And Maxwell, after a moment of stubborn resistance, laughed too. It was a deep, unguarded sound that made Ariella forget how to breathe.
Then the world snapped back into motion.
A loud cry pierced the room, shrouding the space in ice cold fear.
Ewan went sprawling over a stray basket, scraping his knee on the stone, wailing as if he’d been struck by an arrow.
“Ewan!” Ariella said at once, already moving. “Let me see.”
The boy sat on the floor, face crumpled, clutching his knee with both hands.
“It hurts,” he sobbed.
“I ken,” Ariella murmured, kneeling beside him. She gently pried his hands away. “But we’ll fix it. Look at me.”
Ewan sniffed hard and looked up, tears clinging to his lashes.
“That’s it,” she said softly. “Breathe.”
She took his leg carefully, lifting it just enough to see the scrape. The skin was angry red, dotted with grit. Nothing serious, but it stung fiercely and Ewan was young enough for pain to feel like disaster.
Ariella reached for a cloth and a small bowl of warm water.
Moira moved to help, already muttering, “Lads. Always falling. They’re built like sheep.”
Ariella smiled faintly and began cleaning the wound in slow, gentle strokes.
Ewan hissed. “Ow! Ow!”
“I ken,” she said again, voice steady. “It will sting for a moment. Count with me. One… two… three…”
His breathing steadied as he followed her count.
Ariella’s hands did not shake. Her expression stayed calm. She spoke to him while she worked, not with empty reassurance but with the certainty of someone who had done this before.
“Ye ken,” she said conversationally, “I used to get patched up every time I climbed a tree I had nay business climbing. Always scraping me knees and hands.”
Ewan’s sniffle paused. “Yeclimbed trees?”
“Constantly,” Ariella confessed. “I thought I was fearless. Skylar thought I was foolish.”
Moira snorted. “Sounds about right.”
Ariella kept cleaning, then dabbed the scrape with a simple herb-infused salve. “She taught me what plants help the skin heal. How to clean a wound so it doesnae fester. And, most importantly, how to keep someone from panicking.”
Ewan’s eyes widened. “Is Skylar yer sister.”
“Nay,” Ariella said, smiling. “Me cousin. But she felt like one. She still does.”
“Where is she now,” Ewan asked, voice smaller.
Ariella’s smile softened. “She is Lady Crawford now. She lives at Crawford Castle. And she is the healer of the keep.”
Moira glanced over sharply. “Lady Crawford. The one folk say can stitch a man’s flesh like cloth?”
Ariella laughed. “Aye, that’s her.”
Ewan looked impressed. “Does she have a sword?”
