The same stars that shine over my house, she thought.And yet so far removed that I might as well be on another planet.
Homesickness washed through her so strongly that she felt tears gathering in her eyes again and she dashed them away irritably. She couldn’t afford to indulge in self-pity. She had to keep moving, keep putting one foot in front of the other until she found a way out of this nightmare.
She closed her eyes. There was no way she would get any sleep tonight. No way at all.
She awoke to bright morning sunlight pouring into the barn. She blinked her eyes open groggily and stared up at the rafters for a moment, waiting for her brain to clear the fog. At the sight of the warped wood and badly-fitting tiles, her stomach sank.
Oh. So it hadn’t all been a bad dream then.
Beyond the hanging blanket, she heard the men moving around and talking in low voices, as if they didn’t want to wake her. She heard the crackle of the fire and then a sizzle as something was thrown into a pan. A moment later, the delicious smell of frying bacon reached her nostrils.
Throwing back her blankets, she sat up and yawned. Her eyes felt grainy and a dull ache throbbed in her back, but it was nothing she wasn’t used to. Taking deep breaths, she began her morning ritual, running through the exercises and stretches that her physio had insisted she do each day. The familiar, repetitive task calmed her a little, helped her ground herself. She might be hundreds of years from home, but some things were the same.
When she was ready, she pulled back the blanket and stepped out into the room. Emeric was sitting by the fire, frying the bacon, and Magnus was rolling up their bedding. There was no sign of Oskar.
“Ah! Morning, lass!” Magnus rumbled. “I’d ask if ye slept well, but I think that might be a stupid question, eh?”
“Morning,” she replied. “Actually, I think I did manage to snatch a few hours’ sleep.”
“Huh,” Emeric grunted. “Then ye did better than me. It’s difficult to sleep with Magnus snoring like a hog all night.”
“I dinna snore!” Magnus said indignantly.
“Oh, ye do, my friend,” Emeric replied. “Ye sound like someone sawing through a tree trunk.”
Magnus glared at him but was prevented from answering by the door opening. Oskar came in, carrying a stack of firewood in his muscled arms. He’d obviously just washed—or it was raining outside—as his hair was plastered to the sides of his face and there were drops of water running down his neck. He started when he saw Lily and for some stupid reason she felt her pulse quicken as he looked at her. He tore his gaze away and dumped the firewood in the corner.
“About bloody time,” he snapped. “I thought the three of ye were going to sleep all day. The sun has been up almost an hour.”
“And good morning to ye too,” Magnus said.
Oskar grunted and seated himself cross-legged by the fire. He hiked a thumb over his shoulder. “Anyone checked on him this morning?”
“Aye,” Emeric responded. “And he’s just as charming as always.”
Oskar’s eyes flicked to Lily and away again. He’d seated himself on the opposite side of the fire from her and Lily wondered if this was deliberate. It wasn’t where he’d slept—he’d chosen a spot right outside her hanging blanket almost as though he was guarding her. She wondered if that had been deliberate too.
Emeric dished out the fried bacon and handed her a tin plate with some slices of bread and a small dollop of butter on it aswell. She nodded her thanks and then proceeded to make herself a bacon sandwich. Magnus handed over a small pottery beaker and when she took a sip, she was surprised to find weak beer rather than water. Still, it didn’t taste too bad and helped to wash down the coarse bread.
She was surprised at how famished she was and she finished the sandwich in just a few quick bites. The food made her feel infinitely better. So much better, in fact, that she thought she might actually be able to face the day.
Emeric nodded at a plate of bacon he’d set aside. “Anyone volunteering to take our guest his breakfast?”
“I’ll do it,” Lily said. “I need to change his dressing anyway.”
She climbed creakily to her feet and winced as flashes of pain went down her back and legs. It was always the worst in the mornings. She saw Oskar’s quick look of concern, but before he could ask any uncomfortable questions, she took the plate of bacon and carried it into the other room.
She found Alfred Brewer awake and scowling at her from where he was tied to the post.
“Good morning,” she said brightly.
“Is it?” he snapped. “Canna say as it seems very good to me.”
“Did you manage to get any sleep?” she asked, determined to keep the encounter pleasant, despite her patient’s glower.
“What do ye think? Would ye get any sleep tied to this post?”
“Yeah. Sorry about that.”
