Separation

Which was now.

At a signal from the one-eyed man, the Pilatans in the trees dropped to the ground and began to fire at the outsiders. In the sudden confusion of noise and the hail of fire that hit them, many of the offensive party didn’t realize what had happened. Those who did whirled around and tried to return fire, but realized that they were in no position to defend themselves.

The phalanx broke apart, as the offensive party made a break for the woods, trying to circle the Pilatans while still returning covering fire.

Very few made it to the woods. The clearing was littered with the chilled corpses of the offensive party, caught up in the crossfire of the two Pilatan groups, with some also suffering at the hands of their own as the confused party tried to return fire in opposing directions.

The Pilatans broke, also, following the opposing force through the woods. Some escaped, starting the wags and speeding across the plain to wherever they had come from, but most were still and chilled either in the clearing or in the woods.

When they were sure that the woods had been secured, the companions and Markos assembled the Pilatans in the clearing, moving the corpses.

“We have done well and we have learned much today,” Sineta said to the assembled throng. “We must move on now, before we invite further hostilities, which would be unnecessary on both sides. We will attempt to find ourselves a place where we can build our own ville, and then perhaps we shall not be treated with such disdain.”

“Well, I wouldn’t bet on that,” Dean murmured to his father as they split into groups to bury the chilled and prepare for departure. There were only a few Pilatan casualties, but Sineta wished them to afford their enemies the same respect.

“Neither would I,” Ryan replied as he began to dig. “But mebbe they’ve learned a lot about the mainland in one nasty, quick lesson. What do you reckon? Dean?” he added, when his son didn’t reply.

Ryan looked at his son, who was staring in open-mouthed disbelief at the edge of the clearing. Following his son’s gaze, Ryan could see the woman from the war party standing at the edge of the clearing. There was something familiar about her, but more importantly, why was she still there when the others had long since departed?

“Dean, what is it?” Ryan asked again.

Dean shook his head in disbelief and said only one word by way of explanation and reply.

“Rona…”

Chapter Fourteen

“Sharona?”

Ryan couldn’t believe that his son was correct. The woman at the edge of the clearing seemed much older than Dean’s mother would be, if she had lived. But she had bought the farm. Rad sickness was why she had sent the boy away from her. This woman appeared gaunt, different than he remembered. Although there was something about the eyes… Perhaps that was why Ryan had looked twice at her, with an uneasy sense, when he had seen her in the war party.

But why had this woman remained behind?

Even as those thoughts crossed Ryan’s mind, the woman was stepping forward into the clearing, so that both he and his son could see her clearly.

“Dean…” the woman said softly in a voice that sent a chill up Ryan’s spine, a voice that dragged up echoes from the past.

“I knew you were coming,” Dean stated flatly. He didn’t know what to think. All those dreams and that sense of longing.

She walked forward slowly toward the younger Cawdor. Dean broke from beside his father to run to embrace her.

Ryan watched, still stunned at the sudden reappearance of a woman he had long since believed chilled. Away to one side, both Jak and Krysty stopped in their work, seeing what was occurring.

“Who’s that?” Jak asked.

Krysty shook her head, feeling her hair tighten to her as she did. “I don’t know, but I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be nothing but trouble.”

MILDRED, DOC AND J.B. had no idea of what was taking place on the edge of the clearing as they were esconsced in the center of the activities taking place where the Pilatans were preparing to leave. They were helping to load the livestock with their packs when Sineta and Markos approached them.

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