“I dinnae really want to, but the boy might come faster if we do take her.”
“True. We will see how she fares in the morning.” Sigimor stood and grabbed his wife by the hand, tugging her out of her seat.
Gybbon watched them go and a few moments later two women hurried in to clear away the last of the food. He rose and made his way up the stairs. He was just thinking that Sigimor had not told him where he was to sleep when he noticed a door open and, as he looked into the room, saw his belongings dumped on the bed. He was just about to go inside when he heard a soft scratching.
Walking down the hall, he stopped when he saw a tiny gray paw slide out under the door. He opened the door and found Mora whispering to her cat to come back. Once he stepped inside, the cat ran to the bed. Gybbon walked to the side of Mora’s bed and looked down at her, then sighed. She would not be going with them in the morning. She was pale but there were hints that she was feeling a bit feverish. There were flags of red in her cheeks and her eyes were half shut and far too bright.
“A scratch?” he drawled as he sat on the edge of her bed.
“Well, that was all it felt like and it wasnae so bad when I looked at it and bandaged it. I blame Jester.”
“Why not? I often do. Of course, it wouldnae have been made worse if ye had tended it properly in the beginning.”
Mora just rolled her eyes. “It has been weel tended now. Washed, wrapped, and sewn up neatly and had cream put on it.”
He peeked into the tankard set on her table but saw only a tiny bit of cider. “Did she leave ye a potion to help ye sleep?”
“Nay, I didnae want one.” She glanced at the tankard. “I drank all the cider.”
“I will fetch ye more.”
“Thank ye. When I wake up, I wake up verra thirsty.”
“No need to try and look pleading and pathetic; I said I would fetch ye some.”
“I didnae look either.”
He laughed and bent to kiss her forehead, taking note of how hot it was. “I will bring ye two.”
Mora smiled at his back as he walked away, then lightly touched the place he had kissed. She knew it had just been a friendly brush of his lips, but it had made her heart race. Then again, she thought with a grimace, that could just be the fever she could feel building in her. She closed her eyes, then opened them again fast as she did not wish to be asleep when he returned.
When Gybbon walked in with two tankards of cider he found Mora sitting up against her pillows. She looked asleep but her eyes opened the moment he set the tankards down. Cautiously he sat down on the edge of the bed again.
“Sigimor and I are going to ride out tomorrow and search for your wee brother. So mayhap before ye sink deep into a fever and cannae say anything of sense, ye could tell me where this Aunt Maggie lives and what your wee brother looks like.”
“Weel, Aunt Maggie lives in a wee cottage near the butcher shop. Its door is painted blue and there are flowers all around. Andrew is a bit tall for his age, thin, has hair that is an odd mix of brown, red, and gold, and big blue eyes. He also is ne’er without his soldier.”
“His soldier?”
“Aye. Our da carved him one with a big broadsword and Andrew always has it with him. If ye think the boy ye find is Andrew, just ask to see his soldier. He will have it on him somewhere. Says it is his protector, which is what Da said, I think. He is a painfully shy child and my da thought it might give him the courage to be a little less so. He calls it the Bruce.”
“That will do. Anything we can use to convince this Aunt Maggie we are safe?”
“Ah, that is a bit harder. Ye could say something about Freya, I think. Oh!” She sat up a little straighter. “Ye can say something my father said a lot. Checkmate! Time for another game.”
“I can remember that. It could be that she may have an idea of what Sigimor looks like.”
“My mother most assuredly told her about him, but I think just his name, size, and red hair will be enough.”
“Then we should be successful.” He reached out and held her hand because what he had to say next might prove hard for her to hear. “If we cannae find your Aunt Maggie and the boy has been left alone, where would be a likely place for him to hide?” He felt her hand clench on his but could see she was thinking hard.
“There is an old oak at the back of the rear garden at the manor, looks half dead. It is hollow inside and Andrew can climb way, way up into that hollow part and stay there. All of us had to swear on his soldier that we wouldnae ever tell anyone about that as he needed a safe place and that was it. But I might be better in the morning and ye can take me with ye.”
“Ye ken ye are a little feverish, right?”
“Aye. Just a wee bit though.”
“Weel, having suffered a few wounds in my time, I believe it will get worse before it starts to get better.”
