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Frederick put his head in his hands. “This is my fault, because I told you this never happens to us. I made fate laugh at us.”
“I don’t believe in that kind of thing.” Not that it mattered to them what I thought. “Why would fate punish you? You’ve done so many good things. Maybe you had to say that, so I would know how bad it would be to be struck, so I would react as fast as I did.”
Oliver touched my arm, gently. “On that subject, you can’t go rushing into the battles. I’m so glad that you did, but twice now, you’ve thrown yourself into the fights. First by saving that woman. Today. You could be hurt.”
My cheeks burned. “I’m not the type to do nothing. I can’t see a need not being filled and do nothing about it, but I will try to remember my place.” Which, at the moment, was to treat Charles’ back.
Frederick lifted his head to stare at me. “Thank you, Sloane. Thank you for saving him.”
“I’m glad I was here to help. I’m sure you could have figured it out without me. You’ve all been together so long, and you’ve clearly kept each other alive. But I’m here, and I do know some things. I can give him something to swallow when he’s a little more alert, which will help some with the pain. It will mean he doesn’t have to smoke the herbs, which he clearly doesn’t want.”
Truett sat fully down next to Charles and across from me. “His father was always stoned. He doesn’t want to be like him.”
“It shouldn’t be a problem. Not from just this day.”
Frederick rose and left the tent. It was quiet then. Every twenty-minutes, I would wipe Charles’ wounded area, keeping it clean and checking it. At some point, I had to leave it alone but not yet. Frederick came back and handed me a plate of food. The others rose and stepped outside of the tent.
“Thank you.” I ate what tasted like chicken and enjoyed the taste. It was smoky. He handed me a glass filled with a sweet juice. Darkness fell outside, and they all came back inside. I lay down next to Charles. He would need attention through the night, although it was going to get harder to see, and it would get cold, fast.
“Do we have a small lantern I could light? Just to have a touch of light to see his wound?” I got off the floor to check my bag, where I’d packed blankets. “These are warm, so I’ll wrap him up in one. Take one, if you want one.” I passed them out as Oliver lit a small lantern. Hopefully, it wouldn’t bother them too much. Oliver lay down on the other side of Charles while Frederick slid in next to me. Truett lay on the other side of Oliver. Everyone took a blanket. It would be cozy if poor Charles wasn’t in so much pain and if they weren’t strangers who indicated they didn’t want me around.
Finally, Truett spoke into the tent. “We are not that good at keeping people alive. Thank you for this. As you’ve said, we’ve all been together so long. We’re not just companions anymore; we’re family. We can’t do without Charlie.”
They settled down then, and soon I heard deep breathing as they all fell asleep. Truett breathed evenly, while Oliver snored gently. Next to me, Frederick lay on his back, his mouth slightly open. When Charles would moan, I stroked his hair and placed the numbing herbs on his back. Eventually, I put the combo of ginger and peppermint I’d made at home one day into his mouth just to be safe.
“Chew and swallow,” I whispered, and he did before he fell back asleep, but soon the pain reared up again. Sometimes, the act of chewing could temporarily negate pain, while some of the old women in our city-state thought that the combo of peppermint and ginger helped. It had been worth a try. I grabbed the weed and lit it from the lantern before placing it in his mouth. “Just a little more.”
He did as I asked. “Hate it.”
“I know. They told me. But it’s medicine today, not recreation. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.” I doubted he even knew what I was saying.
Frederick pulled my blanket over me. “It’s cold, Sloane. Don’t let yourself get sick.”
I thought he was asleep. “I’m sturdy, I promise. It’s warm enough in here. I might be uncomfortable but not at risk.” I tugged at Charles’ blanket a little. He wouldn’t be with it enough to know if he was cold, so I had to make sure he was warm.
I lay back down. Another half an hour, then I would check again. They weren’t kidding when they said the pain was deadly. He was feeling it about every twenty minutes, and that was with me working hard to keep it down.
Frederick put his arm around my waist. “Well, I am cold, and I wouldn’t mind the body heat.” He tugged me a little bit closer while leaving me close enough to Charles that I could still reach him.
“I’m going to be moving around all night. You might not want to be this close to me.”
He shook his head. “I’m right where I want to be.”
Then I supposed he was fine. The hours passed, and eventually he did fall asleep. Charles lay still, and I listened to the sounds outside. Surely, in the morning, after we got Charles to a better place for him to heal, they would see I was right. We could all have what we wanted. I was good at herbs; I was good at helping. I wasn’t cut out for monsters. They had to see it now.
“Easy.” I rubbed Charles’ back where he wasn’t injured. “You’ll be better soon.”
Chapter Seven
Truett held a mostly unconscious Charles against him in his saddle while Oliver tied Charles’ horse to his own so they could ride back that way. We agreed to take him to my home. I had even more herbs there, and my mama had poppies that really did help with the pain if used correctly. If he still needed it tonight, I would consider giving it to him.
They were quiet and I couldn’t blame them. One of their own was seriously injured.
“What are you thinking?” Frederick asked me. He rode next to me as we kept up the rear. “You haven’t said a word all morning.”
I smiled at him. “I think I told you guys how I tend to wander off in my thinking. Oliver. That’s who I told, but you were right there.”
Had that only been yesterday? Injury could make things feel like they happened years earlier. There was before injury and after injury, like such a traumatic event made a stronger divider of time.
