He dropped the knife, and Cae moved in a flash, snatching up the blade and flinging it away. Velasin stared at him, breathing hard, and Cae didn’t think: just dropped to his knees and said, in halting Ralian, “On my life—on my house, on the name Aeduria—I swear by my saints and your moons together, I would sooner die than force you, or allow you to be forced. I swear it, Velasin.”
