Page 49 of The Poison Season

“We’ll just have to stay in the water,” Jaren said. “I’ll take this pool, and you can take that one.”

Leelo nodded, but the furrow between her brows remained. She went to her pool and Jaren jumped into his, still wearing his trousers. The water was cold but he adjusted to it quickly, grateful to be clean again for the first time in days.

“Thank you for bringing me here. I didn’t realize how badly I needed this.” He stripped out of his trousers and laid them on the rocky edge of the pool next to his tunic, which he’d already scrubbed and wrung out.

“I’ll bring soap for next time,” Leelo said behind him. “I’m sorry I didn’t think of it sooner.”

“You read my mind,” he said, sniffing his clothing with a wince. “Water alone isn’t enough, I’m afraid.” Finally, he unwound the bandage on his leg, wincing as the scabs pulled against the fabric.

“How is the wound?” Leelo asked.

“Better.” Jaren still had one large hole in his shin, along with a few smaller ones, but they were clean and appeared to be healing. “Thank you.”

“I think it’s all right if we turn around,” Leelo said. “As long as we’re both under water.”

“Are you sure?”

There was a short pause. “Yes.”

Slowly, Jaren turned to face Leelo. Her pool was slightly below his, but the rocks between them hid her body from view. All he could see was her sleek head, her fair hair made silver by the water. Her eyelashes were usually so pale they were hard to see, but now they were darker and clumped together into little spikes.

He was staring. He swallowed and shook his head to break the tension, sending water droplets spraying. She held a hand out in front of her face, laughing.

“I feel so much better,” he said, slicking his hair away from his forehead. “You?”

She nodded. Her dress was splayed out on the rocks like his clothing. It had to be getting closer to evening, but the sun was still bright. The days were long now, with the summer solstice approaching.

“Have you made any progress with the songbook?” she asked. “I saw you were reading it when I came in.”

“Alas, no progress. I almost resorted to reading the poetry book, but I couldn’t stomach it.”

“What’s wrong with poetry?”

He shrugged. “Nothing, I suppose. It’s like singing without the music.”

She raised a brow in question.

“Right. You don’t sing words when you sing, do you?”

She shook her head. “No. Do you?”

Jaren didn’t love the idea of singing in front of someone who clearly had a far better voice than he did, especially when he’d never practiced. But he remembered the tune and words of one of the songs his mother had crooned to him as a baby, and he sang it quickly.

Leelo’s eyes lit up. “That’s wonderful!”

“Is it?” He chuckled. “My mother used to sing it to us when we were little. I’m surprised I still know the words.”

She smiled to herself. “I would never have thought to sing about a little filly in a meadow. But I liked it. Especially the part about the butterfly.”

Jaren sighed and crossed his arms on the rocks between them. “I wish we had something to eat. I’m starving.”

“I left the berries back in the cottage. I’m sure there are more nearby, though.”

“What kind of berries?”

“Blueberries. Maybe some lingonberries, but I don’t know if they’re ripe yet.”

“Right. Turn around. I’ll go find us some.” He waited until she was looking away, pushed out of the pool, and pulled on his still-damp trousers. It only took him a few minutes to find the blueberry bushes, and he picked them as quickly as he could, using his tunic as a makeshift basket.

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