Man, you guys keep me honest. I think I noticed this, and unconciously compensated for it in the next Vivenna chapter. There's a line where she thinks "Now, I have to be careful not to trust this guy too much and get taken in the same way I did with Denth." However, that doesn't fix the fact that she SHOULD have been thinking that in this chapter. Thanks for the commentary.
You may be interested to know that I just rewrote the scene where Vivenna hears Clod's Command Phrase, going off of suggestions from you all. Here is the new version, in case you are curious: (This will be part of the 3.0 edit, which I should post sometime next week.) This comes in chapter 35, I believe.
Jewels worked quietly, ignoring Vivenna and pulling another stitch tight. Clod’s guts--intestines, stomach, and the rest--lay on the floor beside him, carefully pulled out and arranged so that they could be stitched. Jewels was working on the intestines at the moment, sewing with a thread and needle.
It was gruesome. And yet, it didn’t really affect Vivenna. Not after the shock she’d had earlier. They were in the safe house. Tonk Fah had gone to scout the regular house to see if Peprin was all right. Denth was downstairs, fetching something.
Vivenna sat on the floor. She’d put her skirt back on, and sat with legs pulled up against her chest. Jewels continued to ignore Vivenna, working atop a sheet on the floor. She was muttering to herself, still angry.
“Stupid thing,” Jewels said under her breath. “Can’t believe we let you get hurt like this just to protect her.”
Hurt. Did that even mean anything to a creature like Clod? He was awake; she could see that his eyes were open. What was the point of sewing up his insides? Would they heal? He didn’t need to eat. Why bother with intestines? Vivenna shivered, looking away. She felt, in a way, as if her own insides had been ripped out. Exposed. Shown for the world to see.
Vivenna closed her eyes. Hours later, and she was still shaking from the terror of huddling in that alleyway, thinking that she’d soon be killed. What had she proven to be, when finally threatened? Modesty had meant nothing--she’d pulled of her skirt rather than let it trip her again. Her hair had meant nothing--she’d ignored it as soon as the danger arrived.
Her religion, apparently, meant nothing to her. Not that she’d been able to use the Breath--she hadn’t even managed to commit blasphemy correctly.
“I’m half tempted to just leave,” Jewels muttered. “You and I. Go away.”
Clod began to shuffle, and Vivenna opened her eyes to see him trying to stand up, even though his insides were hanging out.
Jewels swore. “Sit back down,” she hissed, barely audible. “Colors-cursed thing. Howl of the sun. Go inactive. Howl of the sun.”
Vivenna watched as Clod laid down, then stopped moving. They might obey commands, she thought. But they aren’t very smart. It tried to walk out, obeying Jewels’ perceived Command to ‘go away.’ And, what was that nonsense Jewels had said about the sun?
She heard footsteps on the stairs leading down to the cellar, and soon the door opened and Denth appeared. He closed the door, then walked over and handed Jewels something that looked like a large wineskin. The woman took it, then immediately turned back to her work.
