Katelina's mood wasn't improved the next day. Loren and Jorick left to feed as usual and, even though she knew it was wrong on many levels, she was drawn to the large desk. As she laid her hand on the terrible bottom drawer, Loren's voice came back to her, "All that matters is he's here and you're here. The rest isn't important." The words reverberated like a bad dream sequence, but, despite the annoyingly impeccable logic, she sat down on the floor, jerked the drawer open and unburied the bundle of letters.
They seemed so much lighter than she thought they should; they should weigh as heavily in her hand as they did in her mind. As if to punish them for this betrayal, she shook them roughly. Two items fell out and landed in her lap. One was a lock of black hair tied with a faded silk rib
