Threshold Between
an excerpt

Though voices were once again Catelynn’s welcome to the conscious world, she had learned enough from the last episode to check on the state of her limbs first. To her great relief, she was unbound, on her back and on an uncomfortable mattress rather than the cold, uneven ground. The glow of light that seemed to be on the other side of her eyelids was not golden this time, but silvery. Her immediate vicinity smelled of indoors and the voices she heard were muffled, as if on the other side of a wall. As with the last time, she kept her eyes shut until she could make out the conversation.

“I’m so glad you found her!”

“It wasn’t so much the finding as the getting that was the fun part,” a sardonic baritone voice replied.

“That evil woman! I can’t believe she meant to kill Cate all along! How did you manage to get her away from them?”

“I just turned the trick Evrhiel’s been using against Catelynn on her. She went down like pebble over a cliff. Sadly it didn’t work nearly so well on her compatriots. So Ulund and I had to do that the hard way..” He suddenly hissed in pain, “Yes that’s the spot. There’s no need to point it out to me, I know EXACTLY where it is.”

“I’m sorry! Do you have some salve for it?”

“Ulund’s taken care of what he could for now. But these blasted wounds will take a day or so to fully scar,” he said. “Don’t look like that. I’ve gotten used to these by now.”

“Do you know if they would follow her and try to capture her again?”

“It seems fairly certain since it wasn’t too long ago. If your friend can stay out of Madam D’cire’s grasp long enough, perhaps she will give up the chase.”

“Then she can’t stay here. Her parents have already declared her death to everyone. She can’t go back to that - she’ll find no help there. I already know … erm MY parents wouldn’t be any help either.”

“I know how she feels…” he hissed again. “Really, MUST you find the same spot over and over again?”

There was a pause. In her mind’s eye, Catelynn saw Rosalin’s face assume an apologetic look, for she had identified the first speaker.

“So will you take care of her, please? She’s been my good friend for so long. I would hate to see her come to harm.”

“For you, I will protect her as best as I can.”

“I’ll come with you!”

“No,” the baritone’s voice measured out the words, “I said I’d do it FOR you. Not WITH you. There’s no use arguing it with me. I will not embark on this task knowing that I endanger you as well. Your friend in there must needs be on this journey, but you would be endangering your own life for naught.”