ESHNOR TOO WAS ANXIOUS. If he failed to express his anxieties to his wife, it was because he did not want to alarm Alinora any further. But he had received word from Rurka to beware of assassins from Arrgodi.
How to protect Drishya? That was the most daunting question of all. He could hardly surround Alinora and their son with armed guards all night and day. It would look preposterous and would invade her privacy. She would never have a moment alone, and the presence of the guards themselves would make her anxious and nervous. He knew his beloved wife well. She believed that carrying a sword was itself an invitation to violence. The presence of armed warriors would rob her of all peace of mind.
So he set several of his most trusted govalas to watch discreetly from a distance. There were family among this number: he recruited her brothers and sisters as well as his own. This way, she would see familiar beloved faces around her and take comfort in their presence, while their mission would be to watch over her and send for the real guards the instant they sensed danger. The armed guards would be kept out of Alinora’s sight but within quick hailing distance. They would operate in shifts and be on alert at every moment of the day or night. Eshnor received more volunteers for this duty than he required. Then again, how many were too many? Who knew what powers the assassins might possess? Who knew how they would attack?
Still, all he could do was prepare and anticipate, and he did so.
He offered to pay the volunteers for the time spent away from their herds, but they would not hear of it. They readily agreed to drink his famous Goluka milk and consume its products, though! That was payment enough, they said, brushing milk off their upper lips with the backs of their hands, grinning.
So began a routine of Alinora and Eshnor pretending that all was normal, smiling, laughing, talking, going about their daily chores, meeting and receiving people, doing everything they had done before. But with a pall of anticipation hanging over them that dampened everything they did. Eshnor would see it clearly: Alinora would be talking with her sisters and friends and notice some stranger approach Drishya. Her smile would vanish, and she would start moving toward him with a lurching gait that betrayed her alarm, only to stop short abruptly when the man turned and she saw he was her friend Tarangaksi’s fiancé, coming to greet the little hero for the first time. Her face would relax again, but the creases remained, and Eshnor knew exactly how she felt because he felt the same way.
He prayed daily that this anxiety would be removed from their lives. In a way, the warrior spirit within him wished that the assassins would show themselves sooner rather than later, so that this ordeal could end once and for all. It was the waiting and anticipation that caused the greatest distress.