you think happens to every slave who comes through here?"
Isana stared at him for a moment, sickened. "Crows," she whispered. "Aric, please. At least help me get this collar off." She reached down to Odiana's throat, turning the collar about and trying to find the clasp.
"Don't," Aric said, his voice quick, harsh. "Don't, you'll kill her." Isana's fingers froze. She looked up at him.
Aric chewed on his lip. Then said, "Pa's blood is on it. He's the only one can take it off her."
"How can I help her?"
"You can't," Aric said, his voice frustrated. He turned and threw the bucket at the wall of the smokehouse. It clattered against it and fell to the floor. He leaned his hands against the wall and bowed his head. "You can't help her. The way he's left her, anyone can tell her anything and she'll keep feeling good as long as she does it. She tries to resist and she'll... and it will hurt her."
"That's inhuman," Isana said. "Great furies, Aric. How can you let this happen?"
"Shut up," he said. "Just you shut up." Motions stiff, angry, he pushed off the wall and recovered the bucket and started filling it with coal again.
"You were right, you know," Isana said, keeping her voice quiet. "I was telling the truth. So was Tavi, if he told you that the Valley was in danger. That the Marat may be coming again. It could happen soon. It could have begun already. Aric, please, listen to me."
He dumped more coal out onto the fires and returned to gather up more.
"You have to get word out. For your own sake, if not for ours. If the Marat come they'll kill everyone of Kordholt, too."
"You're lying," he told her, not looking at her. "You're just lying. Trying to save your hide."
"I'm not," Isana said. "Aric, you've known me your whole life. When that tree fell on you that Winterfair, I helped you. I helped everyone in the Valley who needed it, and I never asked for anything in return."
Aric added more coal to the fire.
"How can you be a part of this?" she demanded. "You aren't stupid, Aric. How can you do this to other Alerans?"
"How can I not?" Aric said, voice cold. "This is all I have. I don't have a happy steadholt where people take care of each other. I have this. Men who no one else would take live here. Women who no one would want to be. He's my blood. Bittan-" He broke off and swallowed. "He was my blood, too. As stupid and mean as he could be, he was my brother."
"I'm sorry," Isana said, and found that she felt it. "I never wanted anyone to get hurt. I hope you know that."
"I know," Aric said. "You heard what happened to Heddy and you wanted what was right to happen. To keep her safe, and girls like her. Crows know they need it, with Pa around like some-" He shook his head.
Isana fell silent for a long moment, staring at the young man, an understanding dawning on her. Then she said, quietly, "It wasn't Bittan that was with Heddy. It was you, Aric."
He didn't look at her. He didn't speak.
"It was you. That's why she was trying to draw her father back from juris macto with yours. She wasn't raped."
Aric rubbed at the back of his neck. "We... we liked each other. Got together when there was a Meet or a Fair. Her little brother found us. Too young to know what he saw. I got out before he seen who I was. But he went running to her father, and how could she tell him she'd been making time with one of Kord's sons." He spat the words with disgust. "She didn't say much, I guess, and her old man made up his own mind what happened."
"Oh, furies," Isana said, sadly. "Aric, why didn't you say anything?"
"Say what?" Aric said, flicking a hard glance at her. "Tell my father that I loved a girl and wanted to marry her. Bring her here?" He gestured around the smokehouse with one hand. "Or maybe I should have been all honorable and went to her father. Do you think he would have listened to me? Do you think for a second Warner wouldn't have strangled me where I stood?"
Isana rubbed a shaking hand at her eyes. "I'm sorry. Aric, I'm sorry. We've all... known that your father was... that he'd gone too far. But we didn't do