‘What?’ he asked.
‘You’re seriously not going to tell us who you have your eye on?’ said Marack.
‘All right then. Duele is good, but he might make a more useful cell leader. Evunn too. Fast, accurate. Ulysan liked them both.’
‘Then that’s enough, isn’t it?’ said Grafyrre.
‘When the time is right,’ said Auum. There were fresh tears threatening, and Auum shook his head, not wanting to wallow any more. Ulysan would have chided him for it, after all.
Auum heard a brief exchange of words in tribal Wes, and two more figures moved into the circle. Auum stood and Sentaya enveloped him in a huge bear hug. When the Wesman let go there were tears in his eyes and he wiped them away angrily. Though surprised at the embrace from a man normally so in control of himself, Auum’s heart beat for the feelings they both shared so keenly.
‘Tell Sentaya that to cry is to let the essence of your soul comfort those of the departed. There is no shame in it, only love of the most precious kind. Tell him his son will be the greater for it where he has travelled.’
Stein translated and Sentaya smiled, letting fresh tears drip down his cheeks.
‘I have brought you three boxes full of the ashes of the fallen. Part of my son is in there along with your Ulysan.’
Auum nodded, the reason for the sudden tears now plain.
‘Is there anything else you want to say to Sentaya?’ asked Stein.
‘Tell him that, with his blessing, we will rest here today, but as dawn breaks tomorrow we will be leaving him to rebuild his life as we go to rebuild ours.’ Auum smiled and felt hope as well as a yearning to feel the canopy above his head. ‘Tell him we want to go home.’