The sun was high in the sky when he awoke, but Kahlan was still asleep in his arms. Her breathing was slow and deep, matching his as he allowed himself to at last view the room.

He had spent so much time in there and he had yet to take a moment to see what it looked like. It was large, three or four rooms as one and the bed was almost in the center. The part of the room farthest from the door held the large bathtub that stood before a fireplace nearly as wide, a wash station at its right. Her wardrobe, was on the opposite side, covering a good portion of the wall. He wondered how many dresses were within it, he had only seen her in a handful of dresses, but he couldn't wait to encounter more.

There were dress dressers, one across from the bed, a mirror attached to the top, one on the left side of the door and another beside the wardrobe. There were two rugs, one, a light green and blue that laid beneath the incredibly large bed and another, a dark blue beneath the tub, keeping anyone from slipping as they exited the water. All of the furniture was made of dark brown wood, blending beautifully together with the light colored walls. His eyes then fell upon the place he had spent the second most amount of time. The rocking chair next to the dresser, with a fire place on the small piece of wall that gave the room a small separation. He imagined that she, too, spent more time in that chair than she did anywhere else.

"Morning," she mumbled against his chest, her hand moving to pull herself closer.

"Did I wake you?"

Lifting her head, she opened her eyes and sleepily met his. "No. Are you alright?"

"I should be asking you that."

Grinning, she ran her hand down his stomach, hooking her right leg over his. "I'm perfect. I don't think I've slept that well in months."

"Your head still hurts," he said in a whisper. "I can see it in your eyes."

"It's not bad. It feels like I did one too many confessions yesterday." He didn't look convinced, but she knew he wouldn't say anything, not when he had been wrong before. "If it gets worse, I'll see a healer."

"Alright, but promise me that you'll take it easy."

Grinning, she rolled off of him and pulled him onto her, sliding her hands down his bare back. "I don't plan on leaving this bed."

***

"We know it wasn't random men," Cara said as she watched the wizard sifting through a large pile of scrolls. "Darken Rahl knew Kahlan would agree to his terms, she would do anything to protect him."

"Then why would he try to have her killed?"

"Richard. If he comes here, the People's Palace is open for him. He wouldn't dare face him again, not without more Mord'Sith."

Dropping the scrolls, Zedd lifted his head and met her eyes. "If Darken Rahl had succeeded in killing Kahlan, there wouldn't be enough Mord'Sith to protect him. We know Richard; the guards he killed at the front gates, those men are only the beginning. He will protect her with everything he has and there will be nothing that can stop him."

Closing the distance between them, the blonde stared into his eyes. "He will burn down the city looking for those still alive, tell me what you know, wizard."

"The men who attacked her worked for Darken Rahl, but they weren't supposed to harm her. I think she saw and recognized them; that's why they attacked. She had to have known what was going to happen and I think she responded quickly enough to have just saved her own life." Taking a breath, Zedd stood up and walked to the door, closing it quietly. "I think she remembers more than she says she does."

"Why would she lie?"

"Richard."

******

He was lying on the floor, eyes closed as he regained his breath. The sun was setting and Kahlan moved quickly to light the candles around the room to keep the light. He watched her move, mesmerized by the grace of her naked form flowing around him. Reaching out, he grabbed her hand, stopping her motions instantly. When she sat down, he brought his head to her lap and closed his eyes as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"You're staring at me." Richard's soft voice pulled her from her thoughts, making her jump slightly. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," she said as he sat up. Grabbing a blanket, she pulled it around herself and pushed her back against the wall. "I- I have to tell you something and when I do-"

"What is it?"

"Richard, please... I need you to promise that when I tell you, you won't do anything." She had him on edge, leaning forward with hardened eyes. He would give her no such promise and she suddenly wished that she hadn't said anything. "I remember something I didn't tell you before."

"What?"

Licking her lips, she darted her eyes to the floor and tried to find her voice. "One of the men who attacked me... He resembled someone I know."

He was standing now, pulling on his pants as he waited for her to finish. "Who was it?"

Moving to her feet, she grabbed his arm, keeping him from lacing the tan pants. "You."

"What?"

"I thought it was you. I saw you outside the dungeons, leaning against one of the trees and I- When I realized it wasn't you, I was a few feet away and it was too late. I demanded to know who he was and what he wanted. The others came out of the trees and that's all I remember."

He was staring at her with his mouth open in shock and confusion. Anger boiled his blood and it began to make him sick that she had watched his face when being beaten.

Turning away, he pushed his fingers though his hair and sighed, trying to fight his anger. "You have the memory of me hurting you. How could you keep that from me?!" Spinning back to her, he lost control. "Did he touch you?"

Startled, Kahlan took a step back. "What?"

"If you're pregnant, whose is it? Mine? His?!" Grabbing her shoulders, he nearly lifted her from the ground. "Why didn't you say anything?! What else are you hiding from me?!"

She tried to push away, but his hold was too strong. "Richard, let me go."

The there was a knock at the door and he stepped back, picking up the blanket and tossing it to her. "Cover yourself."

Three servants entered, keeping their eyes on the ground as they brought in trays of food. When they left, Richard turned back to her and saw the tears in her eyes. She was staring at her hands, clutching the blanket to her chest as she tried to calm her breathing. After a moment, she looked up and met his eyes, bringing him to realize what had just happened.

"Kahlan, I- I'm sorry."

She stepped back as he moved toward her, shaking her head. "I'm tired." Moving to the bed, she tried to focus, keep the pain at bay, but it was impossible.

When she stumbled, he was there to catch her. Pulling her against him, he pushed his nose into her hair and began whispering his apologies.

"I'm sorry, Kahlan. I didn't mean to lose my temper."

"I know."

"That's why you didn't tell me, isn't it?"

Shaking her head, she moved out of his arms and crawled onto the bed. "Partly. At first I wasn't sure I remembered correctly. I thought I saw you almost every day. I'd see you in the corner of my eye and when I'd turn to look, you'd be gone. I thought I had imagined it."

"But you didn't."

"No," she said quietly, covering herself with the blankets. She couldn't look at him, not yet. "I was a few feet away from him when he vanished and the others surrounded me. The next thing I remember is staring up the side of the cliff with the taste of blood in my mouth."

"Kahlan," he started as he stepped to the side of the bed. "I'm sorry. I know that it's not enough, but I am sorry." He wanted to lie beside her, but after what he had said a few minutes before, he couldn't bring himself to do it. "I didn't mean any of it, Kahlan. I'm sorry."

Looking up, she studied his face for a moment. "Why did you...? You asked if I was pregnant, whose would it be... Why would you ask me that?"

"Kahlan, I-"

Crawling across the bed, she pushed her hands against his chest and shoved him backward. "Why would you ask me that?! Do you think that I would lay with another man?! How dare you!" Tears were raining down her cheeks, her body shaking from anger and exhaustion. "If I had been touched by that MAN do you think I would want you to touch me?! How dare you accuse me of being with someone else! How dare you stand there and-"

Wrapping his arms around her, he hugged her against him. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Spirits, I am so sorry. Kahlan, I know that you would never- I... I can't say anything to make what I said alright, but I am sorry." Pulling away, he took a few steps away and turned around. "I kept seeing your words in my head, I could picture you as you saw me. You ran to me-him and I know that if it had been me, we would have kissed and I- I was so angry."

Hiding her face in her hands, Kahlan sighed. "I saw."

Facing her once again, Richard dropped to his knees. "I wasn't angry with you."

"I know." He was confused by the tone of her voice, the gentleness. "You were angry that they used you against me."

"Kahlan, I never meant to hurt you."

"I know."

After several minutes of silence and still, she was the first to make a move, lowering herself down to the floor in front of him. Touching the fingers of her right hand to the red marks her fist had left on his chest, she frowned.

"I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't be. I gave you every reason to be upset. I never should have said what I did. Kahlan, I know that you would never lay with another man. And I know that this may upset you, but that's not what I meant. When I saw you, when I arrived, I thought that whoever had attacked you- It looked like they had-"

"You thought they had raped me," she completed his sentence quietly. "They didn't... They didn't have time." Stroking her fingers through the back of his hair, she stared at the pink marks on his chest. "They never touched me."

He touched her face, rubbing his thumbs across her cheeks. He still felt relieved to be able to touch her and to see her looking back at him. "I'm sorry it wasn't me leaning against that tree."

She smiled. "Me too."

******

"We don't have to do this," Richard said as he followed the Mother Confessor to the trees.

The sun hidden beneath a layer of clouds, hiding its light and warmth from them as they moved slowly through the city. Kahlan had awoke early and decided to go back to where she had been attacked, wanting to see it all clearly herself. She hadn't spoken since they left the palace and he knew she wouldn't, not until she had answers. He only wished she would let him in on some of the questions. Every few minutes, she would look over her shoulder and make sure he was there, a part of her terrified that he would be gone and she would be alone again. She knew he sensed her fear.

It was in the way he looked at her, touched her hand gently with the back of his, just a steady and constant reminder that he was there. When they reached the dungeons, she stopped, the people now moving about around them and going on with their morning. She looked around carefully as youth she expected one of them to rush toward them in a raged attack. She could still see the faces of the men who had come after her and thought it was a matter of time until she saw them in the crowd.

"We didn't expect to see you so soon, Mother Confessor." Richard spun around, drawing his sword. "I apologize, I did not intend to surprise you."

"It's alright," Kahlan replied as the man beside her returned the weapon to its sheath.

"We didn't think you would be out here so soon."

Kahlan looked over her shoulder to the area that now seemed so clear. "I want to make sense of a few things."

"I'm sorry, Mother Confessor. We haven't yet had rain, the blood is still-"

"It's fine," she interrupted softly, walking toward the red stained ground. "It may help me remember."

"It's an honor to be in your presence Lord Rahl. We are grateful for all that you've done." Stepping closer, the woman met his eyes. "And your message was received by all."

"Do you know who attacked her?"

"No, Lord Rahl. Not many travel this way after midday, but only those from the city would know of this passage. It's easiest to find food around here. Whoever hurt her, they knew her schedule and they waited hours for her to finish in the dungeons."

"Do you come through here often?"

"I do, but I did not see the men who-"

"You're lying," Richard growled quietly, pulling the woman to him, his eyes shifting quickly to Kahlan, who stared in the other direction. "Tell me what you saw or I will gladly give you to the Mother Confessor."

"I can't tell you what you want to know, I didn't see their faces."

"How many of them were there?"

"Twenty, maybe more. I am not sure, but many were injured."

"Did they visit a healer?"

"They wouldn't dare see one in the city, they would be caught."

Moving away from the woman, Richard looked around them, realizing they were alone. "Go back to the city, it may not be safe here." Following Kahlan's tracks, he hurried into the thick line of trees that hid the cliff side. She was kneeling on the edge, looking down. "What are you doing?"

"I need to go down there."

"What? No-"

"I have to remember what happened."

Coming to her side, Richard grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet, moving her away from the edge. "You fought those men and fell off of this cliff, what more do you need to know?"

"I want their faces to stop haunting me."

"Kahlan-"

Laying her hands on his forearms, she looked over the edge. "I have to do this."

There was a small ledge a few dozen feet away from the top, stained with blood. The sight made him sick, the feeling growing as he watched her move to the edge. The decent took a few minutes, making him wonder how difficult it had been to bring her body up to the top. She lost her footing for a moment, her body not yet having all of her strength.

"I'm alright," she said as he reached for her. "My hand slipped."

When they reached the ledge, he pushed between her and edge, keeping her safe in the middle. Dried blood covered most of the rocks, leaving nothing more to see. Kahlan laid down and stared up at the sky, her mind spinning.

"I remember lying here, staring at the rocks above and thinking." Turning her head, she looked at him and gave a small smile. "All I could think about was you."

Lying down, he pulled her into his arms. "Me?"

"I thought I was going to die," she explained through a whisper. "I looked up at the sky and kept thinking about our last night together. I couldn't stop thinking about that old, lumpy bed in the tavern and the way we kept rolling off and onto the floor." She laughed softly, the memory flooding her mind once again. "I could almost feel you next to me, you were warm... The next thing I remember is waking up in my bedroom with you beside me." He didn't know what to say, his own mind wrapping around her words. Lifting her head, she shifted so she was able to look down on his face, smiling as her head blocked the bright sun out of his eyes. "I thought it was a dream at first, when I woke up and saw you. I thought I had imagined it all and that we were back in the tavern... But the look in your eyes... I think you felt worse than I did."

"It nearly killed me," Richard replied rapidly. "I thought I was going to lose you."

She grinned, touching her hand to his face. "But you didn't."

"No, I didn't." Bringing his fingers to her hair, he brushed it out of her face, using the moment to take in her beauty. "I don't know what I would do if something happened to you."

"You would do the same thing I would." Pressing her lips to his, she kissed him briefly. "We'd go mad and get ourselves killed trying to gain some kind of justice."

"But we wouldn't care," he added quietly. "We'd be together in the afterlife."

"Where we would be angry that we were so careless."

"I can't lose you, Kahlan."

Returning her head to his chest, she closed her eyes and focused on the beat of his heart. "I don't plan on leaving you."