“It has been a couple of hours. I tried to keep him awake, Jennie, but he kept falling asleep.”
“Alex,” she shouted in his face. “You listen to me. You shall not give up. Do you hear me?” She poked her finger into his chest, tears beginning to clog her voice. “‘Tis too early for you, you need to stay here. You have not even met your first grandson yet. How could you think about leaving all of us? Your lads still need you and so do your lassies. Do you not want to meet your grandson, the future laird of your clan?”
She gave a few curt instructions to those around her to get him into the keep. Jamie helped his mother out of the cart.
“Alex, I’m warning you.Wake up.”
He stirred and opened his eyes. “Mayhap I’d prefer a grandlassie first.”
Jennie laughed and kissed his cheek. “I love you, Alex. Do not go, please? Aye, you may have a granddaughter if the heavens abide your wishes.”
They used another large blanket to get Alex inside, though he was too pale to Jamie’s liking. At least they had made it. He’d had been petrified he would die on the journey here.
Aunt Jennie could save him, he had faith in her.
An hour later, he was pacing the Cameron great hall when the door flew open with a bang. He rushed over to the door, blurting out the only thing he could think of at the moment. “Did you find her?”
He knew the answer by the look in Aunt Caralyn’s face, wet with tears. Uncle Robbie said, “Nay. We had a possible trail with one other horse, but with all the horses in the area for the war, it was impossible to trail her. She has not come here? We’d hoped she might have ridden in this direction.”
Jamie said, “Nay.” His belly churned so hard he thought he might be ill. Images of the worst possible scenarios flashed through his mind—wild boars, reivers, Simon de La Porte. Nay, he could not let that happen. He had to find his wife.
“I’ll go search outside for her,” Kenzie said. “I’ll not give up until I find her.”
He started to say, “Kenzie, I doubt she’s…” but Loki clasped his shoulder.
“Let him go. ‘Twill give the lad something to do.”
Kenzie dashed out of the hall. As soon as he left, Uncle Robbie asked, “My brother? How is he?”
“Aunt Jennie’s checking him now,” Jamie said, running a hand through his hair. “It does not look good. He’s pale and weak. He only awakened when Aunt Jennie yelled at him. Tell me which trail you followed. I’m going back out after Gracie.”
“I’ll go with you,” Finlay got up from the trestle table and said, “She has to show up somewhere.”
They headed to the chamber when the door flew open a second time. Aunt Brenna flew past him with a short, “Greetings, all. I must go to my sister’s healing chamber.” Uncle Quade, Uncle Logan, and Aunt Gwyneth followed. The Ramsays had arrived. The churning in his belly slowed at their presence. Aunt Brenna was still renowned as one of the best healers in all the land, and she had taught Aunt Jennie. The aunts working together gave him new hope, gave them all hope.
Uncle Robbie said, “Nice work, Logan. That was fast.”
Uncle Logan wiped the grime from his face with his plaid. Logan’s gaze searched everyone in the hall, catching the slow but unenthusiastic nods. “He’s still that bad?”
Slow nods followed.
Uncle Robbie said, “Glad to see you came along with my sister, Quade. How are your joints?”
“Riding horseback is easy. I know how she loves her brother, and after we heard how bad he is, I had to come. Fill me in while they work on him.”
Jamie said, “Finlay, I’m going to check with my mother, then we’ll head out.”
His pacing slowed as he approached the room they’d been referring to as the sick chamber. Aedan Cameron stepped out of the chamber as he approached it. “Jamie, go on inside. I must go greet Quade and Logan. Have faith in your aunts. I do.”
Jamie stepped inside the chamber, the smell making him wish to run the other way. He had no idea how healers could do what they did. His mother rushed up to him and grasped his hand.
He whispered, “Any change?”
“Hush, listen to Aunt Brenna for a moment.”
Aunt Brenna and Aunt Jennie peered at the wound on the right side of Alex’s belly.
“Based on the book that Aedan gave me, I think this is his liver,” Jennie said, “and that looks to be where most of the damage is. ‘Twas a clean stab. It did not go through the entire organ to his back.”
