But of course I couldn’t tell her this. I didn’t want any of them knowing my plan.
“He can make you feel the sun rises and sets around your head,” Jade said. “But then he spots another pretty face, and the sun rises around her head.”
“He sounds inconstant,” I said.
Her brow lifted. “Inconstant?”
“Fickle.”
She nodded. “That he is. So long as you know.”
Voices carried on the air as everyone began gathering around the campfire. We passed around mugs of water, and then Jade announced the potatoes were soft enough to eat. She dished bowls, and I helped to serve. Tannen and Badger both nodded politely to me, and I was glad for their presence. But this also gave me the opportunity to take account of the entire group, which consisted of six women, three children, and ten men—counting Raven. I knew some of the men and women were couples, but as of yet, I hadn’t quite entirely placed who went with whom.
It did seem strange that they all appeared to live practically on top of each other, and in a moment when everyone was otherwise engaged, I asked Jemma to help me make a few connections. She told me that Badger and Tannen were Jade’s older brothers, neither were married, and they shared a wagon with Jade and Sean.
When the meal was nearly over, Raven left for a few moments and returned carrying a small cask and a wheel of yellow cheese. This met with delight from the group.
“Cheese!” Jemma exclaimed. “Did you bring that back from the raids?”
The cask contained ale, which I declined, but I did accept a slice of cheese—and wondered if he’d taken this from the Capellos’ stores.
Before long, several of the men took out violins and began to play. I sat near Jemma to listen. The first song was lively, but the second was possessed of a sad sound, with haunting strains. It made me think of my lady and how lonely she must be. But then I looked across the camp and saw Jade with her son, Sean. He was holding his stomach in pain. Quickly, I rose and went to them.
“What is it?” I asked.
She was so concerned that her previous dislike of me had vanished. “I don’t know. It’s happened before, but only a few times.”
Kneeling, I asked Sean. “Show me where it hurts.”
Nearly gasping from pain, he put his hands to his lower abdomen. I had seen this before and suspected what might be wrong. Though I’d noticed many goats around the settlement, I’d not seen a single cow.
“I believe the cheese he ate tonight was made from cow’s milk,” I said. “Has he ever had this happen to him after drinking milk from a cow or eating butter?”
She blinked, as if thinking, and then nodded. “Yes…yes every time.” Her expression shifted back to concern. “But it lasts for hours, and this time seems worse.”
Lord Jean had suffered from this same affliction. It could be managed by simply having him avoid any foods containing milk from cows, but occasionally, he would take a foolish risk and eat something such as a dessert with cream in it. When this happened, my lady needed to help him.
“There’s a tea made from herbs that will ease the pain,” I told Jade.
The boy groaned as stomach cramped, and Jade asked, “Which herbs?”
“Fennel and thornapple.”
Several of the women had gathered around us.
“Oh,” Jemma said. “Poor Sean. Is it his stomach again?”
“Can you find some fennel and thornapple?” Jade asked her. “Quickly.”
Jemma and Lizbeth both hurried into the trees and thankfully, they were not gone long. When they returned, I was relieved to see they’d brought the herbs I recognized—the ones my lady had used for Lord Jean.
I ground up the herbs in a bowl. After this, I boiled water over the fire and ladled it over the mixture. Then I used a cloth to strain the liquid into a mug. By now, Sean was in so much pain, he didn’t object as I drew him against me. Everyone was watching, but I shut them from my mind.
“Sip a small mouthful of this,” I told him, holding the mug of warm liquid to his mouth. “It’s bitter, but I promise it will help. Take small sips only when I tell you.”
He took a sip and made a face. A moment later, I had him take another sip. This was a slow process, and he needed a distraction, something to keep his mind occupied. Whenever my lady was sad or needed distraction, I told her a story.
“There was once a village beset by wolves,” I said in Sean’s ear. “Not ordinary wolves, but large, great wolves the size of ponies. They killed sheep and carried off children, and the women of the village begged their men to hunt the beasts down, but the men were afraid.” Sean was listening to me, and I paused in the tale, “Take another sip.”
He sipped and swallowed.
“There was a boy, just about your age, who was not afraid. And in the night, he slipped from the village to hunt down the wolves.”
“By himself?” Sean asked.
“Yes, all by himself. Take another sip.”
I went on to describe the hunt and how the boy once barely escaped the wolves with his life, but in the end, he played a trick and set up heavily-leaved bushes at the edge of a cliff and lured the wolves to chase him, and then he dove under the brush at the last moment, and as they jumped it, seeking to find him on the other side, they all went over the cliff, falling hundreds of feet below to their deaths.
In between parts of the story, I had Sean sip more of the herb tea until it was gone and the story ended.
When I looked up, Jade was watching me.
“How do you feel?” she asked her son.
Sean touched his stomach. “It’s getting better.”
Then I realized everyone, including Raven, was watching me. I had more information for Jade, but it was indelicate, and I wasn’t sure how to word it.
“In the night…at some point, he will probably need to relieve his bowels,” I said quietly.
“Relieve his bowels?” she repeated.
“I think she means he’ll need to shit,” Jemma offered.
With a jolt at her crude use of words, I dropped my eyes to the ground, but the group laughed, and their mood seemed improved after the worry over Sean.
“It’s time for sleep,” Raven said. “We have an early start.”
Jade drew in a sharp breath as she looked at him. “Sleep well on top of the roof.”
He ignored her and walked away.
She came over to take Sean from me. “Thank you,” she said stiffly, and then she shook her head once and touched my hand. “I mean it. Thank you.”
I did not understand her well, but she loved her son. That much was clear. With a nod, I rose and followed Raven to our wagon. He opened the back door for me.
“There are plenty of blankets in there,” he said. “But you’ll need to get a few for me.”
The night was cold now that we’d left the campfire.
“Are you really going to sleep on the roof?” I asked. Surely, some other arrangement could be made.
He flashed a grin. “Unless you’re inviting me to sleep inside?”
Startled, I stepped away, and his expression changed to alarm. “Oh, Kara, I was joking,” he rushed to say. “Don’t mind me. I just