Pinnatte had no reply, but the atmosphere in the room had eased. Heirn lowered himself into his favourite chair and the three men sat for some time in a companionable silence; Heirn carefully watching Pinnatte, Atlon waiting as patiently as he could for an opportunity to question him.
They were interrupted by a knock on the door. Both Atlon and Pinnatte started, but Heirn just smiled and made a reassuring gesture.
The callers were friends of his, pursuing an intermittent but time-honoured ritual of luring him to an ale-shop or similar, ‘To settle the day’s dust.’
Heirn refused but brought them in, glad to have familiar faces about him. He introduced Atlon as an outlander and ‘the finest leather-worker I’ve ever seen — and a healer’, and Pinnatte as the hero of the moment, spending a qui
