Page 26 of Besotted
9
Kresten
My thigh burnedas though someone had stuck a glowing brand into my flesh and left it there. Every time I moved, the burning speared the rest of my leg, forcing me to resign myself to lying on my stomach and staying as motionless as possible.
For the first day of my confinement, such a position was bearable. I slept most of the time, the herbal remedies making me drowsy so I was hardly aware of anyone or my surroundings.
However, by the second morning, the pain was still excruciating, but I was more alert. I wanted to roll over and take in my lodgings as well as get a better look at the people coming and going from my chamber. Mostly, I wanted to see Rory and was disappointed when she didn’t come in all day.
Aunt Idony tended to my injuries, leaving my legs uncovered and packing the thigh wound with poultices and salves. She was efficient and brusque and not overly friendly, but she had saved my life, and hopefully my leg, with her healing skills.
Aunt Elspeth was more talkative and doting. Every time she came into the room, she brought food—custards, breads, confections, and more—the kind of food I hadn’t eaten since leaving Scania. Though my pain had taken away my appetite, I was glad Jorg could partake of the offerings.
Chester either stood or sat directly outside the chamber door, always whittling with a sharp knife. I expected him to interrogate me about how I knew Rory, but the only attention he afforded me was an icy glare.
When I awoke on the third morning, my mind was clearer than it had been the previous days, and though the wound still burned, I sensed I’d made it through the worst and would heal.
As Aunt Idony finished spreading the salve, the strong aroma of the herbs I couldn’t begin to name stung my nose.
“Thank you,” I said, my cheek resting against the hay-filled mattress within the box frame. Though it was a simple bed, I was grateful for it, especially after the past months of sleeping on the ground with naught but my cloak and a blanket for comfort.
Aunt Idony wiped her hands on a rag. “Try not to move again today.”
“I’ll try, but I admit I am growing restless.”
“How much longer before he is able to get up?” Jorg asked from where he stood at the foot of the bed. He’d spent a large portion of the past two days sitting on a stool nearby, and he must be as restless as I was, if not more.
“The flesh shows no signs of putrefying.” Aunt Idony gathered her medicinal supplies from the edge of the bed. “If that continues, he may be able to walk in a fortnight.”
“A fortnight?” Jorg and I both spoke at once.
“The tusk went deep. You’re fortunate it missed your bone.”
I was fortunate. But I couldn’t wait for two weeks to resume my woodcutting. Nor could I trouble this poor family that long. From what I’d gleaned, I was sleeping in Rory’s chamber and on her bed, and I had no wish to inconvenience her any more than I already had, especially since she seemed to be avoiding me.
Perhaps she’d truly meant she had no wish to see me again and even now was holding herself aloof. If she was so determined to keep away from me, then I couldn’t impose any longer than I had to.
I glanced toward the closed door, wishing for just one glimpse of her. But so far, I’d been relegated to seeing Chester’s burly frame whenever the door opened. “You have been beyond kind to me. But as I have no means to repay you for your care and hospitality, we will be on our way by the day’s end.”
Aunt Idony paused in rolling a bandage. “If you try to walk, you’ll break open every stitch I so carefully made, cause irreparable damage, and possibly lose your leg.”
“Then allow me to bed down elsewhere—perhaps on the floor in the other room—so I don’t impose upon Rory any longer.”
“She wants you to have her chamber. Besides, right now you need the privacy.” Aunt Idony looked pointedly at my bare legs. I was stripped of all my garments except my long tunic. While it provided some modesty, I agreed with Aunt Idony. It wasn’t enough.
At the sound of raised voices from the other side of the door—one of them distinctly Rory’s—all other thoughts fled from my mind save of her.
“I have waited long enough,” she said in a low, angry tone. “You cannot ban me from talking with him again today.”
“I can and I will,” came Chester’s calm response.
“We agreed I could visit him with a chaperone.”
“You and Aunt Idony agreed. Not me.”
My heart gave an extra thud. So she had wanted to visit me. And Chester was denying her the opportunity?
Aunt Idony had heard the commotion and was staring at the door. She pursed her lips but didn’t make a move to intervene.
