Alexander_A Seventh Son Novel

by Kirsten Osbourne

  “Can you send for your mother to heal him properly?”

  “I can, but I promised him I wouldn’t go south to contact my aunt without him with me. If I believed it was life or death for him, I’d contact her without hesitation, but I think he’s going to be fine without her.”

  “Would she have time to get here before he died if infection did set in?” his mother asked, the fear in her eyes heartwarming. Madelina could tell she truly loved her son.

  “She likely could. I would do everything I knew to do to keep him alive until she arrived.” Madelina smiled at her, putting her hand on her mother-in-law’s arm. “I’ve done what I could do. There shouldn’t be any problems. I cleaned it well, and I will be very surprised if there’s an infection.”

  “Thank you.” Handing Letice to Madelina, her mother-in-law left the room. “I’m going to the chapel to pray.”

  “That’s the best course of action now.” Madelina watched her go and then turned her attention to the child. “Did you have a good nap?”

  Letice nodded. “I woke up, and I didn’t get scared.”

  “I’m really glad. I’m here for you now, remember?” Madelina was glad the child was adjusting so well to her new surroundings.

  “I ’member. Papa sick?” Letice asked.

  “He got cut with a sword during practice today, so I had to sew his shoulder closed. See?” Madelina carefully showed her daughter where the stitches were. “Someday, I’m going to teach you to heal people as well.”

  “Like your mama?”

  “Just like my mama taught me. Now I’m your mama, so you get to learn.” Madelina was thrilled the child understood what she was telling her. “Would you like to learn to make people better when they’re sick or injured?”

  “Aye. I don’t want people to die anymore.”

  Madelina knew the child was thinking about her own parents, and she hugged her close. “People will always die, but they don’t have to die too soon. Disease and injuries made them die sooner than they should.”

  “Papa die?” Letice asked.

  “No, he’s not going to die because I did what I needed to do to heal him.” Madelina felt confident that he would be fine. She hoped the people around her felt confident in her, too.

  Three days later, Alex was fighting her constantly. “I want to be able to train with my men. Staying in bed this long is ridiculous.”

  Madelina stood over him, her arms folded. “If you go out there now, you’re going to ruin my good work and rip those stitches open, but I’m willing to compromise. You may walk down to the sitting room downstairs and sit up and not lie down constantly.” She could see on his face that he was ready to fight for the right to train, but she wasn’t about to back down. In matters of healing, he needed to obey her.

  “Fine.” He didn’t like it, but he didn’t want to be unwell for any longer than necessary either. He allowed her to help him to his feet, and then she had to help him dress. “I feel like a babe.”

  She laughed. “You’re not a babe. You’re just injured, and I’m not about to let you make it worse by being stubborn.”

  “Me stubborn?” he asked, shocked. “If I’m stubborn, I learned how to be from my wife!”

  She grinned at that. “As true as that may be, you’re still injured, and I’m still helping you. I want you to lean on me as we go down the stairs. There’s no reason for you to try to do it on your own and fall.”

  He listened to her, doing his best not to put too much weight on her slender shoulders as they went down the stairs together. When they’d reached the sitting room, he was out of breath and felt as if he’d just run for miles. “I’m so weak!”

  “Yes, you are. You lost a lot of blood when you were first injured. You’ll feel weak for a while yet.”

  He groaned. “I want to be able to return to my training.”

  “I could make you ready to train in three days’ time,” she told him. She could tell she had his interest.

  “How? I’ll do anything!”

  “I could ride down to speak to my aunt and have her send my mother. She could heal you completely. I don’t have that ability.”

  He frowned at her. “It’s not worth it to me for you to risk yourself. No, I’d rather heal slowly.”

  “It’s the only thing I can offer.” She was relatively certain he was out of danger and wouldn’t be getting an infection, but he might just lose his mind from boredom. “We could play a dice game?”

  He grinned. “Do you know any?”

  She shook her head. “No, but I’d be happy to learn.” She hurried to get the dice she’d seen in a drawer, handing them to him upon her return.

  Alex looked down at the dice and rolled them in his hands. “There are many different dice games, but I’ll teach you a simple one.”

  “Because I’m a woman and my mind is simple?”

  “No, because you’re going to lose no matter what game I teach you.”

  Madelina frowned at him. “Why will I lose?”

  “I’m the seventh son of a seventh son. My luck doesn’t allow me to lose games of chance. For it to be a fair game, we would need to play something like chess.” He was certain she’d never played, but it would be good to teach her. It would take time and give them both something to do.

  “Do you have a chess set?”

  He nodded. “In the same room with the dice. There’s a cabinet under the drawer, and if you open it, you’ll see the chess board and pieces.”

  She rushed from the room to fetch it, excited to play. When she came back, he quickly and expertly set up all the pieces. “This was the only game my brothers would play with me,” he explained. “They all hated it when I beat them at every game of chance without even trying.”

  “I can see that.” She sat down across from him and listened to his explanation on how to play. He explained things slowly and carefully as if he thought it would all be too much for her.

  After he’d explained about how each piece moved and about winning the game, it took her five moves to have him in checkmate. He stared down at the board, his eyes narrowed in shock. “What did you just do?”

  “I beat you. Maybe you should ask if someone has ever played a game before you work so hard to explain it in such simplistic terms.” She sat back and grinned at him, pleased with herself for beating him so handily. “I think Letice is waking up. I need to go check on her.”

  He watched her go, a smile on his face. If there was anything that truly impressed him about his wife, it was the fact that she was accomplished at so many things. It was also what scared him the most about her because her accomplishments made her feel powerful.

  Madelina took Alex’s stitches out after a week, but it was a full two weeks before she allowed him to set foot on the training ground again. “If you feel even a twinge, you need to rest more. I don’t want you being in a hurry to ruin the work I did healing you!”

  He clearly didn’t care what she said as he hurried out to the practice yard, ready to work with his men.

  Once he was gone, Madelina looked around for something to do. The servants saw to the cleaning and meals. They even helped with Letice. She needed something to do that would occupy her time. For a brief moment, she wished someone would hurt themselves so she could heal them, but then she realized just how selfish that was.

  Finally, she decided to sit Letice down and work on teaching her to read. The girl was very bright, and there was no reason to wait. It wouldn’t be long before Madelina started having babies, from what Alex’s mother had told her, and she wanted her daughter to be reading competently as soon as she could.

  Letice didn’t seem terribly interested in learning to read, but she truly enjoyed having Madelina’s undivided attention, so she worked to learn. She practiced writing her letters and repeated the sounds the letters made after her mama.

  It took two weeks of concerted effort, but by the end of the second week, she could read a simple sentence. Madelina had decided not to tell Alex w
hat she was doing because it would be a surprise to him.

  When he came in at the end of a long training session, Madelina invited him to the sitting room. “I want to show you something.”

  Alex grabbed her shoulders and kissed the side of her neck. “I’d love to see anything you want to show me . . .”

  She pulled away from him. “There are children about!” She did her best to quiet her quickening heart as she led him into the sitting room.

  When he got into the sitting room, Letice was sitting there waiting for him with a big smile on her face. “I’ve seen her before,” he whispered to Madelina, who sighed.

  “Do you take anything seriously?”

  “Not if I can help it, I don’t!”

  “Sit down beside Letice.” Madelina waved to the spot on the window seat.

  Letice took a page of words that Madelina had given her, and she pointed to each word, reading it aloud.

  When she finished, Alex looked at Madelina with a shocked look on his face. “She learned fast.”

  “She did. She’s a very smart girl.”

  “What am I going to do with two smart women in my life? I think it’s time for us to start having sons, so I won’t be outnumbered!”

  Madelina laughed. “We’ll always be your favorites, though, won’t we?”

  Chapter Eight

  Within two months of getting married, Madelina began losing her breakfast . . . and lunch . . . and supper. She found it difficult to keep anything in her stomach at all. She knew she was expecting, but never had she seen morning sickness quite as bad as hers was, and she couldn’t begin to understand why it was called morning sickness when she was sick every minute of the day and night.

  After a full week of keeping nothing in her stomach, she began to worry that perhaps there was more involved with her illness than just expecting. She was using all the herbs her mother had suggested for a weak stomach during pregnancy, but none of them were working. Could she be expecting and have something else wrong with her?

  She talked to Alex one night while they lay abed after Letice was asleep for the night. “I fear we will have to send for my mother. I cannot stop losing my meals. It’s not good for the babe or for me. If we don’t send for her soon, I might not be well enough to get to the point where I can contact my aunt.”

  He looked at her in alarm. “Are you that worried? Or do you just want to see your mother?”

  At his question, she burst into tears. “How could you even ask me that? You see me not able to keep anything down. My face is white, and I feel like I’m going to vomit every minute of every day? And you think I’m only doing this to see my mother?” Did he not know her at all? She hated being sick!

  He pulled her into his arms, running his hand over her back. “I’m sorry. We’ll go there tomorrow and send for her.”

  Once Madelina started crying, she couldn’t seem to stop. “I’m sorry. I can’t stop the tears!”

  He pulled the covers over their heads to shield them from the rain falling from the ceiling. “That’s all right.” His hand kept moving over her back, and when she fell asleep, the rain stopped. The covers on the bed were soaked, so he went to another room to get something to cover them with, shaking his head. It had been bad when she snowed while embarrassed. If she cried during her entire pregnancy, they would have a very wet home.

  They left Letice with one of the servants the next morning, and Alex pulled Madelina onto his horse to ride in front of him. He was afraid to let her ride on her own in her weakened condition, but he wasn’t sure he would be able to contact her aunt without her help.

  She rested back against him, feeling frail in his arms. It was then he realized that she wasn’t just trying to get her mother there. She was very ill. He rode carefully, the ride taking well over an hour, but he didn’t want to jostle her anymore than absolutely necessary.

  When they got to the point where she could contact her aunt, she bade him to stop. “Auntie?”

  “Madelina? Are you all right? You sound weak.”

  “Send Mother to me. Please. I’m expecting, but nothing will stay in my stomach. I fear I’m going to lose the babe, and I might not make it myself. I’m using the correct herbs, but they aren’t helping.”

  “Wait there, and let me tell your parents what’s happening.”

  Madelina sighed, resting back against Alex. “She’s talking to Mother. I need you to make sure you can connect with her. If I can’t come with you, you may need to come on your own and contact her yourself.”

  His arms hugged her to him. He realized then that she was very worried about her condition. “Are you worried you’ll lose the baby?” he asked.

  She nodded. “The baby and I may not survive. I’ve never seen anyone quite this ill while expecting. The herbs we give expectant mothers aren’t helping at all. There is something wrong.”

  His fear began then. She hadn’t felt the need to go to her mother when he’d been wounded because she’d known she could heal him. Now she was sending for her mother. That meant something. “You’re going to be all right.”

  “I hope so.” She closed her eyes, trying to preserve her strength.

  “Madelina? Your mother told me to let you know she’s on her way. She and your father will leave by horseback immediately. She thinks they can make the journey in two days if they ride hard,” her aunt Christiana told her.

  “All right, Aunt Christiana. It was nice to hear from you.”

  “Hold on ’til your mother gets there. Do you hear me?”

  “I’ll be fine, Auntie. Alex is with me. Would you reach out to him? I want to be sure he can contact you if necessary.” Madelina nestled against Alex, hoping he would take a minute talking to her aunt so she could just rest.

  “It is very odd having someone speak to me in my mind,” Alex said a minute later.

  “She was able to find you then?”

  “Yes. She said that if I concentrate on her face very hard from this spot, she will be able to hear me.” He worried that he wouldn’t be able to do it, but he would definitely try.

  “Usually only she can start a conversation that way. But because I have had so many discussions with her in my mind over the years, I can do it. I hope the same goes for you.” She closed her eyes, ready to sleep as they headed back to the castle. She had no energy for anything else.

  When they got back to the castle, he realized she was asleep and handed her down to his brother Philip, who had come for a visit. “Hold her until I’m down, please.”

  “Is she all right?” Philip asked, staring into the pale face of a woman he’d never seen before.

  “She’s ill. She’s expecting, and she can’t keep anything in her stomach.” Alex swung down from the horse, handing the reins to his stable lad before taking his wife from his brother.

  “And you chose this moment to take her for a ride? You’ve never been the brightest of the seven of us, but I didn’t think you were stupid.”

  Alex sighed. “We rode out to where she could contact her aunt. Her mother is on her way. She’s a skilled healer.”

  “Father told me she could heal with a touch. Is that true?” Philip asked.

  Alex strode toward the castle, determined not to stand in the castle yard having a discussion while holding his sleeping wife in his arms. “I saw her heal a child who was on the verge of death.”

  He went to the sitting room and sat down, carefully arranging Madelina on the window seat beside him. He had his arm around her to hold her in place. “Mayhap I should take her upstairs to sleep.”

  Madelina blinked, looking around her. Her last memory was of being on a horse and talking to her aunt. She saw a stranger in front of her and frowned. “Who’re you?”

  The man laughed. “I’m your husband’s brother. Philip.”

  “Where did you come from?” she asked, very confused. She looked at Alex. “Weren’t we just on a horse?” It was bad enough that she was weak and tired. When he moved her while she slept, it was un
bearable.

  Alex smiled. “We were on a horse. Your mother in on her way. My brother was here when we got back.”

  “I see.” She didn’t, but that was only because her mind didn’t seem to want to focus on anything. “I’m going to make myself an herbal tea. Mayhap that will help.” She’d tried it everyday since she’d begun to feel sick, but she would try it again. Something had to work for her, and she couldn’t just sit around waiting for her mother to arrive. She tried to get up, only to be stopped by Alex.

  “I’ll have one of the servants fetch it for you. Wait here.”

  “I need specific medicines from my bag to go into the boiling water.”

  “Then I will bring you your bag, and someone will bring you boiling water for you to add it. You will not get up.” Alex got to his feet and hurried from the room.

  “My brother cares about you a great deal,” Philip said softly.

  Madelina wasn’t so certain. “I think he just likes knowing that the first of our seven is on the way.”

  Philip shook his head. “No, that’s not it at all. I saw the concern on his face when he was watching you. That wasn’t for the babe. That was for you.”

  “I certainly hope you’re right because the healer in me tells me we’re in for a very difficult year.” Madelina had a hard time believing she was going to have a difficult pregnancy. With all the births she’d helped, it would seem she should have an easier time of it. She didn’t know why it seemed that way, but it did!

  “You’re a healer? I thought your mother was the healer.”

  “My mother has the gift of the healing touch, but she has taught me the use of herbs to make salves and healing medicines. I learned much from her.”

  “I see. You don’t have the healing touch then? What is your power?” he asked, obviously fascinated by her family.

  She smiled. “My power is a bit strange. I control the weather. Often when my emotions get away from me, it will rain or snow indoors.”

  “Really?” He’d never heard of such a thing. “Can you show me?”