7. The Girl Who Lived
”Where is this healer you know of? When will we be able to take Gingel there?” Arit had become more anxious every day, and tonight, he was unsatisfied with my reluctance to share the plan. I hated leaving out information. We should have been making decisions together; we always did. I would always end up winning out, but we at least discussed the subject. But the grace Arit had given me to follow the plan had run out.
My fear and desperation had driven me to push forward on the only path I could see, and I couldn”t hide the truth any longer.
”There is no healer,” I said, setting my tone as calmly as I could. ”There can be no healer for this. They would only advise us to...” I hesitated again. ”Gingel, do you trust me to always do what is best for you?” She looked at Arit, uncertain, then back to me.
”Of course. I always have. What is going on?” A look of panic shone in her eyes.
”I do wish to tell you the truth, but I am loathe to upset you. That is the only reason. I can either tell Arit what I have to say, and you trust us both to care for you, or I tell you the truth, and you must promise to accept it. I need you calm so you don”t hurt yourself further.”
She looked down at her leg, a single tear falling into her lap.
”It is very bad, isn”t it? This injury? What would a healer advise?”
I avoided her pleading eyes, locking my gaze on my fingers as I obsessively rubbed the top of my thumb.
”They would advise an amputation. You will not be able to save the limb. Most men barely survive an amputation. I fear you wouldn”t overcome the shock of the operation, and I doubt there is a healer here who would attempt it.”
I let that knowledge sink in. It had swirled around in my mind since the first moment I saw her pinned, and I had not found anything that convinced me that my first conclusion was false. But they needed to come to that conclusion themselves. I waited.
Arit pulled her into his embrace, a stifled sob released as he pressed his lips to her shoulder. Her eyes were wide, but there were no tears now.
”Why? Why, then, have you brought us here? There must be a reason. You never do anything without a good reason,” she asked.
”I don”t know if it is a good reason, but it was the only hope that gave you any chance to live.”
”What is it then? If not a healer, what is here?” Arit looked at me, desperate for any sliver of hope.
My heart ached, and a stab of doubt lodged in my breast. I had yet to say it out loud. Would it sound foolish once it passed my lips?
”Gingel, you remember when we made our way up here? The merchant who kindly let us ride on his wagon this far north?”
”Yes, I mean, I barely remember him.”
”He warned me against visiting the Bergafas and told me there was a witch in the forest west of here. She wasn”t all bad, he told me. Said she had saved a local girl”s life from certain death. That”s why we are here. A rumor. That”s all I have to go on.”
My gods, it does sound ridiculously foolish.
I leaned forward on the stool where I sat, my hands cupping my face as I stared at the rough-hewn flooring. There was no other path. Not even one that offered life after pain. She was delicate, fragile. There would be no surviving a loss of limb. It was confirmed by Eth, wasn”t it? Her injury was a death sentence.
I looked up, expecting incredulous judgment. It had been a long time since I was wrong about something this egregiously. I sat up, but as I examined their faces, there was no anger, only fear.
”Do you think you could find the witch or the girl she saved?” Arit was quick to pick up on my thoughts. Thank the gods. If he can see the slim chance, he”ll work with me to get there.
”That”s what I will be doing tomorrow. I need to find the merchant”s home. We stayed there overnight years ago, but I know I can find it again. Then the girl, then the witch. It”s the best idea I have. Such a thin hope, but it”s there. Again, I”ll ask you, Arit, if you see another path for us.”
He closed his eyes, pressing his forehead against Gingel”s as he thought.
”I don”t. Not with the time we have, or rather, the time we don”t have. I”ll follow your lead. I know you have always done everything in your power to keep her safe and I don”t see that changing.”
I nodded. It may have been foolish, but at least we all knew it was a long shot. We wouldn”t be able to move forward if I was fighting them the whole way.
”I should get to sleep then. First light, I will be gone. There is much to be done tomorrow, and I do not want to waste a minute. All that is required of you tomorrow is to rest. I”ll be able to track down everyone easier if I go alone.”
The next morning, I woke before the crow, walking the cobbled streets as the sunrise blessed my endeavors with its illumination. Four years was a long time to keep the memory of the dwelling I sought today. I tried working backward in my mind, hoping to hit all the landmark buildings I could remember from the morning we left the small abode.
I knew it was west of the main road into the town coming from the south, and we had not traveled far up the main road before we veered off to the left. My footsteps urgently tread the wide path to the south side of town, hoping I would recognize the turn. Wasting time looking could mean life and death for Gingel.
Thankfully, there were only a few townsfolk milling about, starting their day. As I passed the market, I nodded at the apothecary, the odd couple already hard at work setting up their wares. I hastened as I saw the south gate of the town, praying my memory wouldn”t fail me. It wouldn”t matter if my memory held if the area had changed a great deal.
Find the house. Hope that the merchant still lives there. Track down the girl. Ask her how the witch healed her and where to find her. Find the witch. Heal Gingel. Easy.
I stopped. This felt familiar, but I couldn”t point out anything I remembered. I took a chance and turned west, walking slowly, taking in every feature of the small homes I passed. In my memory, the small wooden structure was unremarkable. All the houses here were. A lump lodged in my throat. My heart beat quickly, eager to move to the next step.
Intending to walk the grid of several blocks to get a feel for the area, I told myself if nothing struck me, I would have to resort to knocking on doors. Standing at the center of a deserted street crossroad, I caught a small movement up the lane. A juvenile haround pup spied me as I had turned a corner, sauntering up with a stick in its mouth, begging me to play, tail wagging.
”One toss, then? That”s it,” I said, in a tone that it surely didn”t understand. I bent to the ground, tugging at the stick. The pup wanted to play, but the instinct to pull back was a contradicting desire. I wrestled it away, threw it far afield, and stood, hands on my hips, watching it scamper away.
”Miss Elledandrie? Gods be blessed! Is it you?” The voice to my right sounded thick and sweet. My head whipped around to the jolly woman emptying her piss pot in the alley. A thrill of joy jolted through me. I knew her!
Thank the gods. The merchant”s sister. It was her house, wasn”t it? It was her we stayed with. What is her name? Jerashka...Jemira...damn.
”It is I! You have a memory to be envied. Here I am, younger than you, and I”m afraid I”ve forgotten your name.” The brown waves of her hair shook as she let loose a hearty belly laugh.
”Aw, not to worry, love. Even my own brother gets my name wrong from time to time. I have been married since you were last here, so my proper name has changed. I”m no longer Miss Jerica; now I”m Mrs. Forunder. Come in, come in! Tell me how you”ve been!”
Her labor-roughened hands beckoned me inside. My shoulders relaxed as I crossed the threshold. Step one accomplished.
Jerica was a babbling fount of words and sounds, a creature of boundless energy bouncing around her main room, stoking the fire and preparing her morning meal. I found myself struggling to follow her speech, trying to wedge a question into the conversation, but I was not to be helped.
Her husband”s name was Bannon. He was a mountain of a man. He doted on her. He didn”t talk much, but she made up for it. I found myself nodding, my mind stumbling to gather up the information that fell from her lips as if I were to be tested on it later.
Then, just as quickly she had prattled on about herself, she pivoted to me.
”Oh, look at me talking all about me. How are you? Did you find your grandmother”s people? How is sweet little Gingel?” She saw me wince at the last and marked as my smile faded. ”Oh no! What”s happened?” She clasped my hands and dutifully held her tongue long enough for me to answer.
”It isn”t good news. We”ve returned to town in search of a remedy for a grave injury she has suffered. I”ve actually come in search of you or your brother. There is information I”m in need of.” Her face had twisted into a grimace at my words. She nodded.
”Of course, of course! Anything you need. What do you want to know? Though I can”t think what I would know that would help...” She trailed off, her eyes searching the room as if the information I needed was sitting on a shelf somewhere.
”Your brother told me a story about the witch in the woods and the girl she saved. Do you remember that?” Please let your memory come through for me now.
”Well, yes, it was the talk of the town for a while, but that was more than ten years ago. How does that help you now? Oh...she”s that bad, is she?” I nodded. The stinging threat of tears ringed my eyes. I blinked them away.
”I was hoping to know how they saved her or where I might find this witch? There”s not much else that can be done for her. I won”t pretend that her condition isn”t fatal. A miracle is all I can hope for at this point.”
It wasn”t a lie. I would handle Gingel like a helpless kit, but I wouldn”t hide the truth from Jerica. I needed all the help I could get. Shea swiftly pulled me in for a tight hug. I wanted so badly to let all the fear and sadness slough off of me. To let the film of doubt and terror wash away. But I needed clarity. I had to press on.
”Do you know the girl”s, or rather, the woman”s name? The one who was healed? I would like to ask her about it.”
”Yes, yes. Her family still lives in town here. I can take you there as soon as Bannon gets his breakfast.” She busied herself again with her preparations and then moved to the stairs to call up to her husband. ”Bannon, love, come down for your meal. I need to head into town soon.”
I heard the creak of the floorboards above, his large form moving about. Hearing this, she returned her attention to me.
”So little Miss Gingel is here in town, is she? Oh no, you haven”t left her somewhere by herself, have you?”
”No, she is staying with her husband at the North Gate Inn. They are waiting there for me to finish my inquiries. She is well enough now, but that will not last. My hope is that we can make our way to the witch tomorrow morning. I haven”t a moment to lose.”
”No, of course you don”t, darling girl,” she said as she cupped my cheek. ”I don”t know if you will find what you are looking for, but I will do whatever I can for you and your sweet little sister.”
I nodded, then moved to wait outside while she finished her morning work. No more than five minutes later, she came bustling out the front door, hooking her arm through mine.
”Come now. We have a miracle to find.”