38 The vine and the strawberry
Duh and Chitra both gestured to Karna, as if to say there was nothing they could do for their brother. Without bothering to interrupt Dur’s train of thought, Duh rose quietly, touched Dur lightly on the shoulder, and left; his footsteps, as he climbed down the steps of the tower, quickly receded. Chitra raised his eyebrows at Karna and followed, leaving Karna alone with Dur.
The stone walls of the little room, in which Dur was spending more and more of his time, absorbed what was left of the fading light; but they were unable to stifle the drone of his voice, seeming instead to extend it as a dull echo, warding off the brooding silence.
‘Dur!’ interrupted Karna, all of a sudden. ‘Please, be civilised! All you can think of is war. Don’t you know that the mo
