Oh, Aye, Sassenach. I Am Your Master

I Stood Still, Vision Blurring, And In That Moment, I Heard My Heart Break. It Was A Small, Clean Sound, Like The Snapping Of A Flower's Stem.

No Wonder Men Got Impervious To Superficial Pain, I Thought. It Came From This Habit Of Hammering Each Other Incessantly.

I Thought I Could Make Out Jamie's Highland Screech, But That Was Likely Imagination; They All Sounded Equally Demented.

If I Die," He Whispered In The Dark, "dinna Follow Me. The Bairns Will Need Ye. Stay For Them. I Can Wait.

And When My Body Shall Cease, My Soul Will Still Be Yours, Claire? I Swear By My Hope Of Heaven, I Will Not Be Parted From You." The Wind Stirred The Leaves Of The Chestnut Trees Nearby, And The Scents Of Late Summer Rose Up Rich Around Us; Pine And Grass And Strawberries, Sun-warmed Stone And Cool Water, And The Sharp, Musky Smell Of His Body Next To Mine. "nothing Is Lost, Sassenach; Only Changed." "that's The First Law Of Thermodynamics," I Said, Wiping My Nose. "no," He Said. "that's Faith.