A surprise letter, because there hadn’t been one for over a month, and Colm had been convinced that the time of no news from home had finally come, the weather too thick and harsh to support the passing of messages. But a courier brought one to them anyway, and Colm grasped it with eager hands as he thanked the man and gave him a few copper coins for his trouble. Then he turned it immediately over to Nichol, because while his reading ability was slowly improving, he was in no mood to take the time to sound everything out when he had a better way right here, smiling at him over a bowl of chowder at lunchtime. “One from Anneslea?” Megg asked. “That’s surprising!” “It is,” Colm agreed. “Nichol…” “You can’t wait for me to finish my chowder first?” Nichol said teasingly. “Really? Are you that desperate? Because I have to say, I’m positively exhausted, and I need to eat to restore my energy…”
