Chapter 25 There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief... And unspeakable love. . —Washington Irving . GITA Gita slipped out of the alley between the houses. "Oh, gods! Oh, gods!" She knocked into a surprised old woman carrying a net full of waterfowl. The ducks flew through the street, quacking as they escaped. Villagers stared as she clutched her unraveled shawl-dress to cover her nakedness. She ran through an open gate and sank behind a pile of faggots. Great sobs wracked her body as she rubbed between her legs. "No, no, no, nooooo!" She rubbed the place the priest's c**k had rammed against her and slid her fingers between the folds of her l