where Lehr had originally left the trail just as Jes was finishing a controlled slide to the bottom.
Rinnie looked down, half-afraid of what she'd see. But Lehr was safe. He held Storne in some sort of mysterious wrestling hold, and Lukeeth was lying unconscious nearby with blood running from his nose.
"Is Rinnie all right, Jes?" said Lehr.
"Fine," answered Rinnie for herself. "Jes scared Olbeck. From the expression I saw on Olbeck's face I bet he won't leave his house for a week."
"Good," grunted Lehr as he held on while Storne struggled with renewed energy. He waited until the other boy was still. "You drink too much," Lehr said calmly, "and you think too little. Just because Olbeck's father is the steward doesn't make him invulnerable or someone you should listen to - you're smarter than that. And to try and" - he paused and looked at Rinnie for an instant before changing what he was going to say. "You heard Olbeck. He likes to 'have conversations' with children now? My sister is ten years old, Storne. You are better than that."
It was strange hearing Lehr lecture someone else besides her or Jes. She could see that Storne felt that quiet voice cut through his skin, too.
Lehr stepped back and let Storne up. The miller's son brushed off his clothes and, with a wary look at Jes, turned to leave.
"Aren't you forgetting Lukeeth? If you leave him here he might never find his way out of the forest," Lehr said.
Storne hefted the other boy across his shoulders without a word, and started up the hill.
"You take care of your friends, I remember that," said Lehr softly. "But the question is, would they have taken care of you? Olbeck left you to us."
Storne spun around, almost overbalancing. "At least they can keep their tongues from wagging too freely. Unlike some I know."
"You idiots were going to get yourselves killed," said Lehr explosively, as if it was something he'd kept bottled for too long. "Swimming at night is a fool's game - and there are things in the river - "
"Things." Storne spat on the ground. "So you went whining to your father who ran to tell mine. Let me tell you something, Traveler's brat. You don't know half what you think you do. You'd better just stay out of my way."
Jes put his hand on Lehr's shoulder, but no one said anything until Storne was at the top of the ridge.
"Is that why you aren't friends anymore?" asked Rinnie. "You told Papa they were going to go swimming in the river at night?"
Lehr shrugged. "That was the excuse. But Storne's friends didn't like that he ran around with a Traveler's brat. He would have dropped me sooner or later."
"Storne traded you for Olbeck?" she said, knowing how much it hurt him. She knew exactly how much it hurt; there were girls in town who wouldn't talk to her because Mother was a Traveler. "He is stupider than I thought."
"They are dangerous in a pack," said Jes. "If Rinnie had been alone..."
Lehr gave a jerky nod. "When Papa gets back, I'll talk to him about this. He'll know what to do to see that they don't hurt anyone." He reached up to pat Jes's hand, which was still on his shoulder. "Let's go home," he said.
Jes released his hold and picked up the fishing rods that lay scattered about on the ground where Lehr had dropped them. "Fishing's still good," he said.
Rinnie looked at him, but the air of danger that had surrounded him was gone, and he looked and sounded as he always did except for a certain lingering crispness to his voice.
Lehr touched his reddened cheekbone tenderly. "I suppose they'll not bother us anymore. Mother will be safe enough with Gura." He took a close look at Rinnie. "You look pale."
Rinnie smiled at him and tried to look less pale. "I'm fine. Ma's counting on a fish for dinner. You always bring one back; she won't have anything else ready."
So they went down to the creek and fished.
Seraph heaved a sigh of relief. The harness collar that fit Skew had been neglected, but the leather was only very dry, not cracked. If it had cracked they'd have had to wait until Tier got back with Frost before starting the plowing.
She oiled the collar carefully until the leather was butter-supple under her fingers. Then she turned her attention to the harness. She untied the leather strings that kept it together and oiled