“You are an amazing creature, Catronia,” he murmured into my hair. “I know you’ll find your way home, to your mother, and to me. We can be a family, together.” Together. I should have wanted nothing to do with the man, but all I could focus on was that together was not alone. Over the next few days we developed a routine, and even more importantly, an understanding. My bucket was returned and replaced with a clean version at each visit. I did as I was asked, performed my meditations and answered Daeglan’s questions as I should. I gave him no reason to punish me, and found I received water, regular bread rations, and a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. The intervals of sleep were not exactly regular, nor were they frequent, but it was enough to prevent total exhaustion. As some of my streng
