Care

The atmosphere inside the cart was almost as charged as the flashing clouds churning above it. A moment of tense silence passed and Roland raised his eyebrows at Finn, again inviting her consent before proceeding.

"Fine, get it over with," She finally conceded. Mayra retrieved the bags of herbs and handed them to Roland.

"Mama said to make this into a paste to put on the wound. This one is to mix in boiling water to drink for the pain." She pointed to each in turn.

Roland nodded, recognizing a few of the herbs in the mixtures by their distinctive scents. He set them to one side. Turning back to Finn, he made eye contact again and waited for her nod before reaching for the hem of her skirt.

Finn winced and extended the offending leg so that she could at least keep the healthy one hidden beneath the layers of fabric. She shifted to pull her uninjured limb beneath herself to be sure of its continued coverage.

Roland was tempted to roll his eyes at her excessive modesty. He had assisted in the occasional difficult childbirth when it was beyond the skill of the midwives, but somehow this seemed an inappropriate moment to bring up that topic. Finn was uncomfortable enough without him stating the fact that he had seen enough to not be phased by anything he would see now. She might even think worse of him somehow, and he didn't like that thought at all.

Hem aside, he began to roll back the bloody bandage, and his brow furrowed in concentration. The row of punctures had scabbed over nicely, but the deepest had reopened in Finn's tumble from the bench. It oozed red blood and some yellow pus. The area around it was stained.

"May I have some water and a clean cloth, please?" Mayra retrieved the items and Roland set about cleaning the wound. "Thank you, Mayra. Would you mix up the herbs into a paste the way your mother directed?" He would prefer her be occupied with a task while he assessed the danger. As he gently wiped (Finn breathed slowly and bit her lip to keep from crying), most of the blood came away. Some red streaking remained on Finn's skin. Roland did not react to the warning sign of infection, but instead thanked Mayra again as she handed him the paste.

Roland knew the herbs had cleansing and healing qualities, and packed the concoction around the puncture that concerned him. He rewrapped the wound with the clean bandage Mayra procured.

"There you are, all done," Roland said. Mayra stored the bloody old bandage and now-dirty cloth in a bag designated for that purpose. "When the rain fully stops, if we can find enough dry wood, anything bloody should be boiled in water until clean."

Finn took a deep breath and spread her skirt back over her leg, noticing for the first time how much the storm had let up while Roland was working. "Thank you." She smiled reassuringly and shivered. The temperature had dropped significantly over the past while, leaving a damp chill in the air to replace the oppressive heat. Sweat had broken out across her brow despite the dropping temperature outside.

"Can I look now?" Riley complained, "Although this corner has a riveting view, I think I've thoroughly perused its many mysteries."

Mayra snickered at her brother, "Yes, the rest of the cart is now safe enough for your gaze."

Riley turned to sit with his back to the corner but didn't try to change to another location. The cart was too cramped for much maneuvering without purpose.

"Well, Doctor?" Riley asked, a little sarcastically on the title, "How's the patient?"

"Her head will be fine and her hand is not even bleeding from the splinters," Roland gave the good news first. The others silently stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

"About the bite, I have some concerns. Likely the same ones your mother had. Animal bites can become easily infected, and the deepest puncture is showing signs of that. The skin around the area is warm to the touch--"

Riley sat up straighter in an indignant posture that made his disapproval of Roland's 'touching' clear.

"--and there was some streaking on the skin. Serafina is, as I said earlier, alert and responsive, and doesn't appear to be feverish at this point, but I would encourage getting to the city with haste. Once the symptoms begin, they can progress at unpredictable speed."

Roland was unsure exactly the level of knowledge of his listeners, so erred on the side of giving more technical information rather than less to the healer's children. Many people needed much simpler explanations. All three faces around him showed some level of processing, concern, and understanding of the importance of getting to Klain.

The sound of rain had lessened to a volume and frequency which could be accounted for by dripping water from the trees above them rather than continued precipitation from the clouds. Riley rose into a crouch, various emotions playing across his face. He needed a moment to think. "I'll check on the horses. Maybe there's some daylight left and we can get on our way."

Nobody had heard any indication of trouble with the horses, but it couldn't be ruled out. Peach had shied so violently at the first crack of thunder that she may have gotten loose and bolted during the height of the storm. The sooner the location of the horses was confirmed, the better Riley would feel.

Riley hopped off the cart. The sky had lightened slightly, but he wasn't able to tell through the clouds how long it would be until sunset. He grumbled to himself as he walked away about the inconvenience of it all.

"Do you need anything?" Mayra asked the others left in the cart, "No? I could use, well, a break. I'll be back soon." Her excuse to leave was a legitimate one (the sound of pouring rain tended to have that effect on her), but it didn't stop her from giving Finn a sly smile on her way out.

"They seem like good people," Roland said in the silence following Mayra's abrupt departure. "You said they're your neighbors?"

He was secretly eager to find out her relationship to Riley. The 'neighbor' had fairly clearly staked an unspoken claim on Finn with his posturing and significant looks. Given Finn's reactions, Roland wasn't sure she was in agreement with Riley's opinions.

"Yes, very good neighbors. I lost my mother about six years ago and they lost their father about four years ago. Since then, we've all become close."

'We all' didn't sound romantic to Roland. But why did he care? He shouldn't. He should be focused on other things. Very important things. He had no time for pursuing the beautiful young woman before him even if he wanted to. Even if he found she was receptive. This conversation was pointless. Still, his curiosity drove him to press it forward.

"Like family." He filled in for Finn. He knew how important makeshift family structures could be. Doctor Sherman had taken him in off the streets as an urchin and all but adopted him. The doctor and his wife had been strict but kind, and Roland was intensely thankful for the parental figures they had become.

"Yes, exactly. Mayra's like the sister I never had. And Riley's like... like a brother, I suppose." While Finn was close with Mayra, Riley mostly irritated her to death. She'd never considered him a sibling the same way she did Mayra. But, as she turned the idea over in her mind, the picture of a harassing, irritating, occasionally protective older brother fit as well as anything.

Roland focused on the hesitation on her description of Riley. He sensed some contemplation on the lady's part which made his heart sink a little. Were her feelings conflicted on that point? Was she hoping and waiting for a firm declaration from Riley before revealing what she really felt about him?

"It sounds wonderful to have a brother." Roland repeated the word to see if her reaction to it gave him any more hints into Finn's mind.

Finn stared down at her hands in thought, running her fingers over where Roland had removed the splinters.

"Did I miss one?" Roland followed her gaze.

Finn blushed. She really needed to get that under control or they'd all think she had an intermittent fever. "No, I was just--" as she spoke she looked up, which was a mistake. His concerned blue eyes were trained on hers, rendering her speechless for a moment, "um, double checking."

He relaxed and smiled. "I'm glad. I'd hate to fail my patient." He made the comment innocently but immediately regretted it. The grief of his recent failure washed over him.

Finn noticed the change in his expression, and suddenly remembered the burning query that had been in the back of her mind since this morning. "The... the little girl you had with you yesterday morning..." She was unsure how to delicately ask the question and fumbled her words.

Finn scolded herself that her flustered state around this man was completely irrational. Asking this question reminded her that she knew nothing about him. Not really. He could be married! With children at home! Maybe Abby was his daughter! He could be a highwayman masquerading as a doctor's apprentice to rob people blind! She began to think of more negative possibilities to mentally build a wall around her tumultuous emotions.

For all she knew, he had murdered the poor child from yesterday!

No. That was too far. No murderer would take the dying person with them on a mad dash on horseback, or stop in the wilderness to bury their victim with such loving care. And his compassionate care for her just now belied any evil intent toward others. She felt shameful for even thinking of it.

"Abby." Roland said with a soft mixture of sorrow and guilt, "She died late last night. I buried her and carved her name on a tree. I couldn't help her enough." His voice broke.

"Who was she to you?" Finn was afraid of the answer, but she had to know. Daughter? Sister? Niece? Stranger? No, he wouldn't know a stranger's name. Would he?

"No relation at all. It's rather a long story."