Claray’s mother screamed and lost her balance.
Falling…
Falling…
Banging into the ladder…
Falling…
Landing on the one thing that probably saved her life—a sack full of fabric for bows. Her bottom landed on the soft sac, her head following it. The material cushioned her fall.
But they all heard the clear snap of the bone in her leg when it hit the stone floor.
And Claray’s dear, sweet mother screamed in pain, a sound that wrenched her heart, and plunged the keep into chaos.
The worst part was the knowledge it was all her fault.
Chapter Six
It was all Thorn’s fault.
He stared in horror at what he’d done. He’d had no idea anyone was behind the door, let alone on a ladder. He’d simply reacted the same way he always did when he heard Claray scream.
With no thought, motivated by an urgency to get to her as soon as possible. His hands moved up to massage the explosive ache in his head.
He’d just watched as the mother of the woman he loved fell from the top of a ladder and landed in a heap on a sack on the floor of the keep.
Claray was at her mother’s side in an instant. “Mama? Mama?” Although she looked pale and drawn with fear, she seemed otherwise fine.
Had he heard her shout something about a spider?
Aye, a spider would have made her scream like that.
Kyla Grant had been knocked backward, twisted her ankle, but she got back up with a shout. “Thorn, get Connor!”
But Thorn was frozen in horror, not that it was likely to matter. Everyone had heard Sela’s screams, and the great man pushed through the door not an instant later.
At the same time, Gracie came rushing down the stairs with her daughters, Maryell and Merelda, directly behind her. “What happened?” she called out. “I heard screaming.”
Connor pushed Claray out of the way and reached for his wife, but she screeched, “Connor. Don’t touch my leg. ’Tis broken. If you move it…I’ll never…I cannot bear the pain…oh, Connor.”
Jamie came flying through the door with as loud a yell as he’d ever heard from the laird. “What the hell happened?”
Thorn backed away, unable to process all that transpired…filled with the ridiculous urge to run and hide.
This was his fault. All. His. Fault.
If he hadn’t shoved the door open, Sela Grant would have completed her task and come safely down from her perch. Instead, a careless act launched her into the air and she had a nasty injury.
More people poured into the great hall. Dyna burst in, and wailed at the sight of her mother on the floor. She knelt down next to Claray and put a hand to her mother’s shoulder. “Mama?”
Connor didn’t hesitate. He looked at Dyna and said, “You and Derric take ten guards and go for Aunt Jennie. ’Tis a bad break. Tell her we need her right away.”
Astra came in from outside, along with Claray’s other siblings, Morgan and Hagen. Wee Tora toddled over to the group and said, “Gaga.” This was the name she’d started to call her grandmother.
It felt like a sword through Thorn’s chest.
Astra scooped Tora up and made her way over to her sisters, Sylvi trailing behind her.
It was only when Nari came in that Thorn felt a slight easing in his chest. His friend made his way over to him—which was when he realized he’d slowly backed away from the group and was standing in a corner of the keep. “What happened?”
Thorn groaned and mumbled, “She fell. I opened the door too quickly and hit the ladder. I didn’t know anyone was back there.”
“Why was she up there again?” Connor asked, as if talking to no one. Thorn was too mesmerized by everything taking place in front of him to think of answering. Truth was he couldn’t. He had no idea why she’d climbed up the ladder, he only knew why she’d fallen.
Connor barked out his sons’ names in a hurry, “Hagen and Morgan, get the cot out of Grandpapa’s chamber and bring it out here.”
“Connor, you cannot touch me.”
He gritted his teeth. “Sela, I’ll not allow you to stay on the floor in the rushes. Gracie will help you move your leg.”
Merelda, who was totally mesmerized by the art of healing and worked as often as she could with her mother, studied the broken appendage, then looked at her mother. “The bone protrudes a bit. I wish we could see inside. I’m not sure how to push it in.”
“You’ll not be able to see, you must feel it with your fingertips,” Gracie said. “Get two pillows. We’ll cushion her leg before we move her to the cot, then we’ll elevate it. See if that helps. It’s already swelling, Sela. We may have to cut your stockings off under your skirt.”
“Do what you must.”
Connor leaned down and kissed his wife’s cheek. “What happened, Sela?”
“I climbed the ladder to fix the bow, and someone came through the door and hit the ladder.”
“I told you I would do the climbing. You should have had someone guarding the door.”
Thorn let out a breath when he heard that pronouncement.
“Connor, what the hell difference would it have made who climbed the ladder? Someone flew in through the door and…” She paused to think for a moment, laying her head back among the rushes. “I shouldn’t have reached as far as I did. I should have had someone guard the door. I didn’t think. I thought I could get it done quickly before anyone came inside. I thought…” She lifted her head and then dropped it. “Connor,” she whispered, “the pain is horrible.”
He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Once I get you settled, I’ll get you some of Papa’s uisge-beatha.”
Claray was sobbing now, her cheeks red, and Thorn felt another stab of horrible, sickening guilt. “’Twas all my fault, Papa. I’m so sorry. A spider jumped on me from one of the pine boughs, and I screamed. Thorn must have heard me and came inside…”
All faces turned to him, and he wished to turn away, hide in the bushes, and vomit everything out that he’d eaten in the last three days. When he was a bairn, he’d wanted nothing more than for people to notice him, but he’d never wished to be noticed like this.
Would Connor revoke his permission for him to court Claray?
He left his corner and stepped forward, each movement as hard as if he were running uphill in the heat of summer. “Your pardon, my laird. I didn’t mean to…I had no idea. Forgive me, mistress.”
He’d wondered if Claray would hate him for the part he’d played in the accident, but she tugged him closer, her small hands insistent. He hadn’t wished to see Claray’s mother in pain. But now he stood directly in front of her, where he could see the sweat on her brow, the dazed look in her eyes, the way she gripped her husband’s hand so tightly that she could easily draw blood.
“Mistress, my sincerest apologies.”
“Thorn, ’twas not entirely your fault. I was careless, too. Connor has told me many times he would hang the decorations, but I’m stubborn.”
Kyla said, “I knew we should have had someone at the door. We tried to fix the ribbon quickly, and it all went wrong. Hellfire.”
Elizabeth said, “I was headed in that direction, but it all happened too quickly.”
Connor cocked a brow at his sisters. Gracie told the men where to place the cot, and she and Merelda each took a pillow and carefully lifted Sela’s leg while Connor lifted her onto the cot. They stayed with him as best they could, but she still let out a small scream when they bounced her leg a wee bit.
Thorn felt sick. He leaned over and said to Claray, “You are hale? You were not bitten? I was worried about you.”
“I’m fine, Thorn, but I thank you for your consideration.” She stared at her arm and said, “Mayhap I do have a wee bite, but it does not hurt as much as seeing my mother fall.”
Once they had Sela settled near the hearth, Connor moved everyone back and said, “Give Gracie the room she needs to do what she can. I want two
more torches over here.”
Someone went off to do his bidding, but Claray found a chair next to the hearth. “I’m going to wait right here.” Again, he felt the pulse to leave. To dig a hole deep enough to swallow him, perhaps, but she looked into his eyes. “Stay with me?”
“Aye, I’ll stand by your side,” Thorn said, and because she wanted him there, no one would be able to drag him away.
The group broke apart slowly, some heading out the door, while others cleaned up.
Jamie disappeared and returned with a small bottle of golden liquid. Connor poured a wee bit amount in a goblet and said, “Drink, Sela. She may have to touch your leg to fix it.”
“I’m not going to lose it, am I?” Sela asked in a soft voice. “Sometimes, if a break is bad enough, the only way to treat it is to amputate the limb. Or will I have such a bad limp that I’ll not be able to walk normally again?”
“Please help her, Aunt Gracie,” Claray shouted, her voice ringing with a panic that made Thorn feel even worse. “Please?”
“If I can’t, Aunt Jennie will help her,” Gracie said, from her position by the cot. “She’ll come as soon as she can, but I’ll do whatever I can to make you comfortable, Sela.”
“My foot feels strange, Gracie,” Sela said before she closed her eyes, and Connor motioned for Gracie to follow them. They didn’t go far, only the other side of the hearth, and Jamie and Merelda both joined them.
“What can you do?” Connor asked in a low, urgent voice. “I know Aunt Jennie would wrap it up with a block of wood to hold it straight. She’ll not be able to walk for a long time, will she?”
Gracie took a deep breath and said, “Nay, probably not for nearly two or three moons.”
“Will she lose her leg?”
Claray grabbed ahold of Thorn’s hand when her father asked that question, biting on her lip so hard she was drawing blood. Thorn reached up to pull her lip away from her teeth, but Claray shoved his hand away.
“Here is what Aunt Jennie has always told me. If ’tis a simple break, we can just move it back together and it will heal on its own. If ’tis not simple, then it could heal a bit crooked. The bone will heal, but…”
“But what?” Connor whispered, rather harshly.
“We don’t want it to sit crooked for long, and we have to watch the color of it. If it sits crooked, ’twill heal crooked, too. So I’ll have to try my best to straighten it and leave the rest for Aunt Jennie’s capable hands. Aunt Jennie told me once about a time she had to break the bone again because it was allowed to heal crooked for a sennight. We don’t want that either.”
“Aunt Jennie will be here right away, I’m sure of it,” Connor said.
“If she’s home,” Jamie reminded him. “Sela’s asleep. Try to do it now. I think you gave her a big swig of the breath of life for someone who rarely drinks it.”
“Did Dyna leave?” Connor asked.
Jamie said, “She and Derric just left with a dozen guards.”
Connor moved back to Sela’s side and said, “Claray, we may need you to mop your mother’s brow. If she awakens, she’ll need soothing and you do it verra well.”
Claray glanced at Thorn and nodded. “Aye, Papa. I’ll do whatever I can.”
Thorn waited until they started, standing back to watch. It hurt to be there, to see the pain he had caused, however inadvertently, but it struck him that Claray might need comfort too, just like her mama would if she awoke. And if she needed comfort, he would be there for her.
After feeling her way around the bone as lightly as she could, Gracie said, “Merelda, I’m going to pull the end of the bone toward me, and I want you to put a wee bit of pressure on the broken section to see if you can push it back into place. When you think you have it in the right place, run your fingers down the bone so the edges are even and as close together as possible. Can you do that?”
Merelda’s face looked pale, but she nodded resolutely. “Aye, Mama.”
Gracie pointed to Sela’s shoulders. “Claray and Connor, you may have to hold her down. I can’t have her move once we’ve pulled on the bone, and it will hurt.”
They got into position and Gracie said, “Ready, Merelda?”
Merelda nodded and set her hands on Sela’s leg. As soon as Gracie pulled Sela’s foot toward her, she nodded to Merelda, who gently pushed on the bone.
Sela screamed and nearly came off the cot.
Thorn ran out the door.
Chapter Seven
Claray nearly let go of her mother, but her sire encouraged her to stay the course.
“Keep her still, Claray. Hold fast. Sela, Gracie has to move the bone back into place a wee bit.”
Sela moaned and fell back onto the cot, gripping her husband’s hand so hard her knuckles turned white. “Oh, Connor.”
Papa rested his cheek down against hers, allowing their tears to blend. Claray had rarely seen her sire cry, but Connor Grant was a man who cared deeply for his family, so it did not surprise her to see his tears. Tears were certainly coursing down her own cheeks.
Holding onto her mother’s shoulder so she wouldn’t lift off the cot, Claray thought about how poor Thorn must feel. He probably thought it was all his fault, but it was not. It was her fault.
She glanced past her father to see what Thorn was doing, but he’d disappeared. Scanning the hall, she couldn’t find him anywhere.
“He left, Claray,” Papa said. “’Twas probably too much for him.”
She understood that feeling, so she couldn’t blame him at all. How she wished she could join him. As soon as she had the chance, she would.
Claray watched Merelda do her slow, deliberate work, moving the bone just a wee bit to straighten it, then following the break with her fingers to see if it felt straight.
“How much longer, Gracie?” Mama whispered. “I don’t know how much more I can stand.”
Aunt Gracie sat up and eased Merelda back. “I think we may be finished until Aunt Jennie arrives. It’s important that it not start to heal crooked, and that the color in your foot stays pink. It was a bit dusky, so I wish to wait a moment or two, see if it improves.”
Claray stared at her mother’s still foot, just then noticing that the color wasn’t good. It looked nearly blue to her. Aunt Gracie touched the foot with the back of her hand. “Your foot is cool. That’s another sign I hope will improve now that we moved the bone a bit. When Aunt Jennie comes, she’ll bring opium powder to help with the pain.”
“I’ll not take it.” Mama looked over at Gracie, giving a small shake of her head.
“Promise me you will,” Papa said while he sat back. “I cannot bear to see you in such pain.” He cupped her cheek and brushed another tear away with the pad of his thumb.
“Please, Mama?” Claray asked.
“A small dose, mayhap.”
Claray pointed to her mother’s foot. “Look, ’tis turning pink.”
Aunt Gracie touched the skin again. “Good, it is definitely warming. While it may not be perfect yet, I believe it will hold until Aunt Jennie gets here.” She bent down so her eyes were level with Sela’s leg. “It looks straight. Sela, you must not move it until Aunt Jennie gets here. I’m going to rest it on a board and wrap some linens around it to hold it in place.”
Mama closed her eyes and said, “It must be where it should be. The pain is easing a bit. I have to sleep.”
Claray watched her aunt pull her sire off to the side. “The color is better, and that was what worried me most. I think Aunt Jennie will be able to wrap it well enough for it to heal cleanly. She’ll have to stay immobile until Aunt Jennie can get here.”
“I’ll help her. Jamie can take over all my duties.”
“The rest of us will help, too. Don’t worry, Connor. Aunt Jennie travels quickly. She should be here in less than two days.”
Hearing that brought Claray some measure of relief. Her mama would be all right. So focused was she on that bit that she never noticed her sire came back over to her side.
“You’ll sit with your mother for a bit? I’m going to speak with Jamie, then I’ll return.”
“Aye, but then I’d like to find Thorn. I don’t know where he went.” She did her best not to let on exactly how much that bothered her, but it was difficult.
“Thorn. Why did he barge in so quickly?”
“Because a spider dropped on me and I screamed.” She hung her head, embarrassed that they still bothered her so much after so many years. “’Twas my fault, not Thorn’s. Please don’t punish him.”
Her father crossed his arms and said, “No one person is at fault. I’ve told your mother and Aunt Kyla not to climb that ladder without me or Finlay or Jamie around. The reason is we could have caught the ladder where Kyla and your mother are too slender to stop it once it tips. They know better.”
He leaned over and kissed her brow, then before he left, he said, “I’ll be back quickly. Don’t take the fault on your shoulders. It does not belong there. We will not throw stones. ’Twas an accident.”
Claray sighed in relief, but she couldn’t help but wonder where Thorn had gone.
The door opened, much less forcefully this time, and suddenly Nari was rushing over to her. “Thorn left.”
Claray grabbed his hands in shock. “What? But why?”
“I spoke with him briefly. He feels he’s at fault, and he said he needed to go for a ride.” He squeezed her hands and released them, glancing over to the hearth. “Your mama is asleep. ’Tis a good sign.”
“Aye, her foot is better, but we need my aunt. Does Thorn do that often? Ride off on his own?”
Nari shrugged. “He’s done it a few times, but he usually comes back.”
“Usually?” Claray asked.
“Aye, once I had to go find him. But he was much younger then. Said he was never coming back, but I managed to change his mind. We’re like brothers.”
“Mayhap you should go after him, Nari. I hope he isn’t thinking of running off.” Claray bit her lip, wondering if she’d just lost her one chance at happiness.
“I’ll give him until the morrow. If he’s not back by then, I’ll go after him.”
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