He had told her he was from Zgharta, which was only half-true—his mother was indeed from the mountain, but his father had grown up on the coast. Mountains and sea were indomitable forces; they molded their inhabitants rather than the other way around. His mother’s people had become inward focused and embodied the fierce stubbornness required to turn rocks into fertile gardens, while his father’s side had kept their eyes on the horizon, curious, mobile, counting strangers as opportunities rather than as threats.
