“Berreau!” Farris said quickly. “Are you all right now? Can you hear me?”
Berreau looked up at him with a level, unfriendly gaze. “I can hear you. May I ask why you meddled?”
It took Farris aback. He had been playing nurse so long that he had unconsciously come to think of the other as a sick man who would be grateful to him. He realized now that Berreau was coldly angry, not grateful.
The Frenchman was untying his ankles. His movements were shaky, his hands trembling, but he stood up normally.
“Well?” he asked.
Farris shrugged. “Your sister was going up there after you. I helped her bring you back. That’s all.”
Berreau looked a little startled. “Lys did that? But it’s a breaking of the Rite! It can mean trouble for her!”
Resentment and raw nerves made Farris suddenly brutal. “Why should you worry about Lys now, when you’ve made her wretched for months by your dabbing in native wizardries?”
Berreau didn’t retort angrily, as he had expected. The young Frenchman answered heavily.
“It’s true. I’ve done that to Lys.”