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She didn't know how long the Order would feed off Anderith before they moved on, or if they were being resupplied from the Old World. They had to be, to some extent, anyway.
"How many scouts and spies did we lose?" Richard asked.
Captain Meiffert looked up. It was the first question Richard had asked. "Some may yet turn up, but it appears likely that we lost fifty to sixty men."
Richard sighed. "And General Reibisch thinks it was worth losing the lives of those men to discover this?"
Captain Meiffert cast about for an answer. "We didn't know what we would discover, Lord Rahl; that was why we sent them in. Do you wish me to tell the general not to send in any more men?"
Richard was carving a face in a piece of firewood, sporadically tossing shavings into the fire. He sighed.
"No, he must do as he sees fit. I've explained to him that I can't issue orders."
The captain, watching Richard pick small chips of wood from his lap and pitch them into the fire, tossed a small fan of pine needles into the flames, where it blazed in short-lived glory. Richard's carving was a remarkably good likeness of the captain.
Kahlan had, on occasion, seen Richard casually carve animals or people.
She once had strongly suggested that his ability was guided by his gift. He scoffed at such a notion, saying that he had liked to carve ever since he was little. She reminded him that art was used to cast spells, and that once he had been captured with the aid of a drawn spell.
He insisted this was nothing like that. As a guide, he said he'd passed many an evening at camp, by himself, carving. Not wanting to carry the added weight, he would toss the finished piece into the fire. He said he enjoyed the act of carving, and could always carve another. Kahlan considered the carvings inspired and found it distressing to see them destroyed.
"What do you intend to do, Lord Rahl? If I may ask."
Richard took a smooth, steady slice that demarcated the line of an ear, bringing it to life along with the line of the jaw he had already cut. He looked up and stared off into the night.
"We're going to a place back in the mountains, where other people don't go, so we can be alone, and safe. The Mother Confessor will be able to get well there and gain back her strength. While we're there, I may even make Cara start wearing a dress."
Cara shot to her feet. "What!" When she saw Richard's smile, Cara realized he was only joking. She fumed, nonetheless.
"I'd not report that part of it to the general, were I you, Captain,"
Richard said.
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