So when he said ‘fetch’ I broke out laughing.At first he didn’t know what the hell I was laughing at. Then I said the word ‘fetch’ again and...my husband and I both broke out into uncontrollable giggles. Then it was Fetch this and fetch that. Soon I was treating Larry like a dog telling him to fetch us some beers. All the while all three of us had stiches in our sides.That’s when Larry started barking and hopping around on all fours and sniffing the ground. He did eventually get three beers and. I clucked at the horse, handed the girl the reins and got to reloading. She flapped the leathers and avoided my look, chin thrust out.Another man in black stepped out into the road, knelt and fired, hitting the poor horse in the chest. He made an awful noise, stumbled and fell forward as I jumped down and ran at the man, my weapon still unloaded. The soldier stood and met me in good form, musket in both hands, but when we closed, I kicked his feet from under him and ended the fight quickly with. Mind you, he isn’t really my uncle - he’s they guy who married my mother’s younger sister. And my mother was 20 years younger than my father, which made Uncle Jamie much closer to my age than any of my other relatives. I’ve liked Uncle Jamie for as long as I can remember, but it wasn’t until he came here to run the farm, and took over my punishment, that I fell in love with him. * All my life it seems like I’ve spent most of my time alone. And most of that time I spent reading. Or dreaming.. I had a late lunch."Laura smiled and smirked at her affectionately. Not hungry for food, that is, she thought. You're hungry for something.It was nice, in a way, not to have to be pining over Makeeda, or over Sara. The one was down in L.A., pursuing her career, getting some recognition as well as a paycheck. The halo of sweet, throbbing, aching emotion they had shared would linger with both of them until her return. Sara was getting what she had wanted: novelty, fresh attention, scintillating.