There wasn't even a flicker of movement this time. She lay utterly still. Part of him wanted to check her pulse again, but he didn't have time to keep doing that. Maybe they should assume she wasn't injured and get her to the house. They would need to handle her with care.
"It's her arm."
Eric jerked his gaze up at the tiny voice, but he couldn't find its source.
A glance at Jonah showed he might see the person. It must be the boy Eric had seen earlier, though that voice sounded more like a girl’s. A youngster, at any rate.
"What happened to her arm?" Jonah spoke quietly, a kindness in his voice that Eric had never heard from the man.
There was no answer. The child must be behind the trunk of a large tree just beyond the camp. Eric didn't dare move, lest he frighten him—or her.
Jonah must have worried the same, for he eased down to a crouched position, hopefully making himself less menacing.
At last, that small voice came from behind the tree. "She fell."
Eric glanced back at the woman. Had she broken an arm, or was there an open wound? He lifted the edge of the blanket—multi-colored woven thing that was thick, maybe made of wool. He had to lift several more layers of cloth to see her arm. She wore a coat, but the limb he saw wasn't in the sleeve. This must be the injured one.
Still, the fabric of a shirt or dress covered the skin.
He glanced toward the tree where the child hid. Part of a face peered around the side, watching him. "Did her arm bleed like a scrape? Or is the hurt inside, like the bonemight be broken?"
The child hesitated, but finally said. "Inside."
Eric spoke low for Naomi and Jonah. "We have to get her to the house. Maybe we can wrap her upper body in a blanket to hold the arm tight to her."
He started to do that very thing. The thick top blanket was likely critical for keeping her warm. He hated to take any of the covers away from her. He’d wrap his own coat around her as well.
He wouldn't be able to lift and carry her with his injured ribs, but if Jonah could carry her to Eric on his horse and hand her up, he could hold her on the way to the house.
As he unbuttoned his coat, he shared the plan with Naomi and Jonah. Thankfully, neither argued. Jonah turned and strode the way they'd come. "I'll get our horses."
Working with Naomi, they were able to lift the woman's upper body and wrap his coat around her. He thought about buttoning it, but it was so much bigger than her thin frame, even covered with blankets. So they simply wrapped the coat as tightly as they could around her.
While they worked, he glanced toward the tree where the child had stepped farther into view. He had to look twice to decide if it was a girl or boy. The youngster was covered in dirt, with straggly hair falling from a hood, but the features were refined enough that… Yeah, he was pretty sure it was a girl.
Poor thing.
Eric’s chest ached. A young child here with an injured old woman, probably terrified and unable to help. Why hadn't she come to the cabin for aid?
As Naomi moved away and began packing the meager belongings to take with them, he stayed beside the older woman, his focus on the girl as he gentled his voice. "My name is Eric. What's yours?"
Her answer came even more quietly than the others. "Anna."
He smiled. "That's a pretty name, Anna. I'm twenty-five years old. How old are you?"
She spoke more readily this time, maybe a bit more comfortable. "Seven."
"My, you're big for a seven year old." A bit of a falsehood, though he wasn't certain about the average size for a child that age. She was certainly smaller than seven-year-old Sean. He offered Anna another smile. "Is this your grandmother?"
She dipped her chin in a slight nod. "Gamma."
The sound of hooves tromping in snow grew louder, but before he went to help Jonah, Eric gave her one final encouraging smile. "We're going to do everything we can to help your Gamma feel better. Will you come with us to the warm house so you'll be there to talk to her when she wakes up?"
He found himself holding his breath and praying she’d agree. Helping her would be so much easier if she came willingly.
At last, she gave a wary nod.
"Good."
