The sun climbed higher in the sky as the unadorned carriage continued its journey toward Lothian City. The cooper had been the first person Maela and Micheline saw on the road but he wasn't the last.
After seeing a third cart filled to overflowing, this time with a small family walking beside it, Micheline finally broke the heavy silence that had filled the carriage since they spoke with the cooper.
"Aunt Maela, do you think it's true?" Micheline asked hesitantly.
"Do I think what's true?" Maela asked, sighing as she turned away from the window, watching the family shrinking in the distance. There had been two young boys following their father on the road while their mother rode in the cart, and Maela had been trying to see if their shoes were sound enough for the walk when she heard her niece's question.
"Do you think Ashlynn really killed a man and brought him back to life?" Micheline asked directly. "Has she… Has she become that ruthless? And that powerful?"
