CHAPTER 5
Najud shifted his position so that all could see his face, and spread his hands.
“I am Najud, son of Ilsahr of clan Zamjilah, of the Shubzah tribe, and my mother Kazrsulj is the daughter of Khashjibrim of the same clan. You know her sister, Qizrahi. I have never met my aunt’s new kin, and I greet them now.”
He bowed low from his seat.
“My companion is the jarghalti Penrys, of Ellech.”
He lifted an eyebrow at her, and was gratified when she bowed in turn for the audience, her face expressionless.
“Our story is complicated, but I’ll be brief, to bring you your news.”
He glanced down to collect his thoughts, very conscious of his position as oldest male in this collection of lost and worried sheep, out-tribe though he may be. They were already looking to him for answers, and
