Freda Pov
I stood on the steps with Urdon beside me. The sun was warm. The yard was quiet. The pack was working in the fields. I could hear them laughing.
"It is beautiful today," I said.
"It is."
I looked at him. He was looking at the fields. His face was calm.
"You look peaceful," I said.
"I feel peaceful."
"Good."
He reached over and took my hand. His fingers were warm and rough.
"I was thinking about everything," he said.
"About what?"
"About how we got here. About everything we went through."
"We went through a lot."
"We did."
I squeezed his hand. He squeezed back.
"I remember the first day of the famine," he said. "I thought we were done. I thought we could not survive."
"But we did."
"We did. Because of you."
"Because of all of us."
He looked at me. His eyes were steady.
"Because of you," he said again.
I did not argue. I just stood there and held his hand.
