Chapter 3

Running stealthily through the woods under the cover of night, he looked back to make sure his friends were with him. They panted heavily trying to keep up with his pace. Water. He wanted to stop for water but didn't dare. He saw the soft glow of firelight leading the way to camp. He could just make out the tall, thin frame anxiously pacing, awaiting their return. "There you are!" the figure called to them.

As they entered camp the man stopped his pacing, looking over their numbers. "Where are the rest of you? They've fallen to his sword haven't they?" His eyes scanned over the others. "You have failed me. You were supposed to bring me his heart."

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The arrival of Kahlan's father, Malkin, had not been without its conflict. He professed his deep sorrow at how he had treated her and Denee and that he held no ill will against the Sister's of the Light for having taken them away. He told her how he had spent time in a D'Haran prison for cheating an Officer at cards and that he'd had plenty of time to consider his actions. Soon after his release, he learned of Denee's death and wished to make amends with her, his only living relative.

"Surly, with your own child on the way Kahlan, you can see how I might feel…needing your forgiveness. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize what I've done wrong, but believe me, I do. I'll spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to you."

Her eyes never wavered from his. "With my own child on the way, I wonder how it was ever possible for you to do the things you did." She tempered her harshness, "You don't need to try and make it up to me. Just live your life now in a good and honest manner."

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Malkin came by most everyday to spend time with Kahlan and Richard, often staying through the evening meal, before making the long trip back to town. Kahlan had hardly known him as a child, not the 'real' him anyway. He had been a confessed man and had thought only of her mother. After her mother's death and he was released from her power, he'd been a selfish, conniving tyrant. It was almost hard for her to believe this soft spoken, well mannered man before her was the same person. But then, she thought, years in a D'Haran prison could change a man. Richard, too, was finding him likeable enough and took him hunting with him in their woods whenever Martha or Zedd was there to stay with Kahlan.

Kahlan's conversations with her father could be difficult. The memories he had of her mother were shared through the very different perspective of a confessed man. But they seemed to be finding a fragile common ground and Richard welcomed the idea of Kahlan forging a bond with her father. Though he did look forward to the night, after Malkin would leave and he could be alone with her.

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In the quiet of their room Richard held himself over her as he tenderly made love to her. Kahlan's eyes looked through to his very soul as she whispered her words of love to him. Slowly, he reached his hand under the pillow beneath her and pulled out his knife, swiftly plunging it deep into her chest. She let out a tortuous gasp, her loving eyes wide with horror and pain. Richard gripped the handle tightly as he viciously yanked the blade through her chest, leaving her flesh in jagged pieces.

"Kahlan!" In the blackness of night, Richard bolted upright in bed gasping for breath, his body bathed in sweat.

She stirred next to him. "Richard, what is it?" She could tell by his breathing he'd had another bad dream. She sat up and touched a hand to his shoulder. "It's alright Richard."

He gripped her shoulders making sure she was real and unhurt. He ran his fingers through his hair, still trying to calm his breathing and pressed both hands to his head, trying to shake the image.

For the third night in a row, Richard had had the same terrible dream. Kahlan put her arms around him and held him close. "I'm alright, Richard. You didn't hurt me."

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The next morning, Richard said he needed to talk with Zedd alone, so Kahlan invited her father to join her for an afternoon walk in the winter sun. He confided in her some of the brutalities he suffered at the hands of the D'Harans. "There's nothing like a few long years in a dark D'Haran prison to make you think back about your life."

Kahlan nodded her understanding. Malkin suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, grabbing her wrist, pulling her to a halt. She looked to his face, "What is it?"

His eyes wide, he slowly tilted his head toward the hill rising up the side of the path. Kahlan's eyes shifted up the hillside. Four wolves, their heads low to the ground and lips curled, made their way toward them. Kahlan pulled her daggers. Knowing her father wasn't armed, she moved in front him. He yanked her back behind him, "stay back". He picked up several large rocks and threw them, sending one of the wolves yelping. Another leapt at him, flashing his fangs with a viscous snarl. Malkin grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and flung him to the ground. Kahlan dropped quickly to slice through the beast's throat where it lay on the ground, now in a growing pool of blood. The remaining wolves turned and fled.

Malkin lifted her arm, helping her to stand. Seeing his pale face, Kahlan touched his arm "Are you alright?"

He let out a shaky sigh. "I'm fine…I guess I'm just not used to the sight of blood."

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Richard held his temples between thumb and finger, stress evident on his face. "Zedd, I need your help." He dropped his hand, looking into his grandfather's eyes. "Actually, I need Shota's help. I need you to go to her, tell her about the dream I keep having. See if she knows anything of what's going on. Find out if she's had any visions about me or Kahlan." He ran a shaky hand through his hair. He was afraid he was starting to go mad. "I need to know. I don't know what else to do Zedd. I feel like I'm losing my mind." He had hardly ever had bad dreams before, now he had the same one every night, over and over again. The vivid images were emblazoned in his mind, the feel of Kahlan's warm blood on his hands, the look of pain and shock in her beautiful blue eyes. Just the thought of it made his stomach twist and his knees weak. Other than the fear of bringing harm to Kahlan, what bothered him most was the darkness he felt with the dream, It seemed to be growing stronger. He could feel it rising up within him. It was a constant battle that he struggled to subdue.

Richard didn't share with his grandfather that he'd stopped sleeping in the same room with her, that he made her promise to latch the bedroom door each night before she slept. His fear of hurting her, of springing from sleep and killing her in the night gnawed at him constantly. A small part of him now understood how it had been for Kahlan before they knew they could be together, when she loved him but feared her touch would destroy him.

Zedd could see his grandson's distress. He had noticed the change in him over the past few weeks, his growing anxiety, his quick temper. He rested a hand on his shoulder. "I'll leave today, Richard."

"There's one more thing, Zedd. I want you to remove the connection spell between me and Kahlan." He struggled to put voice to his dark thoughts, lowering his eyes to the ground. "If she needed to…get away…I want her to be able to. Right now, maybe it's best if I can't sense where she is."

"Richard…"

"You said yourself I need to keep her safe. That she's the last living Confessor. That's what I'm trying to do." More than anything he wanted to keep her safe, though he did it not for her title or what she was, but because he loved her and wanted to protect her. She needed to be able to hide herself. Even from him.

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