Amanda had somehow imagined that the people of Inchkeith would be living in the same kind of conditions as those at the camp. However, nothing had prepared her for what she saw before her.
The people were thin and underfed, and every one of them had a sad, dispirited look. Even the children looked pallid and lethargic, not playing, laughing and running about like normal little people, but lying on the ground or lounging in corners. They were mostly silent, and Amanda felt infinitely sorry for them.
Their clothes were ragged and threadbare, and Amanda, who now knew how clothes were repaired, reused and patched over and over again, could see that these garments had moved beyond even that stage.
She wished she had a trunk full of items for them to wear and another with food for them to eat, but she was comforted by the knowledge that Hamish and the men were bringing a deer with them. It was a huge stag that was past breeding age, and would feed the villagers for about a week.
Hamish knew that his brother would regard this as poaching, but he did not care. If Struan McNeill would not take care of his people, then Hamish McNeill would.
“You see how a good Laird treats his people?” he asked Amanda, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
His face bore a terrifying frown, and he looked as though he might explode with fury at any moment; Amanda could not blame him.
11
The further Amanda moved into the centre of the village, the more it became apparent how desperately bad things were. She felt rage building up inside her as she moved among the pathetic, malnourished people and saw how badly Struan McNeill treated his tenants and villagers. She can’t believe she would have gone to the Castle to look after the terrible man who had caused this desperation.
Hamish stood beside her, looking down at Amanda’s face as she took in all the misery in front of her.
“What are you thinking?” he asked. He expected her to be dispirited and sad, but Amanda was beyond sad.
However, she was definitely not dispirited. She had been in a similar situation to this one when she had to tend to a dozen men who had been brought to her to be treated after a bad accident between two carriages. There had been many people but few resources, yet somehow she had still been able to heal their wounds and ease their pain.
Now, Amanda knew she would have to draw on not only her store of medicines, but all her knowledge, all her experience, and the best weapon in her arsenal—anger. Circumstances like this filled her with bitter rage and fierce determination. It didnot matter what she was faced with—she would find a way to overcome it for the sake of these poor people, who deserved to be treated so much better than this.
Hamish saw her face changing as her eyes darkened, she drew down her brows in a deep frown and her full lips pursed into a thin line.
“I am thinking,” she replied at last, her voice almost a growl, “that I would like to find whoever did this to these people and throw him in a dark cell for the rest of his life.”
Hamish was amazed. He had not seen this side of Amanda before, but then he had not been acquainted with her long enough to see her practising her skills.
Abruptly, she became brisk. “I need somewhere to work,” she said, looking around. “Somewhere with a table big enough for a person to lie on and somewhere to put my medicines.”
“The village hall,” Gregor suggested. “It used tae be for ceilidhs and meetin’s, but it has been a long time since any o’ that took place here.”
“Show me,” Amanda instructed.
They went into the hall, which was the biggest building in the whole village, and Amanda looked around to see if it would be suitable for her purpose. It had all the tables she needed, as well as chairs where people could wait their turn for attention.
“This is fine,” she said firmly, then she began to delegate duties to each member of Hamish’s men. “Jimmy,” she said, crooking her finger to beckon him, “go and bring as much water as you can from the well and boil it over the fire.”
He scurried away to do as she had ordered, then she summoned another two men to prepare the deer for cooking and another to clean the tables and chairs in the hall.
So it went on, and after a while all those she had brought with her were occupied with a task, even Hamish, whom she had ordered to fetch wood for the fire.
Hamish was surprised by Amanda’s competence and air of authority. It was clear who was in charge now, and it certainly was not him. However, he was impressed by this new side of her; she was in her element, and rising to the occasion with all the resources at her command. He followed her orders and soon the hall was ready to her satisfaction.
Amanda went outside to see dozens of people crowding around the door, then began to usher them in so that they could wait in comfort. It was just starting to rain, and she was glad that no one had to sit outside. That would not have helped at all.
The first case, and the one that moved Amanda the most, was that of an old couple who stumbled over to her, coughing. They were both almost skeletally thin and could hardly speak to her, but she noticed that they had their arms around each other. This, and the way they looked at each other, told her that their embrace was not just for physical support, but that they shared a deep love that strengthened both of them.
However strong their love was, though, they were both very frail in the bodily sense and needed her help urgently.
“We need something to help your cough,” Amanda told them, “or it could turn into something more serious.”
She brought in hot water, added honey and gave them each a small amount of whiskey before urging them to drink it. Then they lay down on the bed so that she could rub some warm soothing oil on their backs.
When she was finished, they sat up and smiled at each other, and the love in their eyes was almost palpable. Amanda felt very jealous of them because they had something that she doubted she would ever have, something so strong that it was unbreakable.
