“If she brings him comfort, he’ll have a better chance. Cats’ purrs can speed up healing, me Laird,” Thalia spoke up.
“That settles it.” Ava crossed her arms over her chest, daring her husband to defy her. “The cat stays.”
His eyes narrowed on her, but then he nodded once. “Fine, as ye wish.”
Thalia tiptoed past them. “If ye two are going to fight, I insist that ye do it outside.”
Ava’s mouth dropped open.
“It’ll do the lad nay good to hear ye arguing and bickering. In fact, it will make things worse. So, if ye must fight, do it outside, where he cannae hear ye. Understood?”
Ava was both impressed and slightly hurt by her sister’s words, but she nodded.
“Sorry,” they both muttered.
Everyone gathered around the bed and watched Thalia work. Ava refused to let go of Nathan’s hand when Thalia asked. Caden gripped the bedpost like it was the only thing keeping him upright.
“It’s definitely a fever.” Thalia tapped a finger on her chin. “He hasnae come into contact with a sick person. And he hasnae eaten anything unusual today, correct?” she asked.
“Aye, except for the muffin. But we buy pastries from the bakery all the time.”
Thalia nodded and looked at Finlay. “Go get Teresa and Mary, please. Maybe they can help us find the cause of his fever.”
“What does that matter?” Caden asked.
“I need to ken what caused the fever before treating him, me Laird. The fever may be a symptom of food poisoning,” Thalia explained while unpacking her kit of herbs and medicine. “In the meantime, we must cool him. We’ll do it slowly, so as nae to cause him too much discomfort.”
Thalia took linens and soaked them in cool water before placing them on Nathan’s forehead. She returned to her kit and started grinding herbs with a mortar and pestle.
“What is that?” Ava asked, curious.
“Willowbark for the pain. Yarrow for the fever. Pray this works.”
Thalia let the mixture steep in hot water for a few minutes. Nathan let out a pained moan when they sat him up to drink the tea.
Mary and Teresa entered quickly. After a brief exchange, they took Finlay and Thalia out to the village to investigate what could have caused this fever.
Caden and Ava found themselves alone for the first time in weeks.
Anger at Ava for being so reckless with Nathan flared in Caden’s chest. He wanted it to fester.
It was certainly easier than doing the right thing: acknowledging that accidents happened. He could not—wouldnot—accept it. His ego screamed that this was her fault.But he could not stay angry at her. She was distraught and refused to leave Nathan’s side.
As the hours passed, Caden allowed himself to watch her for the first time in weeks.He could not help but admire her bravery and devotion. Every action was for the betterment of Nathan. She consistently denied herself and her needs.
The fever refused to break, to his dismay. Ava refreshed the linens, and Caden retrieved more cool water while they waited for news.
Hours later, Thalia and Nathan returned.
Thalia produced some odd-looking mushrooms from her skirt.
Ava lifted her head from the edge of the bed, hope flickering in her eyes.“What are those?” she asked groggily.
“The culprit, I believe.” Thalia dumped the mushrooms on the table next to her kit. Finlay held up a candle so she could seebetter. “I need to do a few tests to be certain, but I believe Nathan accidentally ingested some spores after dropping his muffin on the mushrooms.”
“He… what?” Ava’s eyes were hazy with confusion. “I daenae understand. Why do the mushrooms matter?”
“These are poisonous mushrooms, Sister. Very deadly. They cause fever and rashes when ingested.” Thalia grimaced.
