He appreciated the kiss on his cheek. The look of love in her eyes told him that she too felt as did he ... that she wanted to be held and hold him, but knew the time was not right. As her hand slipped from his he raised it to touch it briefly with his lips, and then let her go to her rest.
Soon she was resting, soft breathing attesting to the fact that she slept. Before the fire died so much it would make seeing difficult, Paul riffled into the pack and withdrew a little case he had brought just for this situation. Carefully opening it he drew forth a little packet that unfolded into a large pouch made of a cow bladder. This had been scraped until thinner than parchment, but it still was quite waterproof. It hung empty from an ingenious little frame. Sir Peter had been at lengthy pains in its design according to Paul's description of his needs, while Sir Falkirk had provided the leathern parts and young Will Carver had done the wooden ones. Peter himself had made the silver bits.
Paul returned to the case and now drew forth a small silver mechanism. One side was a tiny bowl, and the other side was a hinged lever. three little metal balls and a clapperless bell also were part of the contents of the box. These things he added to the bladder assembly. Rising silently and going to the little alcove, Paul placed the contraption such that the bladder began to intercept the steady drip of water that kept the small basin filled. Only when the bladder was nearly full would it also fill the thin tube still connected at the bottom and allow water to flow from that.
The flowing water would drip from the tube into the little bowl, causing it to go down. That would raise the hinge and tip the little lever away. From the lever would roll the first silver ball, which would drop onto a little bell dome, making it ring and waking him. If not, the second one soon would follow, and then the third. Paul grinned at the memory of Peter's demonstration. The young knight had been so pleased with himself at the ingeniousness of the contraption. Of course, he had been equally pleased with the excellence of the workmanship by the others who had contributed their skills.
What was especially ingenious about it was that any flowing water could be used to make it work. Even a bucket or waterskin could be used for the purpose with a bit of ingenuity. Peter had given some thought to applying to the Judge for protection of the design, but had relented with he considered that others had contributed to it. Still, it was quite unique and Paul appreciated its capability. He was relieved that the ancient lay he had learned as a lad had been quite specific about the spring. Being trapped within the passage without drinking water would be dangerous, and if one had been injured by one of the traps, it might take several days to recover. The ancients had thought carefully of such things. In any event, the little alarm mechanism fit perfectly where it was supposed to go.
Counting silently, Paul obtained an idea for how many drops per minute went into the bladder, and from that quickly calculated the time to fill it to where the alarm would ring. It turned out to be about nine hours. A careful adjustment to the height of the uppermost reach of the bladder tube cut that to about eight hours, and he was satisfied.
Quickly, he laid himself onto his own bedroll, which he had pitched on the sand near to Ainea. His head was near hers, as he had seen young Gorka do with little Altea. Stretching out his arm, he left his hand lying on the sand near her. Perhaps she would discover it with her own in the night and take hold ... perhaps not. But it was all he dared do. In minutes he was sound asleep as well.
~~~~~~~~~~8~~~~~~~~~~
A slight touch woke Paul. It was butterfly-light, tentative. Seconds passed as he waited, and then soft fingers caressed his own. Moments later, those fingers inserted themselves into the curve of his, and then all was still once more. Paul smiled to himself and went back to sleep.