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He wants to be Bard in Dalvador. Eldri wrapped his arms around his body. He might have killed my
father. We don t know.
She spoke gently, remembering his kindness when she had told him about her first husband. I m sorry
your father died.
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All my family did. He sounded subdued now. It was on this mountain during an avalanche. Possibly it
was an accident. Such things happen here.
Possibly?
Many rumors claim Avaril caused it. He is my cousin, the son of my father s brother. Eldri stamped his
feet in the snow. If everyone in my family dies, he becomes Bard.
It sounded all too familiar. The long histories of the Skolian noble Houses included their share of titles
gained through assassination. If that was what had happened here, though, it hadn t succeeded. But you
survived.
I was only a few months old, so they left me at Windward when they went riding. Garlin had to stay
home and take care of me because he had misbehaved. He was sixteen. Eldri was trying to sound
unconcerned, but his bewildered pain was obvious. The avalanche killed everyone, my parents, sisters,
brothers, uncles, aunts, cousins& Garlin is my family now.
Ai, Eldri. I am so sorry. Roca threaded her arm through his. Although she suspected Garlin had taken
advantage of the situation over the years, it seemed unlikely he had helped cause the tragedy. From what
she understood, titles here went through the male line, unlike in many Skolian cultures where it went
through the female line. As a son of Eldri s aunt on his mother s side, Garlin wasn t in the line of
succession. If anything happened to Eldri, Garlin would lose the power he wielded now as the Bard s
chief adviser.
Someday I will have a big family again, Eldri said. Ice glittered on his eyelashes and he could barely
get out the words.
Roca moved closer to him. You are so cold.
Aren t you?
She grimaced. Very.
You look warm. He was obviously trying to achieve the same state, without success.
Will you be able to sit out this storm?
He had a strange look, as if she had cornered him. I don t think so. I don t understand. Why does it not
bother you?
Roca s foreboding was growing. At first she had thought the people here were physically better able to
resist the cold, but now she realized they were just more used to it. Up to a point, she didn t handle it as
well as they did. But the nanomeds in her body monitored her physiology, and right now they were
working overtime to keep her temperature at survival level. She felt the cold bitterly, and she would be
ravenous after a while, but she could live for hours, maybe even days, as long as she had shelter.
The same might not be true for Eldri.
Can we reach Windward from here? she asked.
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I don t think so. He crossed his arms and hunched his shoulders. You were right about the path being
unsafe.
I have an idea. She hesitated, uncertain how he would react. It has to do with the way we share our
emotions.
What? His laugh was shaky. That is crazy.
Why did he deny it so vehemently? His panic sparked like fire whenever she suggested he might be
different. I know you feel it.
He wouldn t look at her.
Eldri, listen. The traits are hereditary. If you and Garlin are cousins, he may have some of it, too.
He still wouldn t meet her gaze. She focused on his mind, gently, a visitor asking permission to enter.
Although he didn t sense her on a conscious level, he didn t instinctively retreat either. She gathered
impressions from him, enough to know he and Garlin had always been close, much more than she would
have guessed from their strained relations these past two days. They did share their moods, though it
frustrated Eldri that Garlin seemed less attuned to him than the reverse.
Try to reach him, Roca urged. Let him know we are here. I can boost your signal.
Boost my signal?
Make your call to him stronger.
His look turned doubtful. That sounds very strange.
Roca dug her hands in her pockets and scrunched her shoulders against the cold. It is better than doing
nothing at all.
He grimaced. Garlin will be angry when he finds us.
I ve no doubt about that. More quietly, she said, I m sorry I caused this trouble.
Roca, no, you caused no trouble. You only accepted my ill-timed invitation to come here. He pulled
her closer, as much for warmth as for affection. Very well. Let us try this idea of yours.
She closed her eyes, leaning into him, her arms around his waist, with only the faintly keening wind for
company. His mood suffused hers, but she sensed nothing.
Just as she was beginning to think they would fail, she felt a stirring of his mind. He reached out on
instinct, with no training, no idea how to proceed. But he did reach out and Roca helped him, using her
skill to direct and augment his undefined call. Whether or not he made contact, she couldn t tell; she had
trouble sensing Garlin clearly even when he was nearby. His animosity toward her swamped his other
emotions. She had no idea if he would recognize their cry for help.
Sometime later Eldri s hold loosened. Roca opened her eyes to see his pale face. Snow encrusted his
eyebrows.
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I am so very cold, he whispered. Then his eyes glazed over and his face went blank.
Eldri? Roca shook his arm. What is wrong?
No response.
Eldri!
He stood unmoving, his mind diffuse. Mentally, she suddenly felt odd, as if she stood on the edges of a
storm. She had the curious sensation that static had muddled their connection.
Suddenly he focused on her. Roca& ?
She took his hand. What happened?
Happened? He sounded lost.
You blanked out. His mental static was gone now.
No& nothing wrong. He looked around. I need to sit.
It would be better if we kept moving.
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