Page 88 of Circle of Days
“Spare us the details,” Yana said.
“All right, I will,” Stam said, annoyed, and he had gone off to see his mother.
Soon afterward, Mo arrived. Yana asked her how she was finding life with Deg.
“Absolutely foul,” Mo said.
Pia was not surprised. Yana had an ability to make the best of things; Mo did not.
Mo said: “He only ever speaks to give me orders. Weed the far field, cook these hares, go and find some raspberries, lie down and spread your legs.”
Yana said: “Does he want sex often?”
“Once a year would be too often for me.”
It was sad, but Mo’s way of telling it made Pia laugh.
Yana said: “How are your crops looking?”
“Not bad, now that there are three of us to carry the water up from the river. Not that it matters much. We’re all going to starve eventually.”
As Yana and Mo chatted, Pia’s mind wandered. What was Han doing now? Probably herding cattle. How was he feeling about her? She wished she had asked Zad to bring back a reply to her message.
When Mo had gone, Pia talked to her mother. “Now that I’ve sent him a message, I don’t know what to do next. I need to know how he feels but I can’t go to him.”
“You must talk to Zad,” said Yana.
That was a point.
Yana went on: “He would know how Han received the message, whether Han was happy to hear from you.”
“True. He might even have brought me a reply, though I stupidly didn’t ask for one.”
“Will you be able to find Zad?”
“Well, I can look in the place where I encountered him. If he’s not there, I’ll have to think of something else.”
She felt hopeful as she lay down to sleep. Tomorrow she would at least find out where matters stood. The news might be good or bad, but this awful uncertainty would end.
She woke at first light and set off with her basket. Her pretext, if anyone asked, was that she was gathering forest food, and on herway through the forest she plucked some berries, rather small and shriveled but better than nothing.
The vegetation was parched. She wondered whether the woodlanders were doing better in the hills. They would certainly be hungry if they had stayed here.
She emerged onto the plain. In front of her was a herd of cattle trying to find sustenance from the dry ground. She looked around. A herder was walking among the cattle, but sadly it was not Zad. This man was too tall. In fact he looked…
In fact he looked like Han.
It was impossible, but his tall figure and fair beard were unmistakable. Forgetting all about the need for caution and discretion, she yelled his name.
He spun round fast and saw her. He smiled broadly, stepped toward her, then broke into a run. She did the same. They met and she threw herself into his arms.
She hugged him hard and buried her face in his neck and smelled his skin. She could hardly believe her good fortune. He kissed her lips hard. She broke the kiss to stare at his face. She said: “I was hoping for a message from you, and I got you!” She kissed him again.
Eventually they calmed down. She had dropped her basket and scattered the berries. She bent down to pick them up, and he helped her.
“How long will you be here for?”
He shrugged. “No limit.”
