Their hearts racing, hope rushing in on them. They’ve escaped the woods!At least that is their first thoughts. They are still in the woods, but all ...ope is not lost! This is the same clearing Page fell asleep in her first day here. Her car is close!“Come on,” Page huffs. “We’re close.”Excitement fills the young woman. She squeezes Page’s hand, nodding and breathing sharply. The sound of heavy breathing comes up from behind them, carried in on the wind. The memories of what happened here come. ”“At first, yes. But you dropped that as soon as you realized that you actually liked her. As best I can tell, Steve, you occasionally think about manipulation, but then you back off pretty quickly. So no, you didn’t manipulate Kara in my view. Normal human interaction isn’t manipulation.”“And my sister?”“You were a goner from day one. She’s a master at it. But she’s not evil like Becky was. Sure, she plays the ‘prick tease’ at school, but from what I can tell, she’s very, very careful not to. I always wondered what made Dentriel so reckless. We never knew his pain, or his burden. What has transpired has done so according to his design.'Hengrithor started, 'What?''Usually Cabrigan or I find some clue in ancient texts to lead us to our destination. Sometimes, members of Cabrigan's faith appoint us a task. This time, Dentriel came to us, with a wealth of information he'd researched. He went looking for it, Hengrithor. It was no accident.' Balatra stared the veteran down.There was a. It's an emergency. Tonight isn't the best time. Can we meet for lunch this week?" Of course," I said wondering what could be so urgent. "How about tomorrow at La Porte Verte, say twelve-thirty?" That will work, and lunch is on me."I smiled at her and said, "Of course not. Maurice would be embarrassed if a woman paid for my lunch. So would I."Maurice took us to my usual table overlooking the lake and brought two room-temperature flutes for the chilled Champagne. This time he was discreet and.