I lifted my wind-roughened face to the golden warmth. Soon it would be hot, searing everything below including us, but for the moment, I could worship it. I closed my eyes and sniffed deeply, smelling the few scrubby plants that managed to survive. There was something that smelled like sage, and for a moment, I thought of all my favourite dishes—crisp potatoes and new bread and roast goose with sage stuffing. “Good God, if your stomach roars any louder they’ll be able to track us by the sound of it,” Gabriel said irritably. I stuffed a date into my mouth and didn’t answer. It was just like him to ruin a perfectly lovely moment. I ate another date and sulked while Gabriel drank and rested. He looked awful—pale under the ruddy sunburn he had acquired and his cheeks were so obscured by overgrown beard even a pirate crew would have thought him disreputable. He opened one eye and looked at me quizzically.
