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  　Chase thought about the question. "Not that I know of."

  　"I doubt it," Zedd added. "Rahl can travel the underworld; he doesn't need the pass. He's bringing the boundary down; I don't think he cares about a little pass."

  　"Caring is different from knowing," Richard said. "I don't think we should be standing here, and I'm worried he might know where we're going."

  　Kahlan pulled the hair off her face. "What do you mean?"

  　Richard gave her a sympathetic look. "Do you think it was your mother and sister you saw when you were in there?"

  　"I thought it was. Do you think otherwise?" "I don't think that was my father." He looked to the wizard. "What do you think?"

  　"It's impossible to say. No one really knows all that much about the underworld."

  　"Darken Rahl knows about it," Richard said bitterly. "I don't think my father would want me in that manner. But I know Rahl would, so despite what my eyes tell me, it's more likely that it was Darken Rahl's disciples trying to take me. You said we couldn't go through the boundary because they were waiting for us to do so, waiting to get us. I think that was what I saw, his followers in the underworld. And they know right where I touched the wall. If I'm right that means Rahl will soon know where we are. I don't want to be here to find out if I'm right."

  　"Richard is right," Chase said. "And we have to get to Skow Swamp before nightfall, before the heart hounds come out. 'It's the only safe place between here and Southaven. We'll reach Southaven before tomorrow night and will be safe from the hounds there. The next day we will go see a friend of mine, Adie, the bone woman. She lives near the pass. We need her help to get through. But tonight, our only chance is the swamp."

  　Richard was about to ask what a bone woman was, and why they needed her help to cross the boundary, when a dark, shadowy form suddenly whipped out of the air, striking Chase so hard it threw him across several downed trees. With shocking speed the black form wrapped around Kahlan's legs, whip like, pulling her feet from under her. She screamed Richard's name as he dove, grabbing for her. They locked their hands around each other's wrists. Both were dragged across the ground, toward the boundary.

  　Zedd's fingers threw fire over their heads. It shrieked past and vanished. Another black appendage struck out at the wizard with lightning speed, knocking the old man through the air. Richard hooked a foot around a branch on a log. Rotten, it tore from the stump. He twisted his body around, trying to dig his heels into the ground. His boots slid across the wet bog weed. He jammed his heels into the earth, but wasn't strong enough to hold the two of them from being dragged across the ground. He needed his hands free.

  　"Put your arms around my waist!" he yelled

  　Kahlan lunged, throwing her arms around him, holding tight. The sinuous black thing wrapped around her legs undulated, getting a stronger grip on her. She screamed as it squeezed. Richard yanked the sword free, filling the air with its ringing.

  　The green light began to glow around them as they were dragged in.

  　Anger flooded through him. Richard's worst fear was coming to pass; something was trying to take Kahlan. The green light brightened. Being hauled across the ground, he couldn't reach the thing that pulled them. Kahlan held him hard by the waist; her legs were too far away, and the thing that held her legs was farther still.

  　"Kahlan, let go of me!"

  　She was too terrified to do it. She clutched him tightly, desperately, panting in pain. The green sheet came up as they were dragged in.- The buzzing was loud in his ears.

  　"Let go!" he yelled again.

  　He tried to pry her hands from his waist. The trees of the bog started to fade into darkness. Richard could feel the pressure of the wall. He couldn't believe how strongly she held him. On his back, sliding across the ground, he tried to reach behind himself to pull her wrists away from him, but could not. Their only chance was for him to get up.

  　"Kahlan! You have to let go or we're dead! I won't let them get you! Trust me! Let go!" He didn't know if he was telling her the truth, but he was sure it was their only chance.

  　Her head pressed against his stomach as she clutched his body. Kahlan looked up at him, her face contorting in pain as the black thing squeezed. She screamed, then let go.

  　In a blink Richard was on his feet. As he jumped up, the dark wall materialized abruptly in front of him. His father reached out. He unleashed his rage, swinging the sword with every fiber of violence he possessed. The blade swept through the barrier, through the thing he knew wasn't his father. The dark shape wailed, exploding into a cloud of nothingness.

  　Kahlan's feet were at the wall, the dark thing enfolded tightly around her legs, compressing and pulling. He brought the sword up. Murderous need surged through him.

  　"Richard, no! It's my sister!" He knew it wasn't, just as it wasn't his father. He gave himself over completely to the hot need and brought the sword down as hard as he could. Again it swept through the wall, slashed through the repulsive thing that held Kahlan. There was a confusion of flashes, unearthly wailing and keening. Kahlan's legs were free. She lay sprawled on her stomach.

  　Without looking to see what else was happening, Richard pushed his arm under her waist and lifted her in a single motion, scooping her off the ground. He held her tight against himself and held the sword toward the wall as he retreated from the boundary. Backing away steadily, he watched for any movement, any aggression. They left the green light.

  　He kept going until they were well clear, beyond the horses. When he stopped at last and released her, Kahlan turned and threw her arms around him, shaking. He had to struggle to restrain the rage that urged him to go back in and attack. He knew he would have to put the sword away to quell the anger, the need, but he didn't dare to.

  　"The others, where are they?" she asked in a panic. "We have to find them."

  　Kahlan pushed away from him and started to run back. Richard snatched her by the wrist, almost yanking her from her feet.

  　"Stay here!" he yelled far more angrily than required, pushing her to the ground.

  　Richard found Zedd in a heap, unconscious. As he bent to the old man, something swept out in a rush over his head. His anger erupted. He spun with the sword, the blade sweeping through the dark form. The stump reeled back into the boundary with a shrill screeching, the severed part vaporizing in midair. Richard picked up Zedd with one arm, threw him over his shoulder like a sack of grain, and carried him to Kahlan, where he laid him gently on the ground. She held the wizard's head in her lap, inspecting for wounds. Richard ducked low as he ran back, but the expected attack didn't come. He wished it would; he longed for the fight, hungered to strike. He found Chase jammed partway under a log. Richard seized the mail and pulled him over. Blood oozed from a gash on the side of Chase's head. Debris was stuck to the wound.

  　Richard's mind raced, trying to think what to do. He couldn't lift Chase with one arm, and he didn't dare to put the sword away. He did know he didn't want Kahlan to come help, he wanted her to stay safely away. Getting a good grip on the warden's leather tunic, Richard started dragging him. The slick bog weed eased the effort somewhat, but it was still difficult, because he had to go around several fallen trees. Surprisingly, nothing attacked. Maybe he had hurt it, or killed it. He wondered if it was possible to kill something already dead. The sword had magic. Richard wasn't sure what it was capable of; he wasn't even sure if the things in the boundary were dead. He finally reached Kahlan and Zedd, and dragged Chase close. The wizard was still unconscious.

  　Kahlan's face was white with worry. "What are we going to do?"

  　Richard scanned around. "We can't stay here, and we can't leave them. Let's put them over the horses and get out of here. We'll look to their wounds as soon as we're a safe distance away."

  　The clouds were thicker than before, and mist covered everything with a wet sheen. As he checked in every direction, Richard put the sword away and easily lifted Zedd over his horse. Chase was more difficult. He was big, and all his weapons were heavy. Blood throbbed from the wound on the side of his forehead, soaking his hair, and hanging him over the side of the horse made it bleed more. Richard decided he couldn't leave it untended. He quickly retrieved an aum leaf and a strip of cloth from a pack. He crumpled the leaf to make it seep its healing fluid, pressed it against the wound, and had Kahlan wrap the cloth around Chase's head. The cloth soaked through almost immediately, but he knew the aum leaf would stop the bleeding in a short time.

  　Richard helped Kahlan up onto her horse. He could tell that her legs hurt more than she would admit. He gave her the reins of Zedd's horse, mounted up, took Chase's horse, and then carefully got his bearings. He knew they would have a hard time finding the trail; the mist was getting heavy, visibility limited. There seemed to be ghosts watching from the shadows in every direction. He didn't know if he should lead or follow Kahlan, didn't know how best to protect her, so he rode beside her. Zedd and Chase weren't tied down and could easily slip off the horses, so they had to take it slow. The dead spruce looked the same in every direction, and they couldn't go in a straight line because they had to cut back and forth around fallen trees. Richard spat out mosquitoes that kept flying into his mouth.

  　The sky was the same dark steel gray everywhere; there was no chance to tell where the sun was, to get oriented. After a time, Richard wasn't at all sure they were going in the right direction; it seemed they should have reached the trail already. He took fixes from landmark trees, and when they reached each one he would pick a new one farther ahead, hoping they were traveling in a straight line. To do it properly he knew he had to be able to line up at least three trees to make sure the line of travel was straight, but he couldn't see that far in the mist. He couldn't be sure he wasn't leading them in circles. Even if he was going in a straight line, he wasn't sure the direction was toward the trail.

  　"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Kahlan asked. "It all looks the same."

  　"No. But at least we haven't run into the boundary."

  　"Do you think we should stop and tend to them?"

  　"We don't dare. For all I know we could be ten feet from the underworld."

  　Kahlan looked around, worried. Richard gave thought to having her wait with the other two while he went ahead and scouted for the trail, but di【创建和谐家园】issed the idea, as he was afraid he might not be able to find her again. They had to stay together. He started to wonder what they would do if they couldn't find their way out before dark. How would they protect themselves against the heart hounds? If there were enough of them, even the sword couldn't hold them all off at once. Chase had said they had to get to the swamp before nightfall. He hadn't said why, or how the swamp could protect them. The brown bog weed was an endless sea all around, with hulks of trees aground in it everywhere.

  　An oak appeared off to their left, then some more, some with leaves shimmering dark green and wet in the mist. This was not the way they had come in. Richard turned them to the right a little, following the edge of the dead bog, hoping it would lead them back to the trail.

  　Shadows from the brush among the oaks watched them. He told himself it was his imagination that made the shadows seem to have eyes. There was no wind, no movement, no sound. He was angry with himself for being lost, despite how easily it could happen in this place. He was a guide; getting lost was unforgivable.

  　Richard breathed out in relief when he saw the trail at last. They quickly di【创建和谐家园】ounted and checked their two charges. There was no change in Zedd, but at least Chase's wound had stopped bleeding. Richard had no idea what to do for them. He didn't know if they had been knocked unconscious, or if their condition was caused by some sort of magic from the boundary. Kahlan didn't know either.

  　"What do you think we should do?" she asked him.

  　Richard tried not to look as worried as he really was. "Chase said we had to get to the swamp or the hounds would get us. It won't do them any good to be laid out here and tended to while we wait for them to wake, only to have the hounds get 'us all. As I see it, we have only two choices: leave them here or take them with us. There is no way I'm leaving them. Let's tie them down on the horses so they don't fall off, and get to the swamp."

  　Kahlan agreed. They worked quickly to lash their friends to the horses. Richard changed Chase's bandage, and cleaned up the wound a little. The mist was changing to a light rain. He fished around in the packs, finding the blankets, and removed the oilcloth they were wrapped in. They put a blanket over each friend, then covered them with the oilcloth to keep them dry, crisscrossing rope over it all to hold it in place.

  　When they were finished, Kahlan unexpectedly put her arms around him, hugging him close and tight for a moment, separating before he could return her gesture.

  　"Thank you for saving me," she said softly. "The boundary terrifies me." She looked sheepishly up at him. "And if you remind me what I said about not coming after me, I'll kick you." She 【创建和谐家园】iled as she looked up from under her eyebrows.

  　"Not a word. I promise."