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Finally the waters were gone, leaving in their wake torn branches, uprooted bushes, scatterings of twigs, leaves, and bark and a swathe of mud covering everything. The makings of their dinner had completely disappeared. As Jon, Jayhan, and Sasha detached themselves carefully from their sturdy sapling, they saw Maud and Sheldrake disentangling themselves from a tree twenty yards further south of them. Sheldrake’s neat black coat was sodden, and his breeches clung to his wet legs. With hands that were not quite steady, he pushed his hair back from his face and back into some semblance of order.
Sasha realised Jayhan was shaking. She put her arm around him, and it was an indication of his distress that he didn’t even seem to notice, let alone object. Marjorie and Jackson appeared, hair a
