Page 2 of To Hunt a Ruby Remedy

He was nothing like Rosalia at all. “My understanding is that it will take several days, so yes, I would appreciate knowing your name.”

“Ranulf.” He placed the glass cube back on the table, the soft clink a surprisingly forceful reminder of what was at stake. “Now, what do you need?”

“There’s something wrong with my mother’s brain,” I said, staring at the clear glass on the table. That future charm was my last hope. “We had healers come multiple times. They healed her, and everything seemed fine. She was herself again, but the problem always came back. Rosalia was passing through the village and heard about us. She offered to do another healing session.”

We couldn’t afford to pay her. The first time a healer treated Mama, we had scraped together the funds without too much difficulty. It used up our savings, but we could pay. The second time, the villagers had helped. I saved every copper after that, certain we’d need a healer again. We put it off for as long as possible, but Mama’s symptoms grew worse. It reached the point where she couldn’t work. So, we summoned another healer from the city.

It took everything to pay him. Every copper I had saved, every item we could sell, every coin we could beg from sympathetic friends. I had known that we couldn’t do it again. If this healer didn’t cure Mama completely, that was it.

Then Rosalia came. She demanded to treat my mother, not caring that we couldn’t pay. We couldn’t do more than offer her a pallet to sleep on.

“She used some charm before she did the healing, examined Mama to find out what was wrong. She said there was some sort of growth causing the problems. A tumor. After she healed Mama, she examined her with the charm again. The growth was reduced, but not gone. She doesn’t think it is possible for it to be healed completely. Mama will need treatments for the rest of her life. We can’t afford that.”

“Thus, she sent you to Grandmother to get a charm to keep the tumor in check.”

“Yes. She said that even the power of the node wouldn’t be enough to cure Mama, but it could be used to make a charm strong enough to last for years. Mama’s headaches returned within a day; we had waited too long to get her healed that last time. Rosalia made a charm to help her, but it won’t last longer than a month.”

The healer hadn’t even been certain it would have enough power to keep Mama healthy enough to make the journey to Drakona Forest herself. I had to get the charm and bring it home. It was our last chance.

Ranulf sighed. “Grandmother is down in Ortfel. One of the women there is due any day now, and she’s had a difficult pregnancy. I don’t know when Grandmother will be back, but I can make your charm. To do what you want, it will take time. Probably about a week.”

It had taken me a week to travel from home to the healer’s cottage. It would take me another week to get back. The charm Rosalia had made would last long enough.

“Thank you.” I had mentioned my lack of money, but I had to make sure Ranulf understood. “I can’t pay you. The glass for the charm is all I have to offer. But I can work while I wait. Cleaning, cooking, that sort of thing. I know it won’t come even close to the value of the charm.”

“You’re not staying here.”

I flinched at his tone. There was no give, no room for misunderstanding. But I didn’t understand. Rosalia had assured me there was a guest room in the cottage. That her grandmother would welcome me and appreciate any help I could offer around the house.

But her grandmother wasn’t here. Ranulf was.

I should be thankful he wasn’t suggesting I pay for the charm by warming his bed. Not spending a week with him, isolated in the middle of the forest, should be a relief. I’d have no recourse if he wanted to overpower me. But I had already decided he wasn’t a danger, and I trusted my instincts.

And maybe, I admitted, taking in his broad shoulders and rugged jawline, he wouldn’t have to overpower me.

But Ranulf didn’t want me around. Instead of relief, I felt vaguely insulted.

And tired. My gaze darted to the windows and the sunshine slanting through the trees. I hadn’t left right at sunrise that morning, so it was already mid-afternoon. It had never occurred to me that I’d have to return to the nearest village today. “The village is half a day’s walk away.”

Ranulf must have understood what I was thinking. “You can stay tonight, but tomorrow, you’ll return to Wulfkin. I’ll bring the charm there when I’m done.”

I’d have to wait a week, uncertain of what was happening. If Ranulf didn’t make the charm, would I have enough time to track down Grandmother Molle and get her help? Would Ranulf even give me back the glass cube needed for that charm? It was a risk I didn’t want to take. Trusting him not to attack me wasn’t the same as trusting that he would perform hours’ worth of magic on my behalf for nothing.

I summoned my smile once more, realizing I had let it slip. “Wouldn’t it be more convenient if I stayed here? I can take over the household chores, and you won’t have to travel to and from the village, wasting a full day of your time.”

“What would be convenient is not having you underfoot. If you want me to make the charm, then you need to return to Wulfkin tomorrow.”

“Surely there is some way I could be of help here? I want to repay you whatever way I can.”

“You can repay me by leaving.” He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Apparently, even looking at me was too much for him. After several heartbeats, he lowered his hand and looked at me with forest green eyes. “I have a batch of charms and enchantments that need to go to the village. You can bring them with you when you leave, all right? That can be the favor you do in return for getting a charm.”

I kept my smile in place and nodded. Perhaps, if I made myself useful in the interim, I could convince him to let me stay tomorrow morning.

Two

Ranulf

I woke up to the scent of fresh bread. The enticing aroma permeated every corner of the attic bedroom that had become my refuge yesterday afternoon. I had finished carving the last enchantments I wanted to send to Wulfkin, pulling magic from the node to imbue the wooden discs with healing spells. I had successfully avoided Scarlette, grabbing a bowl of soup from the pot over the fireplace and carrying it upstairs with me for supper rather than staying at the table.

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