“Ye are strange men intruding upon me home. ‘Tis a small island and we are nae accustomed tae strangers,” Freya insisted, clearly irritated.
“Shall we mark that as a ‘nay’ then? We have plenty of reports from the villagers that ye have had a man here, washed up andin need of yer healing.” The middle solider continued, looking rather proud of himself.
“And? What of it? I dinnae ask me patients why they need healing, I just heal them.”
“Ye mean tae imply that the man came here tae ye fer healing, and then has been on his way?”
Freya hoped she looked a lot braver than she currently felt as she stepped aside. “As ye can see, I am here alone.”
“Then why nae tell us what ye ken?”
“Because, as I said, I dinnae trust ye. Ye are a stranger tae me,” she replied, feeling bolder as they started to shrink away from her temper. “But since ye willnae leave me alone until ye’re satisfied, the man I treated woke up the other morning, saying he had an urgent need tae return home and left before the sun was up.”
The three of them exchanged nervous glances, shifting from one foot too the other before turning back to her. Clearly, they were very displeased with that information indeed. “And where did he go?”
She shifted her hands to her hips. “How should I ken?”
“Because ye had tae see him leave! Tell us what direction he went!” They demanded.
“And that is how ye speak tae a lady? I’m sure yer maithers are all right proud of yer tongues.” Freya chastised.
“Can ye give us the direction?”
Freya rolled her eyes and nodded her head in a random direction to lead them far away from the village.
“And he went on foot?”
“Unless he pulled a horse from somewhere unmentionable, then aye.”
“Ye have quite a mouth on ye.” One of them said as the others started to move away from her. She didn’t dare push them any further as they finally turned to leave. She waited until they had long since disappeared over the far hill before shutting her door and locking it once more. She hurried around the cabin, yanking all the curtains shut and ensuring there was no way snooping ears or eyes could see into the hut before she opened the root cellar, exposing the cold, paling man below.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The risk Freya was putting herself in on his behalf was excessive.
Even just attempting to lift him up off the ground with her small frame was too much, and he knew it. But she was a strong woman in more than one way as she hefted his arm over her shoulders and grit her teeth to pull him towards the bed. He tried to help her as much as he could. The cooking she had been doing over the last few days for him had almost made him feel like a new. Perhaps she had put medicine in the food as well. He wouldn’t have been surprised.
Freya huffed and puffed as they staggered back toward the bed, and lowered him onto it. He had managed to work up a sweat with something so simple. He might not know who he was, but knew for certain he was not normally out of shape.
“I will set off in the morning,” he said when he caught his breath.
Freya didn’t seem to take him seriously for even half of a second. “Nonsense. Ye shall dae nay such thing.”
She was already checking over his wounds, lifting his shirt where it was necessary to further examine him, and he had to pull the fabric out of her hands. “Ye have done more than enough fer me. I dinnae mean tae trouble ye any longer than I already have. I dinnae ken what those men were looking fer, but I’ll nae have ye get in trouble on me account.”
“Ye meanmoretrouble?” Freya smirked as she lowered his shirt and fetched the wash bowl and cloths to remove the dirt from where he had been lying. When she was close enough, he pulled her hand lower.
“Aye, that’s exactly what I mean.” Nathan insisted. “It’s nay longer safe fer me tae be here with ye.”
“Ye can barely stand.” She waved off his words as if they were nothing at all. “Ye cannae think ye will get far in yer condition.”
“I will manage.” Nathan insisted, pushing forward slowly as if to stand, even though his empty stomach started to clench with the effort as he tried to push upright from the bed. “Dinnae fash, lass.” He tried to smile, to reassure her. “I thank ye fer everything that ye have done. When the time comes that I can repay ye fer yer kindness, that is exactly what I shall dae.”
“Ye cannae be serious!” Freya protested as Nathan pushed stubbornly to his feet. “Ye dinnae even ken who ye are! Wheredae ye think ye’re going? This is an island! They dinnae ken ye’re here. Ye might as well rest!”
“I will figure it out, and I certainly cannae figure out who I am sitting here in this hut.” Nathan continued, reaching for—well, he didn’t even know what it was he was looking for. All he knew was that he couldn’t stay there where it would keep causing her more issues. First with the villagers and now with whoever those men were.
“What if ye get sick again, or come down with a fever? What will ye do then?!” Freya continued, moving behind him as he slowly staggered around the room as if he had belongings to collect.
