“Mm, I doubt that someone so fortunate needs to worry about that,” Corina teased with narrowed eyes. “Where’s the nearest town? Ten, twenty miles away? And with a crossroad ahead leading to half a dozen destinations in every direction, I’d say there’s a very, very slim chance that this, mysterious, unnamed Master can be found, if she still has one to begin with. For all we know, the wolves got him and she’s too traumatized to recall it.”
“You speak my mind─” Tati praised her and was just about to say something else when a feminine scream from outside stole their attention.
Cotiso raised his voice. “Maria? What’s going on out there? Maria?”
Maria appeared from behind the tent’s entrance, her arms, hair and clothes soaked.
She huffed. “She won’t let me wash the damn cloak!”
“What? The cloak? Just throw that rag away. I told you to get her some clothes.”
“I know, but she won’t let go of it! I just bathed her and she─”
Maria stopped mid-sentence and buried her face in her hands for a few moments then continued. “She hugged that stinky thing again the moment she stepped out of the bucket! Now I must bathe her all over again, but she won’t even let go of it this time!”