The air was still and hot in Itaza village, among the handful of trees where the mountain ended and the desert began. The solstice was more than a month away, but for Itaza, summer was making an early start, the same as every year. The few, brief early spring showers were over, and the last of the snowmelt had already trickled through.
The sun was high. It was time for everyone to rest somewhere out of the sun until the worst of the heat passed, but no one was resting today. The first rain delivery of the season was due any time, and the village wasn't prepared.
