“It’s as much as he deserved,” the older man said quietly. “After what he did to my daughter. My pretty little Meddalee, flighty as a butterfly. She was thoughtless and willful true, but sweet Eda, she never deserved what he did to her.”
“You’re Meddalee’s father?” Rosemary asked him quietly. She kept to herself her opinion of what Meddalee might deserve.
“He is.” One of the other men answered for him. “And that bastard Pell killed his daughter last night. Must have crept on board and gone right to her room. Guess he thought that if he couldn’t have her, no one would! When we went to wake her this morning, her own father found her there in her bed. Face all slashed to ribbons and her throat cut, neat as pie.”
Light as a leaf, Marmalade floated to the sunny windowsill. He sank his claws deep into the wooden sill, stretched, and then sat. He lifted his paw to his mouth and began to wash.
“Shut up, Bell,” barked the other man, and the talker fell silent. Meddalee’s father groaned and hid his face deeper in his hands. “My little girl, my Meddalee,” he murmured. Rosemary stared silently at her cat.
“Are you all right, miss?” the other man asked her. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”
She found her voice. She felt oddly calm as she gave them what he needed. “He threatened me. And came at me with that knife. It was a fancy one, made from Chalcedean steel, he said. He kept it sharp as a razor. But I think it was my boy he wanted to kill.”
“Crazy,” the first man muttered. “Man would have to be crazy to want to kill his own son.”
She nodded silently.
“We should get back to town,” the man named Bell suggested. “We need to tell the council what happened. And see to poor Meddalee.” He looked suddenly at Rosemary. “You seen what happened, didn’t you? How he broke from us and run right off the cliff?”
She hadn’t, but it was a small lie to pay for peace. “I did. It was no one’s fault, really.”
“Sir, you think you can walk that far? Sir?” Meddalee’s father slowly lifted his head. He nodded, and she almost felt sorry for the man as he left, leaning heavily on his captain’s arm. She watched them make the slow climb to the cliff top and then stood watching as they followed the cliff-top path back toward town. Marmalade came out and wound around her ankles. She watched Gillam sitting on the top rail of the fence, blissfully pulling another candy from the pouch. “Red!” he called, holding it up for her to see, and she nodded.
She looked down at the cat. “Don’t ever speak to me again. I don’t want to know.”
Marmalade didn’t answer her. He sat down and began to clean his claws more carefully.
About the Author
ROBIN HOBB / MEGAN LINDHOLM was born in California, grew up in Alaska, and currently lives in Tacoma, Washington. As Robin Hobb, she is the author of fourteen novels and numerous shorter works. Megan Lindholm has published nine novels; her short fiction has won the Asimov’s Readers’ Award and been a finalist for both the Nebula and Hugo awards.
www.robinhobb.com
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Also by the Author
By Megan Lindholm
By Robin Hobb
The Rain Wilds Chronicles
The Soldier Son Trilogy
The Tawny Man Trilogy
The Liveship Traders Trilogy
The Farseer Trilogy
Credits
Cover design by Richard Aquan
Cover illustration © by iStock
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
“A Touch of Lavender” by Megan Lindholm first published in Asimov’s, November 1989. Copyright © 1989 by Davis Publications.
“Silver Lady and the Fortyish Man” by Megan Lindholm first published in Asimov’s, January 1989. Copyright © 1989 by Davis Publications.
“Cut” by Megan Lindholm first published in Asimov’s, 2001. Copyright © 2001 by Davis Publications.
“The Fifth Squashed Cat” by Megan Lindholm first published in Xanadu 2. Copyright © 1993 by Megan Lindholm.
“Strays” by Megan Lindholm first published in Warrior Princesses. Copyright © 1998 by Megan Lindholm.
“Homecoming” by Robin Hobb first published in Legends II: Shadows, Gods, and Demons. Copyright © 2004 by Robin Hobb.
“The Inheritance” by Robin Hobb first published in Voyager 5: Collector’s Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Robin Hobb.
