There I sat as the afternoon cooled, with Silli curled up on a pillow I’d put out for him, sleeping soundly in the warm afternoon sun. He rarely left my side, and now that he’d healed, his busy little personality shone. It turned out, he was quite bossy. And his favorite food was fish eyes. Lucky for me, since I’d not be fighting him for them.
What a fortunate man I was, with a stunning view to call my own, a loaf of bread in one hand and a bottle offinolianale in the other. The ale was going to go bad, so I figured I’d drink up my store of it before that happened. And as for the bread, it was just as delicious as it had smelled yesterday when I was in the Runamvillage. Crusty on the outside, soft and fragrant on the inside, exactly the way the best bread always was.
I had lots of bread now, along with a variety of spices and fruits, vegetables, mushrooms—both dried and fresh—and even some smoked meat that wasn’t fish. I closed my eyes, ripped off another delicious bite, and chewed it slowly. My little act of heroism had changed the hearts and minds of both Maive and the villagers. They’d been grateful to me for saving Tregen and for killing thatcalroid, which had killed two other villagers before, and had sent me home with a basket overflowing with goods.
I wondered how Tregen was doing. I hadn’t gotten a good look at his wound, but?—
“Sir.” B2’s voice interrupted my thoughts.
“What is it?”
“It would appear you have a male visitor arriving from the northwest.”
From the northwest. Had to be a Runam. I took one last bite of bread, then set the loaf and the mug of ale down on the table. With a sigh, I got up to see what my visitor wanted. With any luck, he’d brought more bread.
I walked through my ship-turning-house and out the front door, which faced the scraggly woods. The door was still technically a hatch. I hadn’t changed that yet.
An adult Runam man stood there. He was doing a marginal job at hiding his nervousness, which I gave him credit for. Also, he carried no spear, which I considered a good sign. However, he didnothave any bread on him.
“My name is Pasek,” the man said, meeting my gaze despite the tension in his face. I imagined he had drawn the short straw, as no one else had wanted to come out alone and speak with me. “I’m one of the fishermen from the village. Maive sent me.”
I swallowed my bread and crossed my arms. “Hello, Pasek. What’s the reason for this visit?”
His brow creased. “I was sent to ask for your help.”
I resisted an eye roll but could not help myself when it came to a snarky reply. “Is that so? What can I—a mercenary and a killer, retired but hardly relevant—do for the good people of your village?”
Color suffused Pasek’s tan skin, but to his credit, he didn’t blink. “Tregen’s wound is not healing and Maive fears there’s an infection our medicines aren’t strong enough to fight.” Pasek drew in his breath, seeming to prepare for the next bit. “Maive inquires if you have something better on your ship with which to heal him.”
I considered him in thoughtful silence for a moment. I did, in fact, have something that would work better than whatever mashed-up herbs or poultices, or absurd rituals, they thought would heal a wound like the one Tregen had received. My med bed could repair almost anything, but I also had a handheld device that I’d brought along on particularly perilous missions, one that could be used in the field. It killed bacteria and stimulated healing, but it couldn’t fix really bad wounds. I didn’t know how bad Tregen’s wound was. Pasek had just begun to look panicky when I finally replied. “I have something that might help, but I can’t promise anything.”
Pasek’s relief was palpable. He let out a shaky breath and ran a hand over his face. “Thank you,” he said. “I will return to the village and let them know.” Then he looked up with a stricken expression, suddenly realizing that I had never said I would lend it to them. “Can I tell them you’ll be coming to the village soon?”
I spared him a smile. “Yes, lad. Let me dig it out of storage, make sure it’s charged, and I’ll be along as soon as I can.”
Pasek closed his eyes briefly and nodded. “Tregen is my brother. On behalf of my family and the village, we’re grateful for your help.”
“Again, I can’t guarantee it will save him. If the infection has spread through his body, he’ll need something stronger.” I did not mention that stronger meant bringing the poor, sick young man out here to my home and putting him in a sealed, sterile bed for several days while nanobots flooded his body and fixed whatever internal damage he was dealing with.
“We’re thankful for anything that could help,” Pasek said in a quiet voice. Then, with a nod, he turned and headed back toward the village at a light jog.
I watched his retreating back and felt Silli tittering by my feet. “No, you’re not going with me to the village,” I said. “I know you don’t like being left alone, but this is not the time.” I had to be lonely or losing my sanity if I was explaining myself to an animal that didn’t understand a word I said. And doubly so for getting entangled with a village full of wholesome people, and their impossibly appealing leader.
Chapter
Seven
Healers don’t get days off
I arrived at the village,having taken the same route as last time. Though I was less worried about how I’d be received, I still took the precaution of concealing my knife in the back of my pants, just in case. I didn’t believe for a second that these people were savvy enough to engineer some sort of trap,orthat they wanted to. They needed something from me and I had it, tucked inside a padded satchel that hung from a strap slung across my chest.
A small group greeted me at the edge of the village, where the forest ended and their little civilization began. Two females and a male led me into the village like they were heading some sort of procession, shooing people out of the way who came out to gawk and shushing the ones that wanted to ask questions. It was like having a team of short, ineffective bodyguards.
The first time I was here, I was so focused on the hostility that I didn’t notice the actual village. But this time I had that luxury. I felt safe enough to simply observe. What I saw was a clean, organized town with a decent layout and buildings madeof different materials. I saw some made of wood, some made of salvaged metal, some of stone and mortar, and most of them were a combination of all of it. There were some materials I didn’t recognize at all, but every structure had a similar look: hexagonal, with narrow, vertical windows. The paths—or rather, roads—were fairly narrow, except for the central square, and made of packed stone. They were smooth enough, and overall, the village was clean and tidy.
My eyes caught on lights, so there had to be a power source somewhere. Nothing extravagant, just enough for illumination and maybe a few other necessities that made life easier. I wasn’t seeing people suffering from disease or starvation, unlike most “civilized” locations in the quadrant. It made me envy this place a little, and the people who lived here. Maive was doing something right, as all of her people appeared fed and healthy. Perhaps, with the exception of the patient I was here to see.
The trio of escorts stopped outside a large stone building that sat prominently on the square. They opened the doors for me to enter, and I did so, striding into a wide, open room. The ceiling was higher than they needed to be, considering the height of these people. Pillars held up the story above—I guessed maybe three or four stories total. This struck me as an all-purpose room for gatherings and such. It was big enough to hold probably most of the village if they really packed in. There was some seating, several long tables for dining, and on a bed near one of the windows lay Tregen. Maive sat on a chair beside him, along with Pasek, whom I’d met, and an older male who was dressed in plain white clothes. I guessed he was some kind of healer. He appeared tired and dejected.
