Hild took a sip of the whiskey, letting the pleasant burn fill her mouth and loosen her throat. People watched and judged her always, at home if not in Darrow. She knew how to manipulate those thoughts, and also how to let them slide over her, like drops of water on a duck's wing. It was not so easy for others; it had not been easy for her, at first.

"If he is honest, you must be honest also," she said. "Like approves of like. Do you hide from your war band, your other warriors, for fear they think you a danger? Men always judge. It is better to know their thoughts than to fear them."