that's all."

Bill's eyes brightened. "Well, if that's true, then how about if I add a couple of extra rooms to the
tally book? Seeing as how they won't know you all stayed together."

Richard kept- smiling, and patted the man's back. "That would be wrong. I won't put my name to
it."

Breathing out with a sigh, Bill broke into a big grin. "So, you are Chase's friend." He nodded to
himself. "Now I believe you. I haven't been able to get that man to fatten my tally book in all the
time I've known him."

Richard put some silver in the man's hand. "But this wouldn't be wrong. I appreciate what you're
doing for us. I would also appreciate it if you would water the ale tonight. Drunken men die too
easy." Bill gave a knowing smile. Then Richard added, "You have dangerous customers." The man
studied Richard's eyes, glanced to Kahlan, then back again. "Tonight I do," he agreed.

Richard gave him a hard look. "If anyone comes through that door tonight, I will kill them, no
questions asked."

Bill looked at him for a long moment. "I'll see what I can do to keep that from happening. Even if I
have to knock some heads together." He went to the door. "Eat your supper before it gets cold. And
take care of your lady, she has a good head on her shoulders." He turned to Kahlan and winked.
"And a pretty one, too."

"One more thing, Bill. The boundary is failing. It will be down in a few weeks. Take care of
yourself."

The man's chest rose as he took a deep breath. He held the doorknob as he looked into Richard's
eyes for a long moment. "I think the council named the wrong brother First Councilor. But then,
they didn't get to be councilors because they worry about doing right. I'll come get you in the
morning when the sun is up and it's safe."

When he left, Richard and Kahlan sat close on the small bench and ate their meal. Their room was
at the back of the building, and the men downstairs were at the front, so it was quieter than Richard
thought it would be. All they could hear from the crowd was a muffled hum. The food was better
than Richard expected, or maybe it was just that he was famished. The bed looked wonderful to
him, too, as he was dead tired. Kahlan noticed.

"You only had an hour or two of sleep last night. I will stand first watch. If the men downstairs
decide to come up here, it will not be until later that they work up the courage. If they come, it
would be better if you were rested."

"Easier to kill people when you're well rested?" He was immediately sorry it came out the way it
did; he hadn't meant it to sound harsh. He- realized he was gripping his fork as if it were a sword.

"I'm sorry, Richard. I didn't mean it that way. I only meant I don't want you to get hurt. If you are
too tired you will not be able to protect yourself as well. I'm afraid for you."

She pushed a potato around the plate with her fork. Her voice was hardly more than a whisper. "I'm
so sorry you had to be pulled into this mess. I don't want you to have to kill people. I didn't want
you to have to kill those men downstairs. That's the other reason I did what I did, so you would not
have to kill them."

He looked over at her as she stared down at her plate. It hurt his heart to see the look of pain on her
face. He gave her a playful shove with his shoulder. '

"I wouldn't have missed this journey for anything. Gives me time to be with my friend." She looked
at him out of the corner of her eye as he smiled.

She smiled back and put her head against the side of his shoulder for a second before eating the
potato. Her smile warmed him.

"Why did you want me to ask the boy to take care of the horses?"

"Results. That's what you said was most important. The poor kid is hopelessly in love with you.
/Since you were the one who asked, he will guard the horses better than we could ourselves." She
looked at him as if she didn't believe him. "You have that effect on men," he assured her.

Her smiled faded a little, taking on a haunted look. Richard knew he was getting too close to her
secrets, so he said nothing else. When they finished eating, she walked to the basin, dipped the end
of a towel in the water, and went to Zedd. She wiped his face tenderly, then looked over to Richard.

"He is the same, no worse. Please, Richard, let me have first watch, get some sleep?"

He nodded, rolled himself into the bed, and was asleep in seconds. Sometime in the early morning
she woke him for his watch. As she went to sleep he washed his face with the cold water, trying to
wake up, then sat on the bench, leaning against the wall, waiting for any sign of trouble. He sucked
on a piece of dried fruit, trying to get the bad taste out of his mouth:

An hour before sunrise, there was an urgent knock at the door.

"Richard?" a muffled voice called. "It's Bill. Unbolt the door. There's trouble."

CHAPTER 1

6
KAHLAN SPRANG OUT OF bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as Richard unbolted the door.
She pulled her knife. Bill, breathing hard, squeezed in and pushed the door shut with his back.
Beads of sweat dotted his forehead.

"What is it? What's happened?" Richard asked.

"Everything was pretty quiet." Bill swallowed, catching his breath. "Then a little while ago these
two fellows showed up. Right out of nowhere. Big men, thick necks, blond hair. Good looking.
Armed to the teeth. The kind of men you try not to look in the eye." He took a few deep breaths.

Richard stole a quick glance at Kahlan's eyes. There was no doubt in them as to who the men were.
Apparently the wizard trouble the quad had run into wasn't trouble enough.

"Two?" Richard asked. "You're sure there weren't more?"

"Only saw two come in, but that was enough." Bill's wide eyes looked out from under his curly
eyebrows. "One was tore up pretty good, arm in a sling, big claw cuts down his other arm. Didn't
seem to bother him any, though. Anyway, they started asking about a woman that sounded a lot like
your lady here. Except she isn't wearing a white dress like they described. They started for the
stairs, and a quarrel broke out about who was going to do what with her. Your red-haired friend
jumped the one with the sling and slit his throat from ear to ear. The other fellow cut down a bunch
of my customers in a heartbeat. I've never seen anything like it. Then all of a sudden he just wasn't
there anymore. Vanished into nothing. There's blood everywhere.

"The rest of the lot are down there right now arguing about who's going to be first to . . . " He
glanced at Kahlan, leaving the rest unsaid. He wiped his forehead with the back of his arm.
"Randy's bringing the horses to the back; you have to get out now. Head for Adie's. The sun's an
hour away, the hounds two, so you'll be all right. But not if you delay."

Richard grabbed Chase's legs, Bill his shoulders. He told Kahlan to bolt the door and get their
things together. With Chase in their arms they trudged down the back stairs and out into the
darkness and rain. Lamplight coming from the windows reflected in the puddles, giving the wet,
black forms of the horses yellow highlights. Randy was waiting, looking worried as he held the
horses. They dropped Chase in a litter and ran as quietly as possible up the stairs. Bill scooped
Zedd into his arms, while Richard and Kahlan threw on their cloaks and grabbed the packs. The
three of them, Bill, Richard, then Kahlan, raced down the stairs and for the door.

As they burst out the door they almost tripped over Randy, sprawled on the ground. Richard looked
up just in time to see the red-haired man lunging. He leapt back, narrowly missing the sweep of the
long knife. The man went face-first into the mud. With surprising quickness he came to his knees,
enraged, and then went rigid, the sword point an inch from his nose. The air rang with the sound of
steel. The man looked up with vicious, black eyes. Water and mud ran from the strings of his hair.
Richard flicked the sword a quarter turn in his hand and whacked him hard over the head with the
flat of the blade. He went down in a limp heap.

Bill laid Zedd in the litter while Kahlan turned Randy over. One eye was swollen shut. Rain
splattered on his face. He groaned. When he saw Kahlan with his one good eye he broke into a grin.
Relieved that he wasn't hurt worse, she gave him a quick hug and helped him up.

"He jumped me," Randy said apologetically. "I'm sorry."

"You are a brave young man. You have nothing to be sorry for. Thank you for helping us." She
turned to Bill. "You, too."

Bill smiled and gave a nod. Zedd and Chase were quickly covered with blankets and oilcloth and
the packs loaded. Bill told them that Adie's supplies were already on Chase's horse. Richard and
Kahlan mounted their horses. She flipped the silver coin to Randy.

"Payment on delivery, as promised," she told him. He caught the coin and grinned.

Richard bent down and clasped hands with Randy and thanked him earnestly, then pointed angrily
at Bill.

"You! I want you to add everything to your tally book. Include all the damage, all your time and
trouble, even the grave markers. I want you to add a fair fee for saving our lives. If the council
doesn't want to approve payment, you tell them that you saved the life of the brother of the First
Councilor, and Richard Cypher said if they don't pay, I'll personally have the head of the man
responsible and I will put it on a pike on the front lawn of my brother's house!"

Bill nodded and laughed over the sound of the rain. Richard pulled back on the reins to keep his
horse in place as it danced about, eager to go. He pointed down at the unconscious man in the mud.
He was furious.

"The only reason I didn't kill this man is because he killed a man worse than himself, and in so
doing may have unwittingly saved Kahlan's life. But he is guilty of murder; intent to murder, and
intent to rape. I suggest you hang him before he wakes."

Bill looked up at him with hard eyes. "Done."

"Don't forget what I said about the boundary. Trouble comes. Take care with yourself."

Bill held Richard's eyes as he put his hairy arm around his son's shoulders. "We won't forget." A
slight smile curled the corners of his mouth. "Long life to the Seeker." '

Richard looked down at him in surprise and then grinned. Smiling quenched some of the fire of his
rage. "When I first saw you," Richard said, "my thought was that you were not a devious man. I
find I was mistaken."

Richard and Kahlan pulled their hoods up and urged their horses on into the dark rain, toward the
bone woman.

-+---
The rain had quickly drowned the lights from Southaven and left the travelers to grope their way
through the blackness. Chase's horses had carefully picked their way down the trail; trained by the
wardens for this kind of duty, they were comfortable in the adverse conditions. Dawn had struggled
interminably at bringing light to the new day. Even after Richard knew the sun was up, the world
still hung in half-light between night and day, a ghost of morning. The rain had helped to cool his
hot rage.

Richard and Kahlan knew that the last member of the quad was loose somewhere, and they
watched every movement as a potential threat. They knew that, sooner or later, he would come at
them. The uncertainty of when ate at their concentration. Worry over what Bill had said, that Zedd
and Chase wouldn't last long, gnawed at his spirit. If this woman, Adie, couldn't help, he didn't
know what he would do. If she couldn't help, his two friends would die. He couldn't imagine a
world without Zedd. A world without his tricks and help and comfort would be a dead world. He
realized that he was getting a lump in his throat thinking about it. Zedd would tell him not to worry
about what might be, but to worry about what was.

But what was seemed almost as bad. His father had been murdered. Darken Rahl was close to
obtaining all the boxes. Richard's two oldest friends were near death. He was alone with a woman
he cared about, but wasn't supposed to care about. She still kept her secrets closed to him, locked
away.

He could tell she fought a constant battle over it in her mind. Sometimes when he felt he was
getting closer to her, he saw pain and fear in her eyes. Soon they would be in the Midlands, where
people knew what she was. He wanted her to be the one to tell him; he didn't want to learn it from
someone he didn't know. If she didn't tell him soon, he would have to ask her. Against his nature or
not, he would have to.

So deep was he in thought, he hadn't realized they had been on the trail for over four hours. The
forest was drinking in the rain. Trees loomed dark and huddled in the mist; the moss on their trunks
was vibrant and lush. It stood out on the bark of trees, and in round humps on the ground, green and
spongy. The lichen on the rocks shone bright yellow and rust in the damp. In some places water ran
down the trail, turning it into a temporary creek. The poles of Zedd's litter splashed through it,
going over rocks and roots, rocking the old man's head from side to side on the rougher sections.
His feet rode inches from water when they crossed runoff streams.

Richard smelled the sweetness of wood smoke in the stillness. Birch wood. He realized that the
area they were entering had changed somehow. It looked the same as it had for hours, yet it was
different. Rain floated down in quiet reverence for the forest. The whole place felt somehow sacred.
He felt like an intruder, disturbing the peace of timeless ages.. He wanted to say something to
Kahlan, but it seemed as if talking would be a sacrilege. He understood why the men from the inn
wouldn't come up here; their foul presence would be a violation.

They came to a house that so blended with its surroundings, it was almost invisible next to the trail.
A wisp of wood smoke curled from its chimney, up into the misty air. The logs of the walls were
weathered and ancient, matching the color of the Surrounding trees, with nothing other than the
ground it sat upon disturbed. The house seemed to be growing from the forest floor, with trees
towering around it protectively. The roof was covered in a mass of ferns. A smaller, slanted roof
covered a door and a porch large enough for only two or three people to stand on at once. There
was a square, four-paned window in the front, and another on the side of the house Richard could
see. None had curtains.

In front of the old house, a patch of ferns bowed and nodded when water from the trees dripped
onto them. Mist turned their distinctive dusty pale green bright in the wetness. A narrow path
slipped through their midst.

In the center of the ferns, in the center of the path, stood a tall woman, taller than Kahlan, not as tall
as Richard. She wore a simple tan robe of a coarse weave, with red and yellow symbols and
decorations at the neck. Her hair was fine and straight, a mix of black and gray, parted in the
middle, chopped square with her strong jaw. Age had not stolen the handsome features of her
weathered face. She leaned on a crutch. She had but one foot. Richard brought the horses to a slow
halt in front of her.

The woman's eyes were completely white.

"I be Adie. Who be you?" Adie's voice had a harsh, throaty, raspy quality that sent a shiver up
Richard's spine.

"Four friends," Richard said in a respectful tone. Light rain fell in a hushed, soft patter. He waited.

Fine wrinkles covered her face. She took the crutch from under her arm and folded both thin hands
over the top, lending her weight to it. Adie's thin lips pulled tighter in a slight smile.

"One friend," she rasped. "Three dangerous people. T decide if they be friends." She nodded
slightly to herself.

Richard and Kahlan stole a sidelong glance at each other. His guard went up. He felt somehow
uncomfortable sitting on the horse, as if talking down to her suggested disrespect. He dismounted,
Kahlan following his lead. With his horse's reins in his hand, he moved to stand in front of the
animal, Kahlan next to him.

"I am Richard Cypher. This is my friend, Kahlan Amnell."

The woman studied his face with her white eyes. He had no idea if she could see, but he didn't
know how it could be possible. She turned to Kahlan. The woman's raspy voice spoke a few words
to Kahlan in a language he couldn't understand. Kahlan's eyes held the old woman's, and she gave
Adie a slight bow of her head.

It had been a greeting. A greeting of deference. Richard hadn't recognized the words Kahlan or
Amnell anywhere in it. The fine hairs on the back of his neck stiffened.

Kahlan had been addressed by title.

He had been around Kahlan long enough to know that by the way she was standing, with her back
straight and her head held assertively up, she was on guard. Serious guard. If she had been a cat,
her back would be arched, her fur standing on end. The two women faced each other; age had been
dismissed for the moment by each. They measured each other on qualities he couldn't see. This was
a woman who could bring them to harm, and he knew the sword wasn't going to protect him.

Adie turned back to Richard. "Put words to your need, Richard Cypher."

"We need your help."

Adie's head bobbed. "True."

"Our two friends are hurt. One, Dell Brandstone, told me he is your friend."

"True," Adie said again in her raspy voice.

"Another man, in Southaven, told us you may be able to help them. In return for your help, we
brought you supplies. We thought it would be fair to offer you something."

Adie leaned closer. "Lie!" She thumped her crutch once on the ground. Richard and Kahlan both
jerked back a little.

Richard didn't know what to say. Adie waited. "It's true. The supplies are right here." He turned a
little, indicating Chase's horse. "We thought it would be fair . . ."

"Lie!" She thumped her crutch once again.

Richard folded his arms, his temper rising. His friends were dying while he played games with this
woman. "What is a lie?"

" `We' be a lie." She thumped her crutch again. "You be the one who thought to offer supplies. You
be the one who decided to bring them. Not you and Kahlan. You. `We' be a lie. `I' be the truth."

Richard unfolded his arms, holding them out to his sides. "What difference does that make? `I,'
`we,' what does it matter?"

She stared at him. "One be true, one be a lie. How much more difference could there be?"

Richard folded his arms across his chest again, frowning. "Chase must have a very difficult time
telling you the stories of his adventures."

Adie's small smile carne back. "'True," she nodded. She leaned a little closer, motioning with her
hand. "Bring your friends inside."

She turned, put the crutch back under her arm, and worked her way to the house. Richard anti
Kahlan looked at each other, and then went to get Chase, putting the blankets away first. He had
Kahlan take the boundary warden's feet; he took the heavy half. As soon as they lugged Chase
through the door, Richard discovered why. she was called the bone woman.

Bones of every kind stood out in stark relief against the dark walls. Every wall was covered.
Against one were shelves that held skulls. Skulls of beasts Richard didn't recognize. Most were
fearsome-looking, with long, curved teeth. At least none were human, he thought. Some of the
bones were assembled into necklaces. Some were decorated into objects of purpose with feathers
and colored beads, chalk circles drawn around them on the surface of the wall. There were stacks of
bones in the corner, looking unimportant en masse. The ones on the wall were displayed carefully,
with space around them to signify their importance. On the mantel over the fireplace was a rib bone
as thick as Richard's arm, as long as he was tall, with symbols he didn't recognize carved in dark
lines along its length. There were so many bleached bones around him that Richard felt as if he
were in the belly of a dead beast.

They set Chase down while Richard's head swiveled around, looking. Rainwater dripped off
Kahlan, Chase, and himself. Adie towered over him. She was as dry as the bones around her. She
had stood outside in the rain, yet she was dry. Richard reconsidered the wisdom of his decision to
come here. If Chase hadn't told him Adie was his friend, he would not be doing this.

He looked to Kahlan. "I'll go get Zedd." It was more of a question than a statement.

"I will help carry in the supplies," she offered, casting a glance at Adie.

Richard gently laid Zedd at the bone woman's feet. Together, he and Kahlan stacked the supplies on
the table. When they had finished, both went and stood next to their friends, in front of Adie, both
peering at the bones. Adie watched them.

"Who be this one?" she asked, pointing at Zedd.

"Zeddicus Zu'1 Zorander. My friend," he said.

"Wizard!" Adie snapped.

"My friend!" Richard yelled, his anger unhinged.

Adie calmly looked at him with her white eyes while he glared back. Zedd was going to die if he
didn't get help, and Richard was in no mood to allow that to happen. Adie leaned forward, by each.
They measured each other on qualities he couldn't see. This was a woman who could bring them to
harm, and he knew the sword wasn't going to protect him.

Adie turned back to Richard. "Put words to your need, Richard Cypher."

"We need your help."

Adie's head bobbed. "True."

"Our two friends are hurt. One, Dell Brandstone, told me he is your friend."

"True," Adie said again in her raspy voice.

"Another man, in Southaven, told us you may be able to help them. In return for your help, we
brought you supplies. We thought it would be fair to offer you something."

Adie leaned closer. "Lie!" She thumped her crutch once on the ground. Richard and Kahlan both
jerked back a little.

Richard didn't know what to say. Adie waited. "It's true. The supplies are right here." He turned a
little, indicating Chase's horse. "We thought it would be fair . . ."

"Lie!" She thumped her crutch once again.

Richard folded his arms, his temper rising. His friends were dying while he played games with this
woman. "What is a lie?"

" "We' be a lie." She thumped her crutch again. "You be the

one who thought to offer supplies. You be the one who decided to bring them. Not you and Kahlan.
You. `We' be a lie. `I' be the truth."

Richard unfolded his arms, holding them out to his sides. "What -difference does that make? `I,'
`we,' what does it matter?"

She stared at him. "One be true, one be a lie. How much more difference could there be?"

Richard folded his arms across his chest again, frowning. "Chase must have a very difficult time
telling you the stories of his adventures."

Adie's small smile came back. "True," she nodded. She leaned a little closer, motioning with her
hand. "Bring your friends inside."

She turned, put the crutch back under her arm, and worked her way to the house. Richard and
Kahlan looked at each other, and then went to get Chase, putting the blankets away first. He had
Kahlan take the boundary warden's feet; he took the heavy half. As soon as they lugged Chase
through the door, Richard discovered why. she was called the bone woman.

Bones of every kind stood out in stark relief against the dark walls. Every wall was covered.
Against one were shelves that held skulls. Skulls of beasts Richard didn't recognize. Most were
fearsome looking, with long, curved teeth. At least none were human, he thought. Some of the
bones were assembled into necklaces. Some were decorated into objects of purpose with feathers
and colored beads, chalk circles drawn around them on the surface of the wall. There were stacks of
bones in the corner, looking unimportant en masse. The ones on the wall were displayed carefully,
with space around them to signify their importance. On the mantel over the fireplace was a rib bone
as thick as Richard's arm, as long as he was tall, with symbols he didn't recognize carved in dark
lines along its length. There were so many bleached bones around him that Richard felt as if he
were in the belly of a dead beast.

They set Chase down while Richard's head swiveled around, looking. Rainwater dripped off
Kahlan, Chase, and himself. Adie towered over him. She was as dry as the bones around her. She
had stood outside in the rain, yet she was dry. Richard reconsidered the wisdom of his decision to
come here. If Chase hadn't told him Adie was his friend, he would not be doing this.

He looked to Kahlan. "I'll go get Zedd." It was more of a question than a statement.

"I will help carry in the supplies," she offered, casting a glance at Adie.

Richard gently laid Zedd at the bone woman's feet. Together, he and Kahlan stacked the supplies on
the table. When they had finished, both went and stood next to their friends, in front of Adie, both
peering at the bones. Adie watched them.

"Who be this one?" she asked, pointing at Zedd.

"Zeddicus Zu'1 Zorander. My friend," he said.

"Wizard!" Adie snapped.

"My friend!" Richard yelled, his anger unhinged.

Adie calmly looked at him with her white eyes while he glared back. Zedd was going to die if he
didn't get help, and Richard was in no mood to allow that to happen. Adie leaned forward, placing
her wrinkled hand flat against his stomach. A little surprised, he stood still while she rubbed her
hand in a slow circle, as if seeking to discern something. She took her hand back, carefully folding
it over the other on the crutch. Her thin lips pulled to the sides in a slight smile as she looked up.

"The righteous rage of a true Seeker. Good." She looked over to Kahlan. "You have nothing to fear
from him, child. It be the anger of truth. It be the anger of the teeth. The good need not fear it."
With the aid of her crutch, she took a few steps to Kahlan. Adie placed her hand on Kahlan's
stomach and repeated the procedure. When she was finished, she laid her hand over the crutch and
nodded. She looked to Richard,

"She has the fire. The anger burns in her too. But it be the anger of the tongue. You have to fear it.
All have to fear it. It be dangerous if she ever lets it out."

Richard gave Adie a leery look. "I dislike riddles; they leave too much room for misinterpretation.
If you want to tell me something, then tell me."

"Tell me," she mocked. Her eyes narrowed. "What be stronger, teeth or tongue?"

Richard took a deep breath. "The answer is obviously teeth. Therefore I choose tongue."

Adie gave him a disapproving scowl. "Sometimes your tongue. moves when it shouldn't. Make it
be still," she commanded in a dry rasp.

Somewhat embarrassed, Richard kept quiet.

Adie smiled and gave a nod. "See?"

Richard frowned. "No."

"The anger of teeth be force by contact. Violence by touch. Combat. The magic of the Sword of
Truth be the magic of the anger of teeth. Ripping. Tearing. The anger of the tongue need not touch,
but it be force just the same. It cuts just as quick."

"I'm not sure what you mean," Richard said.

Adie reached out, her long finger stretching to him and lightly touching his shoulder. His head was
suddenly filled with a vision, a vision that was a memory: a memory of the night before. He saw
the men at the inn. He was standing in front of them with Kahlan, and the men were ready to attack.
He was grasping the Sword of Truth, ready for the violence necessary to stop them, knowing that
nothing short of blood would suffice. Then he saw Kahlan next to him, talking to the mob, stopping
them, holding them with her words, running her tongue across her lip, giving meaning without
speaking. She was taking the fire from them, disarming the depraved without touching them; doing
what the sword could not. He began to understand what Adie meant..

Kahlan's hand swept up sharply and snatched Adie's wrist, pulling the hand away from Richard.
There was a dangerous look in her eyes, one that wasn't lost on Adie.

"I am sworn to protect the life of the Seeker. I do not know what you are doing. You will forgive
me if I overreact; I mean no disrespect, but I could not forgive myself if I failed in my task. There
is much at risk."

Adie looked down at the hand around her wrist. "I understand, child. Forgive me for thoughtlessly
giving you cause for alarm."

Kahlan held the wrist a moment longer to make her point, then released it. Adie laid the hand over
her other on the top of the crutch. She looked back to Richard.

"Teeth and tongue work together. Same with the magic. You command the magic of the sword, the
magic of the teeth. But that gives you magic of the tongue also. The magic of the tongue works
because you back it with the sword." She turned her head slowly to Kahlan. "You have both, child.
Teeth and tongue. You use them together, one backing the other."

"And what is a wizard's magic?" Richard asked.

Adie looked at him, considering the question. "There be many kind of magic, teeth and tongue be
only two. Wizards know them all, save those of the underworld. Wizards use most of what they
know." She looked down at Zedd. "He. be a very dangerous man."

"He has never shown me anything but kindness and understanding. He is a gentle man."

"True. But he also be a dangerous one," Adie repeated.

Richard let it drop. "And Darken Rahl? Do you know of him, what kind he can use?"

Adie's eyes narrowed. "Oh, yes," she hissed. "I know of him. He can use all the magic a wizard
does, and the magic a wizard cannot. Darken Rahl can use the underworld."

Icy bumps rippled up Richard's arms. He wanted to ask what kind of magic Adie had, but decided
better of it. She turned once more to Kahlan.

"Be warned, child, you have the true power of the tongue. You have never seen it. It will be a
terrible doing if you ever let it loose."

"I don't know what you are talking about," Kahlan said, her eyebrows in a frown.

"True," Adie nodded. "True." She reached out and gently placed her hand on Kahlan's shoulder,
working her fingers, bringing her closer. "Your mother died before you became a woman, before
you were of the age when she could teach you of it."

Kahlan swallowed hard. "What can you teach me of it?"

"Nothing. I am sorry, but I have no understanding of its workings. It be something only your
mother can teach, when you reached the age of woman. Since your mother did not show you, the
teaching be lost. But the .power be still there. Be warned. Just because you were not taught its use
does not mean it cannot come out."

"Did you know my mother?" Kahlan asked in a painful whisper.

Adie's face softened as she looked at Kahlan. She nodded slowly. "I remember your family name.
And I remember her green eyes; they not be easy to forget. You have her eyes. When she carried
you, I knew her."

A tear rolled down Kahlan's cheek, and her voice came in the same painful whisper. "My mother
wore a necklace, with a small bone on it. She gave it to me when I was a child. I wore it always,
until . . . until, Dennee, the girl I called my sister . . . when she died, I buried it with her. She had
always been fond of it. You gave that necklace to my mother, didn't you?"

Adie closed her eyes and nodded. "Yes child. I gave it to her to protect her unborn daughter, to
keep her child safe, that she might grow to be strong, like her mother. I can see that she has."

Kahlan slipped her arms around the old woman. "Thank you, Adie," she said tearfully, "for helping
my mother." Adie held the crutch With one hand, and with the other rubbed Kahlan's back in
genuine sympathy. After a few moments Kahlan separated from the old woman and wiped the tears
from her eyes

Richard saw his opening, and went for it with single-minded determination.

"Adie," he said in a soft voice, "you helped Kahlan before she was born. Help her now. Her life and
the lives of a great many others are at stake. Darken Rahl hunts her, hunts me. We need the help of
these two men. Please help them. Help Kahlan."

Adie gave him her small smile. She nodded her head a little to herself. "The wizard chooses his
Seekers well. Fortunately for you, patience be not a prerequisite for the post. Be at ease; I would
not have had you bring them in if I did not intend to help them."

"Well, perhaps you cannot see," he pressed, "but Zedd especially is in bad shape. His breathing is
hardly there at all."

Adie's white eyes regarded him with strained tolerance. "Tell me," she said in her dry rasp, "do you
know Kahlan's secret, the one she keeps from you?"

Richard said nothing and tried to show no emotion. Adie turned to Kahlan.

"Tell me, child, do you know the secret he keeps from you?" Kahlan said nothing. Adie looked
back to Richard. "Does the wizard know of the secret you keep from him? No. Do you know the
secret the wizard keeps from you? No. Three blind people. Hmm? Seems I be able to see better
than you."

Richard wondered what secret Zedd was keeping from him. He lifted an eyebrow. "And which of
these secrets do you know, Adie?"

She pointed a thin finger at Kahlan. "Hers only."

Richard was relieved, but tried to let his face show nothing. He had been on the verge of panic.
"Everyone has secrets, my friend, and has a right to keep them when there is need."

Her smile widened. "That be true, Richard Cypher."

"Now, what about these two?"

"Do you know how to heal them?" she asked.

"No. If I did, I obviously would have already done so."

"Your impatience is to be forgiven; it be only right for you to fear for the lives of your friends. I
bear you no ill will for your concern. But be at ease, they have been receiving help from the
moment you brought them in."

Richard gave her a confused look. "Really?" She nodded. "They be struck down by underworld
beasts. It will take time for them to wake, days. How many I cannot say. But they be dry. Lack of
water will be the death of them, therefore they must be brought awake enough to drink, or they will
die. The wizard breathes slow not because he be worse, but because that be the way wizards save
strength in time of trouble they go into a deeper sleep. I must bring them both awake to drink. You
will not be able to talk to them, they will not know you, so be not afraid when you see it. Go to the
corner, bring the water bucket."

Richard retrieved the water and then helped Adie lower herself to sit cross-legged at the heads of
Zedd and Chase. She pulled Kahlan down next to her. She asked Richard to bring a bone
implement from the shelf.

Part of it looked very much like a human thighbone. The entire object had a dark brown patina, and
looked to be ancient. Down the shaft of the bone were carved symbols Richard didn't recognize. At
one end were two skull tops, one to each side of the ball. They had been cut smoothly into half
spheres, and covered with dried skin of some kind. In the center of each skin was a knot that looked
like a navel. Spaced evenly around each skin, where it stretched across the skull edge, were tufts of
coarse black hair tied on with beaded thread that matched that around the neck of Adie's robe. The
skull tops looked like they could be human. Something inside rattled.

Richard handed it respectfully to Adie. "What makes the rattle?"

Without looking up, she said, "Dried eyes." `

Adie shook the bone rattle gently from side to side over the heads of Zedd and Chase while
mumbling a chant in the strange language in which she had spoken to Kahlan. The rattle made a
hollow, wooden sound. Kahlan sat cross-legged next to her, head bowed. Richard stood back and
watched.

After ten or fifteen minutes, Adie motioned with her hand for him to come closer. Zedd suddenly
sat up and opened his eyes. Richard realized she wanted him to give him water. She continued to
chant as he dipped the ladle in and held it up to Zedd's mouth. He drank thirstily. Richard was
thrilled to see the old man sit up and open his eyes, even if he couldn't talk, even if he didn't know
where he was. Zedd drank half a bucket of water. When finished, he lay back down and closed his
eyes. Chase was next, and he drank the other half of the water.

Adie handed Richard the bone rattle and asked him to return it to the shelf. Next she had him bring
the bone pile from the corner and stack half over Zedd's body, half over Chase's, directing him on
how to place each bone, to some alignment that only she could see or understand. Finally she had
him stack rib bones in a wagon-wheel pattern with the hub centered over each man's chest. When
he finished, she complimented him on doing a fine job, but he felt no pride, because she had
directed his hand at each turn. Adie looked up at him with her white eyes.

"Can you cook?"

Richard thought about the time Kahlan had told him that his spice soup was like hers, and that their
two lands were much the same. Adie was from the Midlands; maybe she would like something
from her homeland. He smiled at her.

"I would be honored to make you some spice soup."

She put her hands together in a swoon. "That would be wonderful. I have not had a proper spice
soup in years."

Richard went to the opposite corner of the room and sat at the table, cutting up vegetables and
mixing spices. For over an hour, as he worked, he watched the two women sitting on the floor,
talking in the strange language. Two women catching up on the news from home, he thought
happily. He was in a good mood; someone was finally doing something to help Zedd and Chase.
Someone who knew what the problem was. When he was finished and had the soup on the fire, he
didn't want to disturb them-they looked like they were enjoying themselves-so he asked Adie if he
could cut some firewood for her. She seemed pleased by the idea.

He went outside and removed the tooth from around his neck, putting it in his pocket, and left his
shirt on the porch to keep it dry. He took the sword with him to the back of the house, where Adie
had told him he would find the firewood pile. Placing logs on the sawbuck, he cut off pieces to
length. Most of the wood was birch, easiest for an old woman to cut. He picked out the rock maple,
excellent firewood but tough cutting. The woods nearby were dark and dense, but they didn't feel
threatening

They felt. welcoming, enveloping, safe. Still, there was the last man of the quad out there
somewhere, hunting Kahlan.

He thought about Michael, hoped he was safe. Michael didn't know what Richard was doing and
probably wondered where he was. He was probably worried. Richard had planned on going to
Michael's house after they left Zedd's place, but there had been no time. Rahl had almost caught
them. He wished he had been able to get word to his brother. Michael was going to be in great
danger when the boundary failed.

When he tired of sawing, he split what he had cut. It felt good to use his muscles, to sweat from
labor, to do something that didn't require him to think. The cool rain felt good on his hot body,
making the work easier. To amuse himself, he imagined the wood was Darken Rahl's head as he
brought the axe down. For variation he sometimes imagined it to be a gar. When the piece of wood
was particularly tough, he imagined it to be the red-haired man's head.

Kahlan came out, and asked him if he was ready to come eat. He .hadn't even realized it was getting
dark. After she left, he went to the well and poured a bucket of cold water over himself, washing
off the sweat. Kahlan and Adie were sitting at the table, and since there were only two chairs, he
brought in a log round to sit on. Kahlan set a bowl of soup in front of him as he sat down, and
handed him a spoon.

"You have given me a wonderful gift, Richard," Adie said.

"And what would that be?" He blew on a spoonful of soup to cool it.

She looked at him with her white eyes. "Without taking offense, you have given me the time to talk
to Kahlan in my native tongue. You cannot know what joy that be for me. So many years it has
been. You are a very perceptive man. You are a true Seeker."

Richard beamed at her. "You have given me something very precious too. The lives of my friends.
Thank you, Adie." "

"And your spice soup be wonderful," she added, with a hint of surprise.

"Yes." Kahlan winked at him. "It's as good as I make."

"Kahlan has told me about Darken Rahl, and about the boundary failing," Adie said. "It explains
much. She has told me that you know of the pass, and wish to cross into the Midlands. Now you
must decide what you will do." She took a spoonful of soup.

"What do you mean?"

"They must be awakened every day to drink, and they must be fed a gruel. Your friends be asleep
for many days, five, maybe ten. You must decide, as Seeker, if you are to wait for them, or go on.
We cannot help you; you must decide."

"That would be a lot of work for you to do by yourself."

Adie nodded. "Yes. But it not be as much work as going after the boxes, as stopping Darken Rahl."
She ate some more soup as she watched him.

Richard stirred his spoon around absently in his bowl. There was a long silence. He looked to
Kahlan, but she showed nothing. He knew she didn't want to interfere with. his decision. He looked
back down at his soup.

"Every day that passes," he said quietly at last, "brings Rahl closer to the last box. Zedd told me he
has a plan. That does not mean it is a good plan. And there may not be time to use it when he
awakes at last. We could lose before we start." He looked up into Kahlan's green eyes. "We can't
wait. We can't take the chance; too much 'is at risk. We must leave without him." Kahlan gave him
a smile of reassurance. "I wasn't planning on letting Chase go with us anyway. I have a more
important job for him."

Adie reached across the table and put her weathered hand on his. It felt soft and warm. "It not be an
easy choice to make. It not be easy to be Seeker. That which lies ahead be difficult beyond your
worst fears."

He forced a smile. "At least I still have my guide."

The three of them sat in silence, considering what must be done.

"You both will have a good sleep tonight," Adie said. "You will need it. After supper, I will tell you
what you will need to know to get through the pass." She looked to each of them in turn; her voice
became even raspier. "And I will tell you how I lost my foot."

CHAPTER 1

7
RICHARD PLACED THE LAMP on the side of the table, close to the wall, and lit it with a stick
from the fire. The sound of gentle rain and night creatures drifted in from the window. The chirps
and calls of small animals going about their nocturnal lives were familiar to him, comforting
sounds of home. Home. His last night in his homeland, and then he was to cross into the Midlands.
As his father had done. He smiled to himself at the irony. His father had brought the Book of
Counted Shadows out of the Midlands, and now he was taking it back.

He sat down on the log round, across from Kahlan and Adie. "So, tell me, how do we find the
pass?"

Adie leaned back in her chair and swept her hand through the air. "You already have. You be in the
pass. The mouth of it anyway."

"And what do we need to know to get through it?"

"The pass be a void in the underworld, but it still be a land of the dead. You be living. The beasts
hunt the living if the living be big enough to be of interest." Richard looked at Kahlan's impassive
face, then back to Adie. "What beasts?"

Adie's long finger pointed to each wall of the room in turn. "They be the bones of the beasts. Your
friends were touched by things of the underworld. The bones confuse their powers. That be why I
said your friends were being helped from the moment you brought them in here. The bones cause
the magic poison to leave their bodies, letting the death sleep lift. The bones keep the evil away
from here. The beasts cannot find me because they feel the evil of the bones and it blinds them,
makes them think I be one of them."

Richard leaned forward. "If we took some of the bones with us, would that protect us?"

Adie smiled her little smile, making her eyes wrinkle. "Very good. That be exactly what you must
do. These bones of the dead have the magic to help protect you. But there be more. Listen carefully
to what I tell you."

Richard folded his fingers together and nodded.

"You cannot take your horses, the trail be too small for them. There be places they cannot fit. You
must not wander from the trail-it be very dangerous to do so. And you must not stop to sleep. It will
take one day, one night, and most of the next day to cross."

"Why can't we stop to sleep?" Richard asked.

Adie looked to each of them with her white eyes. "There be other things, besides the beasts, in the
pass. They will get you if you stop long enough."

"Things?" Kahlan asked.

Adie nodded. "I go into the pass often. If you are careful, it be safe enough. If you are not careful,
there ,be things that will get you." Her raspy voice lowered bitterly. "I became overconfident. One
day I was walking a long time, and became very tired. I was sure of myself, sure I knew the
dangers well, so I sat against a tree and took a small nap. For a few minutes only." She put her hand
on her leg, rubbing it slowly. "When I was asleep, a gripper fixed itself on my ankle."

Kahlan scrunched up her features. "What's a gripper?"

Adie regarded her in silence for a minute. "A gripper be an animal that has armor all over his back,
spikes all around the bottom edge. Many legs underneath, each with a sharp, hooked claw at the
end, a mouth like a leech with teeth all around. He wraps himself around, so only his armor is out.
With his claws he digs into the flesh to hold tight so you cannot pull him off, and then he fixes his
mouth to you, sucking the blood from you, tightening with the claws all the time."

Kahlan put her hand reassuringly on Adie's arm. The light from the lamp made the old woman's
white eyes a pale shade of orange. Richard didn't move, his muscles tense.

"I had my axe with me." Kahlan closed her eyes as her head lowered. Adie went on. "I tried to kill
the gripper, or at least get him off me. I knew that if I did not, he would suck all the lifeblood from
me. His armor be harder than the axe. I was very angry with myself. The grippers be one of the
slowest creatures in the pass, but he be faster than a sleeping fool." She looked into Richard's eyes.
"There be only one thing I could do to save my life. I could stand the pain no longer; his teeth were
scraping into the bone. I tied a strip of cloth tight around my thigh, and laid my lower leg across a
log. I used the axe to chop off my foot and ankle."

The silence in the small house was brittle. Only Richard's eyes moved, to meet Kahlan's. He saw
sorrow there for the old woman, saw his own sorrow reflected. He couldn't imagine the resolve it
would take to use an axe to cut off your own foot. His stomach felt sick. Adie's thin lips spread in a
grim smile. With one hand she reached across the table to take Richard's hand, and with the other
hand, took Kahlan's. She held their hands in a firm grip.

"I tell you this story not to have you feel sorry for me. I tell you only so you two will not become
prey to something in the pass. Confidence can be a dangerous thing. Fear can keep you safe,
sometimes."

"Then I think we shall be very safe," Richard said.

Adie continued to smile, and gave a single nod. "Good. There be one more thing. There be a place
halfway through the pass, where the two walls of the boundary come very close together, almost
touching. It be called the Narrows. When you come to a rock the size of this house, split down the
middle, that be the place. You must pass through the rock. Do not go around it even though you
may want to; death be that way. And then beyond, you must pass between the walls of the
boundary. It be the most dangerous place in the pass." She put a hand on Kahlan's shoulder, and
squeezed Richard's hand tighter, looking to each in turn. "They will call to you from the boundary.
They will want you to come to them."

"Who?" Kahlan asked.

Adie leaned closer to her. "The dead. It could be anyone you know who be dead. Your mother."

Kahlan bit her bottom lip. "Is it really them?"

Adie shook her head. "I don't know, child. But I do not believe it to be."

"I don't think so, either," Richard said, almost more to reassure himself.

"Good," Adie rasped. "Keep thinking so. It will help you resist. You will be tempted to go to them.
If you do, you are lost. And remember, in the Narrows it be even more important to keep on the
path the whole way through. A step or two off to either side and you have gone too far; the walls of
the boundary be that close. You will not be able to step back. Ever."

Richard let out a deep breath. "Adie; the boundary is failing. Before he was struck down, Zedd told
me he could see the change. Chase said you couldn't see into it before, and that now underworld
beings were getting out. Do you think it will still be safe to go through the Narrows?"

"Safe? I never said it be safe. It never be safe to go through the Narrows. Many who were keen with
greed, but not strong of will, have tried to go through and never come out the other side." She
leaned closer to him. "As long as the boundary be there still, so too must be the pass. Stay on the
trail. Keep in mind your purpose. Help each other if need be, and you will get across."

Adie studied his face. Richard turned to Kahlan's green eyes. He wondered if Kahlan and he could
resist the boundary. He remembered what it felt like to want to go into it, to long for it. In the
Narrows, it would be on both sides of them. He knew how frightened Kahlan was of the
underworld, with good reason; she had been in it. He wasn't anxious to go anywhere near it himself.

Richard frowned in thought. "You said the Narrows were in the center of the pass. Won't it be
night? How will we see to stay on the trail?"

Adie put her hand on Kahlan's shoulder to help herself up. "Come," she said as she put the crutch
under her arm. They followed slowly behind as she worked her way to the shelves. Her slender
fingers clutched a leather pouch. She loosened the drawstring and dumped something in her palm.

She turned to Richard. "Hold out your hand."

He held his hand palm up in front of her. She put her hand over his, and he felt a smooth weight. In
her native tongue she spoke a few words under he; breath.

`"The words say I give you this of my own free will."

Richard saw that in his palm rested a rock about the size of a grouse egg. Smooth and polished, it
was so dark it seemed as if it could suck the light from the room. He couldn't even discern a
surface, other than a layer of gloss. Beneath that was a void of blackness.

"This be a night stone," she said in a measured rasp.

"And what do I do with it?"

Adie hesitated, her gaze darting briefly to the window. "When it be dark, and you have need
enough, take out the night stone and it will give off light so you may find your way. It only works
for its owner, and then only if it be given of its last owner's free will. I will tell the wizard you have
it. He has magic to find it, so he will be able to find you."

Richard hesitated. "Adie, this must be valuable. I don't feel right accepting it."

"Everything is valuable under the right conditions. To a man dying of thirst, water be more
precious than gold. To a drowning man, water be of little worth and great trouble. Right now, you
be a very thirsty man. I thirst for Darken Rahl to be stopped. Take the night stone. If you feel the
weight of obligation, you may return it to me one day."

Richard nodded, slipped the stone into the leather pouch and then into his pocket. Adie turned to
the shelf once more and retrieved a delicate necklace, holding it up for Kahlan to see. A few red
and yellow beads were to each side of a small round bone. Kahlan's eyes brightened, her mouth
opened in surprise.

"It is just like my mother's," she said with delight

Adie placed it over her head while Kahlan lifted clear her mass of dark hair. Kahlan looked down at
the necklace, touching it between her finger and thumb, smiling.

"For now it will hide you from the beasts in the pass, and someday, when you carry a child of your
own, it will protect her, and help her to grow strong like you."

Kahlan put her arms around the old woman, hugging her tight for a long time. When they
separated, Kahlan's face bore a distressed expression, and she spoke in the language Richard didn't
understand. Adie simply smiled and patted her shoulder sympathetically.

"You two should sleep now."

"What about me? Shouldn't I have a bone to hide me from the beasts?"

Adie studied his face, then looked down at his chest. Slowly, she reached out. Her fingers uncurled
and touched his shirt tentatively, touched the tooth underneath. She pulled her hand back and
looked back up into his eyes. Somehow she knew about the tooth being there. Richard held his
breath.

"You need no bone, Hartlander. The beasts cannot see you."

His father had told him the thing guarding the book had been an evil beast. He realized the tooth
was the reason the things from the boundary hadn't been able to find him, as they had the others. If
it hadn't been for the tooth, he would have been struck down as Zedd and Chase were, and Kahlan
would be in the underworld now. Richard tried to keep his face from betraying any emotion. Adie
seemed to get the hint and remained silent. Kahlan seemed confused but didn't ask.

"Sleep now," Adie said.

Kahlan refused Adie's offer of her bed. She and Richard laid their bedrolls near the fire, and Adie
retired to her room. Richard put a few more logs in the fire, remembering how Kahlan liked to be
by a fire. He sat by Zedd and Chase for a few minutes, smoothing the old man's white hair,
listening to his even breathing. He hated to leave his friends behind. He was afraid of what was
ahead. He wondered if Zedd had an idea of where to look for one of the boxes. Richard wished he
knew what Zedd's plan was. Maybe it was some sort of wizard's trick to try on Darken Rahl

Kahlan sat on the floor by the fire with her legs crossed, watching him. When he came back to his
blanket, she lay down on her back, pulling the blanket up to her waist. The house was quiet -and
felt safe. Rain continued to fall outside. It felt good being by the fire. He was tired. Richard turned
toward Kahlan, his elbow on the floor and his head propped in his hand. She stared up at the
ceiling, turning the bone on the necklace between her finger and thumb. He watched her breast rise
and fall with her breathing.

"Richard," she whispered while continuing to stare at the ceiling, "I'm sorry we have to leave them
behind."

"I know," he whispered back. "Me too."

"I hope you do not feel I forced you to do it, because of what I said when we were in the swamp."

"No. It was the right decision. Every day brings winter closer. It will do us no good to wait with
them, while Rahl gets the boxes. Then we will all be dead. The truth is the truth. I can't be angry at
you for saying it."

He listened to the fire snap and hiss as he watched her face, the way her hair lay across the floor.
He could see a vein in her neck pulsing with her heartbeat. He thought that she had the most
delicious-looking neck he had ever seen. Sometimes she looked so beautiful, he could hardly stand
to look at her, and at the same time, could not look away. She still held the necklace in her fingers.

"Kahlan?" She turned to his eyes. "When Adie told you the necklace would protect you and
someday your child, what did you say to her?"

She gazed at him a long moment. "I thanked her, but I told her I did not think I would live long
enough to have a child."

Richard felt bumps rise on the skin of his arms. "Why would you say that?"

Her eyes moved in little flicks as she studied different places on his face. "Richard," she said
quietly, "madness is loose in my homeland, madness you cannot imagine. I am but one. They are
many. I have seen people better than me go against it and be slaughtered. I. am not saying I think
we will fail, but I do not think I will live to know."

Even if she wasn't saying it, Richard knew she didn't think he would live either. She was trying not
to frighten him, but she thought he would die in the effort, too. That was why she hadn't wanted
Zedd to give him the Sword of Truth, to make him Seeker. He felt as if his heart were coming up
into his throat. She believed she was leading them to their death.

Maybe she was right, he mused. After all, she knew more about what they were up against than he
did. She must be terrified to go back to the Midlands. But then, there was no place to hide. The
night wisp had said that to run was a sure death.

Richard kissed the. end of his finger and then touched it against the bone on the necklace. He
looked back up into her soft eyes.

"I add my oath of protection to the bone," he said in a whisper. "To you now and to any child you
may bear in the future. I would trade no day I spend with you for a life of safe slavery. I accepted
the post of Seeker of my own free will. And if Darken Rahl takes the whole world into madness,
then we will die with a sword in our hands, not chains on our wings. We will not allow it to be easy
for them to kill us; they will pay a high price. We will fight with our last breath if need be, and in
our death, let us inflict a wound on him that will fester until it claims him."

A smile spread across her face, until her eyes were caught up in it. "If Darken Rahl knew you as I
do, he would have reason to lose sleep. I thank the good spirits the Seeker has no cause to come
after me in anger." She laid her head down on her arm. "You have an odd talent for making me feel
better, Richard Cypher, even when telling me of my death."

He smiled. "That's what friends are for."

Richard watched her for a while after she closed her eyes, until sleep gently took him. His last
thoughts before it came, were of her.

-+--
The first hint of morning was damp and dreary, but the rain had stopped. Kahlan had given Adie a
parting hug. Richard faced the old woman, looking into her white eyes.

"I must ask you to do an important task. You must give Chase a message from the Seeker. Tell him
he is to go back to Hartland and warn the First Councilor that the boundary will be down soon.
Have him tell Michael to gather the army to protect Westland from Rahl's forces. They must be
prepared to fight at any invasion. They must not let Westland fall as did, the Midlands. Any forces
that come across must be deemed invaders. Have him tell Michael that Rahl is the one who killed
our father and those who come, do not come in peace. We are at war, and I am already joined in
battle. If my brother or the army fails to heed my warning, then Chase is to abandon the service of
the government and gather the boundary wardens to stand against Rahl's legions. His army was
virtually unopposed when they took the Midlands. If they have to shed blood freely to take
Westland, maybe they will lose their spirit. Tell him to show no mercy to the enemy, take no
prisoners. I take no joy in giving these orders, but it's the way Rahl fights, and either we meet him
on his terms or we die on them. If Westland is taken, I expect the wardens to extract a terrible price
before they fall. After Chase has the army and wardens in place, he is free to come to my aid, if he
chooses to do so, as above all else we must stop Rahl from getting all three boxes." Richard looked
down at the ground. "Have him tell my brother that I love him and I miss him." He looked up and
gauged Adie's expression. "Can you remember all that?"

"I do not think I could forget if I wanted to. I will tell the warden your words. What would you
have me tell the wizard?"

Richard smiled. "That I'm sorry we couldn't wait for him, but I know he will understand. When he
is able, he will find us by the night stone. I hope by then to have found one of the boxes."

"Strength to the Seeker," Adie said in a rasp, "and you too, child. Grim times lie ahead."

CHAPTER 1

8
THE TRAIL was WIDE enough to allow Richard and Kahlan to walk side by side after they left
Adie's place. Clouds hung thick and threatening, but the rain held off. Both wrapped their cloaks
tight. Damp, brown pine needles matted the path through the forest. There was little brush among
the big trees, allowing an open view for a good distance. Ferns covered the ground in feathery
swaths through the trees, and dead wood lay in it here and there as if asleep in a bed. Squirrels
scolded the two of them as they hiked along, while birds sang with monotonous conviction.

Richard picked at the branch of a small balsam fir as they walked past, stripping the needles
between his thumb and the crook of his first finger.

"Adie is more than she seems," he said at last.

Kahlan looked up at him as they walked. "She is a sorceress."

Richard glanced sideways at her in surprise. "Really? I don't know exactly what a sorceress is."

"Well, she is more than us, but less than a wizard."

Richard smelled the aromatic fragrance of the balsam needles, then cast them aside. Maybe she was
more than he, Richard thought, but he wasn't at all sure she was more than Kahlan. He remembered
the look on Adie's face when Kahlan had grabbed her by the wrist. It had been a look of fear. He
remembered the look on Zedd's face when he had first seen her. What power did she have that
could frighten a sorceress and a wizard? What had she done that had caused thunder without
sound? She had done it twice that he knew of, once with the quad, and once with Shar, the night
wisp. Richard remembered the pain that had followed. A sorceress greater than Kahlan? He
wondered.

"What's Adie doing living here, in the pass?"

Kahlan pushed some of her hair back over her shoulder. "She became tired of people coming to her
all the time, wanting spells and potions. She wanted to be left alone to study whatever it is a
sorceress studies; some sort of higher summons, as she called it."

"Do you think she will be safe when the boundary fails?"

"I hope so. I like her."

"Me too," he added with a smile.

The trail, climbing sharply in places, forced them to go single file at times as it twisted along steep
rocky hillsides and over ridges. Richard let Kahlan go first so he could keep an eye on her, make
sure she didn't wander off the path. At times he had to point out the trail, his experience as a guide
making it plain to him, but not to her unpracticed eye. Other times the trail was a well-defined rut.
The woods were thick. Trees grew from splits in the rock that pushed up above the leaf litter. Mist
drifted among the trees. Roots bulging from cracks provided handholds as they climbed the abrupt
inclines. His legs ached from the effort of descending extreme drops in the dark trail.

Richard wondered what they were going to do once they reached the Midlands. He had depended
on Zedd to let him know the plan once they crossed the pass, and now they were without Zedd,
without a plan. He felt kind of foolish to be charging into the Midlands. What was he going to do
once they crossed over? Stand there and look around, divine where the box was and then be off
after it? Didn't sound like a good plan to him. They didn't have time to wander about aimlessly,
hoping they would come across something. No one was going to be waiting for him, waiting to tell
him where to go next

They reached a steep jumble of rock. The trail went straight up the face. Richard surveyed the
terrain. It would be easier to go around, rather than climb over the jut of rock, but he finally decided
against it, the thought that the boundary could be anywhere making up his mind. There must be a
reason the trail went this way. He went first and took Kahlan's hand, helping to pull her up.

As he walked, Richard's thoughts continued nagging at him. Someone had hidden one of the boxes,
or Rahl would have it already. If Rahl couldn't find it, how was Richard to? He didn't know anyone
in the Midlands; he didn't know where to look. But someone knew where the last box was, and that
was how they had to find it. They couldn't look for the box; they had to look for someone who
would be able to tell them where it was.

Magic, he thought suddenly. The Midlands was a land of magic. Maybe someone with magic could
tell where the box was. They had to look for someone with the right kind of magic. Adie could tell
things about him without ever having seen him before. There had to be someone with the kind of
magic that could tell him where the box was without ever having seen it. Then, of course, they had
to convince that person to tell them. But maybe if someone was hiding their knowledge from
Darken Rahl, he would be glad to help stop him. It seemed there were too many wishes and hopes
in his thoughts.

But there was one thing he did know: even if Rahl got all the boxes, without the book he wasn't
going to know which box was which. As they walked along, Richard recited the Book of Counted
Shadows to himself, trying to find a way to stop Rahl. Since it was an instruction book for the
boxes, it should have a way to stop their use, but there was nothing like that in the book. The actual
explanation of what each box would do, directives to determine which box was which, and how to
open one, took up only a relatively small portion at the end of the book. Richard understood this
part well, as it was clear and precise. Most of the book, though, was taken up with directions for
countering unforeseen eventualities, resolving problems that could prevent the holder of the boxes
from succeeding. The book even started out with how to verify the truth of the instructions.

If he could create one of these problems, he could stop Rahl, since Rahl didn't have the book to
help him. But most of the problems were things he had no way of bringing about, problems with
sun angles and clouds on the day of opening. And a lot of it made no sense to him. It spoke of
things he had never heard of. Richard told himself to stop thinking of the problem, and to think of
the solution. He would go through the book again. He cleared his mind and started at the beginning.

Verification of the truth of the words of the Book of Counted Shadows, if spoken by another, rather
than read by the one who commands the boxes, can only be insured by the use of a Confessor . . . . .

By late afternoon, Richard and Kahlan were sweating freely with the effort of the hike. As they
crossed a small stream, Kahlan stopped and dipped a cloth in the water and used it to wipe her face.
Richard thought it was a good idea. When they came to the next stream, he stopped to do the same.
The clear water was shallow as it ran over a bed of round stones. He balanced on a flat rock as he
squatted to soak a cloth in the cold water.

When he stood up, Richard saw the shadow thing. He froze instantly.

Off through the woods there was something standing partly behind a tree trunk. It wasn't a person,
but was about that size, with no definite shape. It looked like a person's shadow standing up in the
air. The shadow thing didn't move. Richard blinked and squinted his eyes trying to tell if he was
really seeing what he thought he was seeing. Maybe it was just a trick of the dim afternoon light, a
shadow of a tree he mistook for something more.

Kahlan had continued to walk along the trail. Richard came quickly up behind her and put his hand
on the small of her back, below her pack, so she wouldn't stop. He leaned over her shoulder and
whispered in her ear.

"Look to the left, off through the trees. Tell me what you see."

He kept his hand on her back, kept her walking along as she turned her head, looking off to the
trees. Her eyes searched as she held her hair back, out of the way. Then she saw the thing.

"What is it?" she whispered, looking back to his face.

He was a little surprised. "I don't know. I thought maybe you could tell me." She shook her head.
The shadow remained motionless. Maybe it was nothing, a trick of the light, he tried to tell himself.
He knew that wasn't true.

"Maybe it's one of the beasts Adie told us about, and it can't see us," he offered.

She gave him a sidelong glance. "Beasts have bones."

Kahlan was right, of course, but he had been hoping she would have agreed with the idea. As they
moved quickly down the trail, the shadow thing stayed where it was and they were soon out of
sight of it. Richard breathed easier. It appeared that the bone necklace Kahlan wore, and his tooth,
had hidden them.

They ate a supper of bread, carrots, and smoked meat as they walked. Neither enjoyed the meal.