Chapter Twenty-Two
Maddie has to make an important decision—let Alex go or try to save him?
Jamie bellowed, “Get the cart.”
“Nay, Jamie,” Jake said. “We can get him in a large blanket and carry him into the keep. ‘Twill be less jarring.”
Loki arrived on his horse, dismounting not far from them. “Uncle Alex? Is he dead?”
Kenzie, who was trailing behind his sire, burst into tears. “Uncle Alex! Nay!”
“Nay, he’s not dead. Did you find Gracie?” Jamie asked.
“She’s not out there. Mayhap she returned to the keep after you killed the baron. She was not far when you went at him in the middle of the fray.”
“Get the cart, Finlay, Braden. Jake, I’m taking him to Aunt Jennie.”
“What? It will take almost a day to get there. Aunt Caralyn says he’ll be dead by then. Why put him through it? Leave him here so he can be with Mama.”
Jake’s rapid pacing indicated his level of tension over their father’s condition.
His brother rarely showed emotion, much like their sire.
The pacing meant he was close to the edge.
His mother was flat on the ground, her head cradled on his sire’s shoulder. She was no longer sobbing, but tears still coursed down her cheeks as she moved her hand lovingly back and forth across his chest. His sire’s eyes remained shut, but he was still breathing.
“We’re taking him to Aunt Jennie’s. ‘Tis the only chance he has.”
Uncle Brodie nodded, but Uncle Robbie said, “Leave him here. He’s near death now. Let him go in peace. He’ll die a hero’s death. I cannot see putting him through the pain of riding in that cart.”
“I’m taking him,” Jamie replied, “My sword goes with me, so do not try to stop me. Someone find Gracie for me, please.”
Jake pursed his lips and dipped his head, then lifted his gaze to Jamie’s, a piercing look in his eyes. “Take him. Connor and I will stay here. Take Mama.” He clasped Connor’s shoulder, who stood off to the side in shock, and left. “We’ll find Gracie.”
His mother reached for Jamie’s hand, so he gave it to her. He pulled her up to standing, wondering what it was she wanted to say to him. If she tried to stop him, he didn’t know what he’d do… Nay, he would not give in, he couldn’t. She was not thinking clearly.
She reached up and cupped Jamie’s cheek. “Take him to Aunt Jennie. I’ll get my things. Your father is a fighter, and we’ll not give up either. I’ll bring more furs, and his head will rest on me. I’ll keep him from jarring, keep him warm.” She kissed Jamie’s other cheek and hurried toward the keep.
No one said a word as she walked away.
As soon as she left, Uncle Logan came out of nowhere and said to Jamie, “Take him to Jennie and do not slow. I’m heading out to get my two fastest messengers to Brenna and Jennie. Brenna will meet you there. Godspeed, Jamie.” He disappeared before Jamie could say anything.
They were on the road less than an hour later.
Jamie was still worried about Gracie, but he’d forced himself not to think about his wife.
If he did, he’d be forced to leave his father and go after her.
Before leaving, he had sent the best team he could assemble to search for his wife—her parents, Loki, Kenzie, and Finlay.
At the last minute, Kyla had attempted to join Jamie’s group, but he’d shaken his head.
He could not worry about Kyla and his parents.
He’d tipped his head and yelled out, “Finlay. She goes with you.”
Their best horses drew the cart, and Jamie rode in the front, marking the fastest route and helping steer the cart away from the uneven portions of the path.
Moving his sire into the cart was one of the most difficult things he’d ever done.
Jake, Jamie, Finlay, Braden, and Roddy had hefted him onto a large blanket they’d used to transfer him.
His sire was a bear still, more muscle than anything else, and the five of them had strained to move him smoothly.
His sire’s eyes had popped open at one point, but they’d locked on Jamie’s and closed—a silent message that he trusted him. That one move had almost unmanned him. Never had he expected his sire to be anything but larger than life.
They moved with two score of Grant guards for protection, as Jamie had vowed that he would allow nothing to slow their journey.
He glanced back at his mother, who was holding his sire the best she could, her mouth moving in silent prayers.
Jake, Connor, Celestina and Brodie had stayed back to see that the men’s minor wounds were taken care of and to continue to guard the castle should any louts still be swooping through the area.
A score of warriors were trailing the group who’d gone off in search of Gracie, and they had instructions to head to Aunt Jennie’s once they found her.
They’d find her. They had to.
They’d only been married a day.
***
As soon as Jamie arrived inside the Cameron gates, Aunt Jennie flew out to Alex’s side, oblivious to everyone but Alex and Maddie in the cart. Alex and Jennie held a special relationship, and they were all witnesses to it.
“Alex. Please, Alex. Wake up, open your eyes for me.” She jiggled his shoulder but he did not move. “Alex!”
“Maddie, how long has he been like this? When was the last time he opened his eyes?”
“It has been a couple of hours. I tried to keep him awake, Jennie, but he kept falling asleep.”
“Alex,” she shouted in his face. “You listen to me. You shall not give up. Do you hear me?”
She poked her finger into his chest, tears beginning to clog her voice.
“‘Tis too early for you, you need to stay here.
You have not even met your first grandson yet.
How could you think about leaving all of us?
Your lads still need you and so do your lassies.
Do you not want to meet your grandson, the future laird of your clan?”
She gave a few curt instructions to those around her to get him into the keep. Jamie helped his mother out of the cart.
“Alex, I’m warning you. Wake up.”
He stirred and opened his eyes. “Mayhap I’d prefer a grandlassie first.”
Jennie laughed and kissed his cheek. “I love you, Alex. Do not go, please? Aye, you may have a granddaughter if the heavens abide your wishes.”
They used another large blanket to get Alex inside, though he was too pale to Jamie’s liking. At least they had made it. He’d had been petrified he would die on the journey here.
Aunt Jennie could save him, he had faith in her.
An hour later, he was pacing the Cameron great hall when the door flew open with a bang. He rushed over to the door, blurting out the only thing he could think of at the moment. “Did you find her?”
He knew the answer by the look in Aunt Caralyn’s face, wet with tears. Uncle Robbie said, “Nay. We had a possible trail with one other horse, but with all the horses in the area for the war, it was impossible to trail her. She has not come here? We’d hoped she might have ridden in this direction.”
Jamie said, “Nay.” His belly churned so hard he thought he might be ill. Images of the worst possible scenarios flashed through his mind—wild boars, reivers, Simon de La Porte. Nay, he could not let that happen. He had to find his wife.
“I’ll go search outside for her,” Kenzie said. “I’ll not give up until I find her.”
He started to say, “Kenzie, I doubt she’s…” but Loki clasped his shoulder.
“Let him go. ‘Twill give the lad something to do.”
Kenzie dashed out of the hall. As soon as he left, Uncle Robbie asked, “My brother? How is he?”
“Aunt Jennie’s checking him now,” Jamie said, running a hand through his hair. “It does not look good. He’s pale and weak. He only awakened when Aunt Jennie yelled at him. Tell me which trail you followed. I’m going back out after Gracie.”
“I’ll go with you,” Finlay got up from the trestle table and said, “She has to show up somewhere.”
They headed to the chamber when the door flew open a second time.
Aunt Brenna flew past him with a short, “Greetings, all. I must go to my sister’s healing chamber.”
Uncle Quade, Uncle Logan, and Aunt Gwyneth followed.
The Ramsays had arrived. The churning in his belly slowed at their presence.
Aunt Brenna was still renowned as one of the best healers in all the land, and she had taught Aunt Jennie.
The aunts working together gave him new hope, gave them all hope.
Uncle Robbie said, “Nice work, Logan. That was fast.”
Uncle Logan wiped the grime from his face with his plaid. Logan’s gaze searched everyone in the hall, catching the slow but unenthusiastic nods. “He’s still that bad?”
Slow nods followed.
Uncle Robbie said, “Glad to see you came along with my sister, Quade. How are your joints?”
“Riding horseback is easy. I know how she loves her brother, and after we heard how bad he is, I had to come. Fill me in while they work on him.”
Jamie said, “Finlay, I’m going to check with my mother, then we’ll head out.”
His pacing slowed as he approached the room they’d been referring to as the sick chamber. Aedan Cameron stepped out of the chamber as he approached it. “Jamie, go on inside. I must go greet Quade and Logan. Have faith in your aunts. I do.”
Jamie stepped inside the chamber, the smell making him wish to run the other way. He had no idea how healers could do what they did. His mother rushed up to him and grasped his hand.
He whispered, “Any change?”
“Hush, listen to Aunt Brenna for a moment.”
Aunt Brenna and Aunt Jennie peered at the wound on the right side of Alex’s belly.
“Based on the book that Aedan gave me, I think this is his liver,” Jennie said, “and that looks to be where most of the damage is. ‘Twas a clean stab. It did not go through the entire organ to his back.”
Aunt Brenna nodded. “I wonder if he would have enough left to serve him if we were to cut out the small portion that is shredded. ‘Tis a verra large organ, and he would still have most of it. Quade never suffered any lasting effects from the organ I once removed from him. Granted,
it was small in comparison, but based on what I’ve learned, the liver does not have an inner cavity the way the heart or the stomach does. Mayhap he can survive with most of it left intact. The rest of it appears to be healthy.”
“I think ‘tis our only chance,” Aunt Jennie said softly.
“Otherwise, he will continue to bleed from all those tears. I think we cut here—” she made a motion across the organ, “—and sew him up to stem the bleeding. His outside wound is clean, so we’ll stitch him up. Hopefully, he’ll awaken before the fever sets in. We must try to get enough fluids in him.”
“I think we must do this as quickly as possible. I do not like how slow his vessels are beating.”
“Aye, ‘tis Mama’s most basic healing rule. Keep fluids in the body and keep it clean.”
Jamie had heard many of the elders talk of his grandmama and her sire.
They’d been amazing healers. All had admired her sire, but when his mother had grown of age, they’d worked together and done some wonderful things for the clan.
It had been his grandmama that had pushed them to be clean about their wounds.
Though he had no idea why, he had to agree that the cleaner a wound was, the less chance of fever.
“This is good timing. I just cleaned all of my surgical tools, so we do not have to take the time to do that. This time the water had come to a boil before I dropped the tools in. Surprised me how much easier they cleaned in the hot water. I hardly had to touch them.
I’ll wash my hands and get my tools.”
Aunt Brenna looked up at them as Aunt Jennie went for her instruments.
“I’m hopeful, Maddie. The bowel was not pierced, so that is the good news.
I think we can repair his liver. Jamie, ‘tis a good thing you brought him here.
Caralyn does not do much surgery. Why not take your mother down to the hall?
This may take a while, and if Alex wakes up, which I doubt, we will put him to sleep again.”
His mother shook her head, but Jamie said, “Mama, ‘twill not do him any good if you drop to the floor in here. Why not go into the hall and get something to eat? You’ll need your strength to help him heal.”
His mother nodded, her beautiful smile back. “Of course, you’re right, Jamie. Brenna, if aught…”
“I know. I’ll send for you. You look like you could use some rest, too. This could take several hours. There are many stitches for us to place.”