Princess Electra Book 4 School of Medicine

by Dory Lee Maske

  Chapter 10

  Helsop

  Electra sat at the dining table in the school of medicine, trying to communicate with Odval through her translator, Magsa. Odval was not dressed for their hike into the forest even though Electra had announced the excursion the night before.

  "Tell her that this trip into the forest will be enjoyable. We will be collecting herbs to bring back to make into medicines."

  Magsa sighed and tried again to translate Electra's words. She listened to Odval's reply and shook her head.

  "Odval say you must give better charm. Last charm no good. Only half way baby."

  Electra was stunned. "Half way baby? Did Odval lose a baby?"

  Magsa shook her head in a tilted side to side motion. "No lose. Baby come too soon. No live."

  Electra realized what must have happened. Odval became pregnant after Electra gave her the fertility charm. Then she miscarried. Now she was here to get a stronger fertility charm. One that would give her a full-term baby.

  "Tell Odval I am so sorry she lost her baby. Tell her fertility charms do not really work. What she needs are herbal teas and good food. If she is healthy she will likely have a healthy baby."

  Magsa looked at Electra with a doubtful expression. She spoke again to Odval. Odval listened with tears in her eyes and spoke rapidly in the Barburee language.

  Magsa looked sternly at Electra. "She say Bataar have more gold coins. You make good charm this time. She healthy now."

  Electra closed her eyes and gathered her patience. Trying to reason with Odval was very like trying to reason with Bataar. "Tell her I will make her another charm if she will drink the teas we make from the herbs we gather in the forest."

  Magsa was eager to translate this concession to her mistress. After a long conversation in the Barburee tongue, she translated Odval's reply. "You say yes, she say yes."

  "Good. I will find Isa and Laleh while the two of you get ready."

  Electra stood up before Odval could think of an excuse. She seemed reluctant to accompany the others into the forest but had not explained why.

  Isa rushed in through the door of the school, just as Electra was on her way to find Isa.

  "The soldiers have picked up two girls coming out of Henge, trying to sneak into Helsop. They say they are friends of yours. They are being held at the command post for questioning."

  "Two girls from Henge?" The only person Electra knew from Henge was Serafina. Then she remembered the gypsy girls she had known from her youth in Chase Bound. The same girls Serafina suspected of aiding Shandor in his escape from the dungeon. "Are their names Juanita and Esmeralda?" she asked.

  "Yes," Isa answered. "You do know them, then?"

  "I do know them. Tell Laleh and Odval our trip to the forest may be delayed. I will go to the command post."

  Electra ran to the command post. Juanita and Esmeralda were standing outside with Deimos, who waved to her as he walked toward her.

  "I was just going to bring them over to the school," he said. "Do you know them?"

  "Yes, I know them," Electra said. "Thank you, Deimos, I'll take them back with me."

  Deimos nodded and walked back to the command post.

  Electra looked kindly at the two disheveled girls. "You came alone to Helsop from Henge?" she asked with a gentle voice.

  They both nodded. Esmeralda looked to be on the verge of tears. Juanita retained her stubborn demeanor but her eyes were downcast. Their clothes were stained and rumpled, as though they had slept in them.

  Electra walked with the girls back to the school. She sat them down at the table and brought them hot tea before asking any more questions.

  After the girls had eaten cheese and bread and drank several cups of tea, Electra cleared her throat. The gypsy girls waited.

  "Tell me what happened," Electra said.

  "Serafina threw us out. That's what happened," Juanita said. Her bitterness helped to keep the tears at bay.

  "For helping Shandor escape?" Electra asked.

  "You knew!" Juanita exclaimed. "You might have told us." The anger flashed in her eyes."

  "Serafina suspected he had help to escape. She knew you were his friends. I do not believe she knew for certain."

  Esmeralda's face was wet with tears. "She told us she knew we helped him. She said the penalty for that was death. She said if we lied to her we could take Shandor's place in the dungeon. Then she asked us why old King Blackwell asked Take to come and see him." Esmeralda sniffed and wiped her eyes with her wrist. "We had to leave without telling anyone. We've been walking for two days. Without anything to eat and only water from streams."

  Esmeralda seemed close to hysteria. Electra took her hand. "You are safe here. We will look after you."

  Esmeralda looked up with a little hope. Then she looked around at the school. "Where are we? What is this place?"

  "This is a school of medicine."

  Juanita looked around as well. "You go to school here?"

  "It is my school," Electra said. "I am the teacher here."

  "Where are your students?" Juanita asked.

  "I only have three so far. They are most likely in their rooms."

  Juanita stood up. "I thought everyone in Helsop was starving. Where did this school come from?"

  "Dagon built it for me. I am a physician now."

  "First a princess, now a physician. You are a busy girl." Juanita walked over to the kitchen area. "We have some experience now as kitchen helpers."

  Esmeralda brushed her hand through her hair and smiled. "Yes! Yes we do. We are quite good in the kitchen now."

  "Have you ever considered learning herbal medicine?" Electra asked.

  "We are Traveler girls," Juanita answered. "We tell fortunes and we dance. We also know a good bit about herbs."

  "I doubt if your skills in fortune telling and dancing would earn you a living here in Helsop," Electra said with a wry expression, "but perhaps we could work something out if you wished to enroll as students—perhaps some work in the kitchen and some work in the clinic."

  Juanita showed her surprise. "You must be desperate for students, but we're in no position to argue. We accept."

  "Let me show you where you will be staying. And you can meet your fellow students."

  Electra led the way into the dormitory. Something Esmeralda said nagged at her mind.

  "Why did old King Blackwell want to see Take?" she asked.

  "That's what we would like to know, too," Juanita said. "All we know is, we were doing Take a favor, asking around the castle if anyone remembered someone named Finn who might have been Take's father, and that got us called in to explain why we were asking. Old King Blackwell called us in and told us to bring Take to him right away. We did, and that's all we know."

  "Hmmm, curious," Electra said.

  "Was curiosity, killed the cat," Juanita warned.