Emelie looked around, but there was no other way out of the garden, and the angry colony was moving toward her. With a scream, she dashed toward marigolds, knowing they repelled wasps. But the swiftest flying insects were already attacking. Emelie fought the temptation to swat away the stinging bugs and kept running toward what she hoped would be a sanctuary. She felt the sharp pain on the outside of her shoulder, on her neck, her cheek, and her back. She dove into the patch of marigolds and did what she could to hide among the petals.
Without a large target, the wasps filled the air, but no longer attacked. Emelie huddled in pain until something crashed through the flower garden. Before she knew what was happening, powerful hands pulled her from the ground and swathed her in a thick plaid. She knew without looking that it was Dominic who carried her. He ran toward the gate and into the bailey. He didn’t slow until he reached the steps to the keep.
“Open the bluidy door,” Dominic bellowed to someone Emelie couldn’t see. “Fetch Nora.”
Dominic’s heart pounded more from fear than exertion. He and Brodie ran into Laurel as they returned from surveying the storm’s damage to the village. Laurel was in the middle of telling the men that Emelie went to cut flowers when they heard Emelie scream. Dominic hadn’t waited, but he was forced to watch in horror as the stinging insects attacked Emelie. He couldn’t understand why she was running further into the garden until he saw her dive into the marigolds. While he ran, he yanked the pin from his shoulder, dropping it somewhere in the garden. He drew the extra yards of fabric loose, never so grateful to be a large man than in that moment, knowing his plaid was longer than average.
“Dom,” Emelie wheezed. “Can’t breathe.”
“No, Em. No. Nora will be here. Hang on, sparrow.”
“Too hot. Too tight,” Emelie gasped.
Dominic looked down and realized that between his hold on his wife and his plaid, he was nearly suffocating her. He fumbled and pulled the wool from her face, shocked to see the swelling on her cheek. He could see the stinger protruding from her downy flesh. When he reached their chamber, he kicked the door open, unable to reach the handle. It splintered from its frame, and he knew it would need repairing, but he cared not. He lowered Emelie to her feet and pulled at her laces. She stood trembling as he stripped her bare and began pulling stingers from her. When he got all that he could see, he carried her to the bed. Nora arrived just as Emelie whimpered and tried to roll onto her stomach.
“Vinegar, honey, and lavender,” Nora commanded to anyone available. She rushed to Emelie’s side and ran her withered hands over Emelie’s back, barely touching her patient. Dominic paced as Nora found stingers he hadn’t. Laurel arrived with the requested supplies but frowned when she couldn’t shut the door completely. She glanced at Dominic but said nothing. Nora ordered over her shoulder, “Lad, fetch the basin and drying linens.”
With the supplies she needed, Nora soaked the linens in vinegar and laid them across Emelie’s back and shoulders. She dabbed the foul-smelling liquid on Emelie’s face where the wasps stung her more than once by the time she and Dominic left the garden. With a moan, she reached out her hand. Laurel took it, but Emelie pulled away.
“Dom,” Emelie whispered. He was across the room and kneeling beside the bed before Emelie could turn her head to look at him.
“Wheesht, sparrow. I’m nae going anywhere. I’m here.”
“Did you get stung?”
Dominic had, but he would say nothing about it. He was too frightened for Emelie to draw any attention away from her. He glanced at Nora, relieved to see the woman moving efficiently but without haste.
“As long as she keeps breathing easily, Lady Emelie will be right as rain. But she’ll be in pain for a while. The vinegar will take the burn away. Then I’ll lather honey on the stings to help them heal. Lavender oil later tonight or in the morn will take away the last of the pain. But someone must stay with Lady Emelie to be sure she doesnae get worse.”
No one had to explain what Nora meant. There would be nothing any of them could do if her breathing grew labored, and her throat swelled. Dominic accepted the chair Laurel offered. He wouldn’t leave Emelie’s side until he was certain she would recover. Emelie released Dominic’s hand and reached toward his shoulder, but her arm was long enough.
“You did get stung. Nora, please tend to Dom. I’m fine,” Emelie mumbled against the pillow.
“It’s only a couple, Em. I dinna need tending. Let Nora work.”
“Will you lie beside me?”
“Aught that ye want.” Dominic moved around the bed and slipped onto it beside Emelie. He lay as close as he dared and placed her hand over his heart, covering her hand with both of his. He needed the contact as much as she did. Laurel left with no one noticing, and Nora changed the vinegar-soaked linens thrice before she scooped globs of honey and smeared it over Emelie’s wounds. Emelie was asleep by the time Nora finished, her mind and body too exhausted to fight.
“Let me see yers,” Nora whispered. Dominic sat up and pulled his leine off. He had a few on his chest from running into the swarm. He grunted with discomfort when Nora wiped them with vinegar. But her touch was gentle when she applied the honey. “She’ll be all right, lad. It’s bad, but she’s breathing easy. Just stay with her. And before ye get yerself in a right fit, she and the bairn will be fine.”
“Can ye say that with certainty?”
“Aye. Yer bride isnae the first woman carrying who’s been stung. She is the first person I’ve seen stung that many times who hasnae shed a tear.” Nora patted Dominic’s shoulder and dropped a kiss on his forehead as she had countless times when he injured himself or was sick as a child. She’d been more like a grandmother than the village healer to both Brodie and him. “I’ll leave ye. She’s sleeping soundly, so she willna hear ye if ye wish to have a good cry. I willna tell anyone, and I dinna blame ye if ye do. Ye’ve both had a right nasty scare.”
“Thank ye, Nora,” Dominic croaked.
Nora tsked when she reached the door and shook her head, but she pulled it closed as best she could when she left. Dominic rolled onto his side and stroked Emelie’s hair while she slept. Silent tears fell as he looked at his wife. It had terrified him that he wouldn’t reach Emelie in time, and they’d never had reason to talk about whether either of them had been stung before. He didn’t know if she was one of those people who died from the stings. There were far more wounds than he’d found, and he wasn’t convinced Nora was right, though he trusted the healer with his life and Emelie’s. But as he lay there, he felt useless. Emelie slept, so he knew she wasn’t in pain. However, he was certain she would be when she awoke, and there would be nothing he could do.
“Dom,” Emelie mumbled as she opened one eye. “She said we would be all right. Stop whittling. Just stay with me. That’s all I need from you.”
“Whatever ye wish, sparrow.”
“Kiss.”
Dominic pressed a soft kiss to Emelie’s lips before she drifted back to sleep. His mind ticked over as he remained awake. He wanted to know why the wasps attacked Emelie. As long as no one disturbed their hive, wasps normally left people alone. He knew Emelie wouldn’t be foolish enough to tamper with the insects’ home. He heard the evening meal belowstairs, and he allowed a maid in with a tray, but Emelie slept, and he wasn’t interested in the food.
At some point, he fell asleep. He woke to Brodie shaking his shoulder. Dominic glanced at Emelie to make sure the sheet and blanket properly covered her. The sheet laid around her waist, but she remained on her belly. Dominic could see the swell of her breast from the side, but he knew his brother wouldn’t look. He didn’t want it to embarrass Emelie once she knew Brodie had visited.
