Crag (2 page)

She accepted the food and began eating. The bread was hard, but the meat tasted tender and flavorful. In truth, it was the best food she’d eaten since the
Zaltanians
attacked her village.

“Sir Rain and some of the villagers hunt often. You won’t starve here, that’s for certain. By the way, I’m Coral.” The woman sat on the floor, her feet tucked under her. Wisps of hair had loosened from the bun on her head, and she blew them from a face streaked with ashes from the hearth. Still numb from stifled hopes since arriving in
Tanek
, Lily didn’t answer. Coral asked, “What are you called?”

“Lily,” she murmured.
Vina
awoke and let out a piercing shriek. Lily placed her food aside and reached for her, but Coral picked her up and said, “You finish eating. I’m good with babies.”

Taking another bite of the bread, she watched as Coral rocked
Vina
and whispered endearments. Lily asked, “Do you have children?”

Coral shook her head. “My betrothed was called to fight against
Zaltana
before we were married. That was a year ago. But growing up I was the oldest of five, so I often cared for my brothers and sisters.”

“Is he alive?”

“My betrothed?” Coral sighed. “I hope so. It’s been months since I’ve gotten a message from him. At times I think this war will never end. Since the Ruby Order became involved, the
Zaltanian
army has known more defeats than ever before. I don’t think there are enough Knights to silence them completely, but at least
Zaltana
won’t conquer the continent as they’d planned to.”

“I hope every last one of them dies where they stand,” Lily snarled and glanced up sharply as a shadow fell across her bowl.

Crag squatted beside her, his eyes as cold as frozen pools, his mouth a grim line. He held a vile in one hand, and reached for
Vina
with his other. Coral placed her in his arm, and the baby vomited on the front of his tunic. He glanced at the yellow stain, not that it was particularly noticeable since his tunic was plastered with dirt, blood, and other indiscernible body fluids. Still, Lily felt the need to apologize.

“Doesn’t matter,” he muttered, wiping
Vina’s
face with a piece of cloth and forcing a bit of the vial’s contents into her mouth. It took him several moments to administer the medicine since the baby screamed and spat. Lily placed her food aside, her hands twisting in her lap until the tedious chore was completed. Still, she noted he was far more gentle and patient than his miserable expression had led her to believe.

When he’d finished, he passed
Vina
to Lily and watched her for several minutes.

“Call if you need me." He stood. “I’ll be nearby.”

“Thank you.”

He walked away, and Lily turned back to her daughter.

“He’s been here for a year and a half,” Coral said, her gaze following Crag as he made his rounds. “All the Knights are trained as healers, but most of the ones here are used as guards. Sir Wood is an experienced healer, and there have been others who’ve come and gone. There have been weeks at a time when Crag is the only one. Too bad he’s taken his service during the
Zaltanian
attacks.”

“I imagine they all take service in desperate places,” Lily said. “From what I understand, the Ruby Order’s training is rigorous.”

Coral nodded. “Which is why they’re elite. It’s still not right, how they’ve left him here. But I guess it’s not right that any of us are here. Look at your daughter, for instance, and the other children. Is your husband fighting?”

“He was killed during the attack on our village.”

Coral’s brow furrowed. “I’m so sorry.”

“He was a good man. Not a fighter, though.”

“But you are.” Coral offered an encouraging smile. “I can tell. You’re a survivor, Lily.”

“Sometimes I think that’s more of a curse than a blessing.”

“I have to get back to work. There’s food to prepare and the washing up to do. Consider me a friend.”

Lily smiled at her. “Thank you. Think of me as the same.”

Over the next couple of hours,
Vina
slept peacefully. Whatever Crag had given her had stopped – or at least postponed – her queasiness. Lily noted that he passed them often, stopping to look at
Vina
. It wasn’t until later that night that she, quite by chance, discovered why he hovered so close.

She’d slept for several hours and awoken thirsty. Buckets of water with ladles were stored at the far end of the longhouse, and she hoped they were still partway full, since she didn’t relish the idea of leaving the warmth of the house for a cold walk to the well. She picked her way over snoring men and women to the buckets standing outside a patched leather curtain. She’d seen Crag disappear behind that curtain often and emerge with herbs, supplies, and bandages. Tilting one of the buckets, she heard water slosh, and dipped in a wooden ladle. As she drank, one of the black-garbed Knights passed her. He was of medium height and build with sandy hair falling straight to his shoulders. A short scabbard hung from his hip, and as he passed, she noticed his uniform was bloodstained and almost as dirty as Crag’s gray tunic. His green gaze caught hers, and he nodded before stepping behind the curtain. Her stomach tightened. Whenever one of those Knights crossed her path, she felt as if she should salute or curtsy. Many other people felt the same. She saw it in their eyes when in the presence of a member of the Ruby Order.

“I rode to the nearest settlement this afternoon,” came a hushed voice from behind the curtain. Lily guessed it was the Knight who’d just stepped inside. “Their supplies are as limited as ours, but I know reinforcements will be coming soon. You seem to have everything under control here.”

“Yes, Sir Wood.” Lily recognized Crag’s voice. “We do need back-up. People are still coming in from other villages.”

“How is that baby you asked me about earlier? The one whose mother brought her in today?”

Lily dropped the ladle and listened intently.

“She’s stopped vomiting, so the mixture worked.”

“Good.”

“I dislike working with babies,” Crag stated.

Lily’s face burned, and her stomach clenched as tightly as her fists.
Dislikes working with babies?
She knew by looking at him he was a wretched man. Some healer he was. He didn’t seem to like anybody at all, not only babies. Still, to say such a thing!

“The medicine worked,” Crag continued, “but the wrong amount of herbs could have killed her. I don’t like working with something so small.”

The wrong amount? Lily nearly tore through the curtain and cursed both of them, Ruby Order or not. Didn’t he know how much to use? Shouldn’t he know? To think that
Vina
– not to mention the rest of the settlement – was at the mercy of some charlatan! And she had been stupid enough to think the Ruby Order possessed the finest healers in the world! What bothered her most about his revelation was not knowing if he had been concerned with killing
Vina
because he cared for her life, or because he didn’t want to appear stupid in front of Sir Wood and the rest of the settlement.

“All part of our duty, Crag. All part of our duty. With more experience, you’ll be fine.”

“I’ve been here for quite a while. The battles show no sign of ceasing. Wouldn’t I be of more use fighting in the front lines?”

“You came to us with martial skills,” Sir Wood told him. “You knew when you entered the Order all Knights must be trained in the healing as well as the fighting arts. We’re not mercenaries, Crag. We undertake missions of mercy. Your fighting skills are important and will be an asset to our Order, but you’ve already fulfilled your military service. Now you must do your time as a healer. We need you here. You can see that. Unless you feel you can’t rise to the occasion?”

“No, Sir.”

“Good. Now, I’m going to get a few hours sleep, then you can wake me and rest yourself. As always, if you require my assistance—”

“Thank you, Sir.”

Crag stepped from behind the curtain, and nearly stumbled over Lily. Their eyes met, and for the briefest moment, she thought he looked as bewildered as she felt.

“Is your baby all right?” he asked.

“
Vina
. Her name’s
Vina
. Yes. She’s as well as can be expected.”

He nodded and reached for a ladle of water. No sooner had he raised it to his lips when someone across the building bellowed, “Crag! My stitches tore!”

Crag flung down the ladle and kicked the bucket so that water splashed onto the leather curtain. Cursing under his breath, he trudged in the direction of the voice.

“Why doesn’t he just leave,” Lily muttered, “if he hates it so much?”

Suddenly,
Vina’s
familiar cry echoed through the relatively quiet room. Sighing, she hurried back to her.

Lily picked up
Vina
and tried feeding her. The infant settled against her breast, and for a few moments, there was almost total silence – until Sir Rain and another Knight burst in, dragging an enormous, armor-clad man whose hair and face were streaked with fresh blood.

“Let me go! I have to find the Captain!” bellowed the man. In spite of his injuries, he possessed enough strength to drag the two Knights off balance.

Several people who had been sleeping by the door grabbed their children and scurried away. Though Lily stood across the room, she impulsively held
Vina
tighter.

“Crag!” Rain bellowed, but Crag was already on his way to assist them. Rain continued, “This man’s the only survivor of an attack on a village just east of here. He’s gone mad.”

Crag shot Rain a look that said,
Really, I failed to notice!

“He’s bleeding badly,” Rain said. “You need to stitch him up.”

As Crag approached, the man’s thick leg kicked at him. The healer dodged the blow just as the warrior broke free from the Knights’ arms. Crag lunged at him, and the two struggled while Rain and the second Knight pulled out ropes to tie the madman.

“I must inform the Captain!” he ranted. “They’re all dead!
Zaltanian
bastards!”

Lily’s heart pounded as she watched the scene, amazed that Crag still had a grip on the man who had to be at least twice his weight. Crag was tall and big-boned, but this warrior was a giant. No wonder he’d been the only survivor of a
Zaltanian
attack.

“By the Twin Goddesses,” Coral said as she stood beside Lily, her freckled nose wrinkling. “I’ve seen other people go temporarily mad from the horrors of battle, but why did it have to be a man the size of a draft horse?”

Suddenly one of the warrior’s flailing elbows struck Crag in the face. Blood gushed from the healer’s mouth, and Lily winced. Instead of dropping his charge, Crag wrestled the man’s arms behind his back and knocked his legs out from under him. Panting, fury glistening in his blue eyes, he held the man fast while Rain and the second Knight bound his wrists and ankles.

“Good,” Rain said, wiping his brow on his sleeve. He glanced at Crag. “Are you all right?”

Crag nodded.

“We can handle him from here,” Rain said. “I’ll tend the wound. Go clean yourself up.”

Crag stalked directly past Lily, and Coral muttered, “Didn’t think he had it in him.”

“He was a warrior,” Lily told her.

“How do you know? Crag never speaks about his life before joining the Order – or his life since, for that matter.”

“I overheard.” Tucking
Vina
in the crook of her arm, Lily approached Crag.

He sloshed water around in his mouth and spit in a wooden bowl. Blood and a tooth landed with a splash.

“Damn it!” he muttered.

“Is it a front or a back tooth?” Lily asked.

“Sort of the middle." He placed a hand to his jaw.

“Hold on. I’ll be right back.”

She asked Coral to watch
Vina
for a moment and left the house. Outside, she knocked an icicle off the roof, crushed it against a stone, and wrapped it in one of her kerchiefs.

She brought it to Crag and held it to his jaw. “This should help. When I was little, my sister and I got into a fight and she knocked out my two front teeth. Ice helped.”

“I know,” he half smiled. “Healers pick up on little tricks like that.”

She wondered if she looked as sheepish as she felt.

“You look good for a woman with no front teeth,” he said.

“They were baby teeth, so they grew back.”

“Speaking of babies, how’s… ”

“
Vina
,” she supplied.

“Sorry. I feel a little muddled right now.”

“You have a lot of people to remember.”

“Yes.” He looked far off for a moment.

“Crag!” Rain called. “I need salve for this man!”

Still holding the ice to his jaw, Crag continued with his work.

“Lily, she got sick.” Coral thrust
Vina
into her mother’s arms.

“Oh, no.” Lily sighed, those few moments of somewhat pleasant conversation with Crag forgotten. If
Vina
continued to expel all nourishment, she’d die. Lily didn’t need a healer to tell her that.