Off-Grid
The Rose Cottage
Padi stood as if frozen, looking into Tekelia’s eyes—brown, both of them brown.
“Padi?” Tekelia whispered.
With a gasp, she released the wrist she still held, and threw her arms around Tekelia’s shoulders, pressing her face into the crook of their neck.
“I should not have—it is wrong to—” she whispered. “But I could not see you kill someone with your Gift. There is so much joy in you, my friend—and I would not see it blighted by—” She shivered and her arms grew tighter.
“I understand,” Tekelia said, smoothing a hand down her back. “You did well, and I thank you with my whole heart.”
She took a hard breath, and suddenly stepped aside, keeping a grip on Tekelia’s hand as they looked about them.
Geritsi and Arbour, who had been introduced to Padi as the village administrator, were kneeling one on each side of Dosent.
“It will be well,” Padi heard Arbour say. “So much fur served her well. I’ll keep her stable. You fetch Maradel.”
Geritsi flung to her feet and was gone, passing two persons in Civilized dress—one, Padi recognized as Tekelia’s cousin Bentamin, the Warden of Civilization. The other—
“Chair gorminAstir,” said Bentamin. “Do you witness?”
“I do witness, Warden,” she said. “Will you bind that person?”
“I will.”
“He may be—wounded,” Tekelia said, going to one knee beside the downed man. “I needed him to drop the gun.”
“Of course you did,” Bentamin said calmly, kneeling in his turn. He raised the man’s outflung hand. It was withered, the fingers wasted and bent. “Very effective.”
He leaned back on his heels.
“This is Jorey kezlBlythe,” he said. “He is Civilized. Councilor gorminAstir has witnessed his actions here, as I have. Justice will go forward.” He paused as if he were concentrating, and Padi Saw an iron-grey field outline the man on the ground. “He is restrained. I will take him back to Civilization, as soon as the children—”
He stopped, and Tekelia leapt up.
“The children?” Padi repeated. “He came here to harm Torin and Vaiza?”
“He did, yes—there they are!”
Tekelia strode down the garden, Padi keeping pace, to the table under the tree, where Aunt Asta sat, the children cuddled against her comfortable sides, and Eet the norbear sitting on her knee.
“Torin, Vaiza—are you hurt?” Tekelia demanded.
“They’re frightened—and angry, which is very appropriate,” said Aunt Asta. “But they told me that they were not hurt.”
“We made a shield,” Torin said. “Eet helped.”
“The pellets hit it and bounced back at Cousin Jorey!” Vaiza said excitedly.
“Is—” Torin said seriously. “Is Cousin Jorey—dead?”
“No,” said Tekelia. “Warden Bentamin will take him back to Civilization. He witnessed what had happened, and so did the chair of the Council of the Civilized. Warden Bentamin says that justice will be served.”
Vaiza and Torin exchanged a look not entirely free of worry.
“Cousin Jorey hurt Dosent,” Torin said, “but Aunt Asta says she’ll get better.”
“And so she shall,” Aunt Asta said, giving them each a squeeze. “Here comes Maradel, just as I told you she would.”
“Yes!” said Vaiza and squirmed somewhat. “There’s Geritsi, too. Cousin Jorey pushed her. We should see if she’s all right.”
“Off you go then,” Aunt Asta said, releasing them.
Torin paused to take Eet into her arms, then the two of them ran for Geritsi, who dropped to her knees, and hugged them to her.
“Very good,” Aunt Asta said comfortably. “And how lovely that there were Civilized witnesses.” She turned her head. “Padi, my dear, you must allow me to thank you for your timely assistance. I was concerned that Tekelia might not be able to manage alone.”
Padi felt the smile waver on her mouth.
“You’re very kind, ma’am, and of course I had to come, just as soon as I knew—”
Ribbons fluttered in her vision, and she gripped Tekelia’s hand, an orientation point in a world suddenly atilt.
“Padi?” Tekelia’s arm came around her waist.
“I think,” she said, taking very good care to speak clearly, “that I would like to have some cake.”