“You had them before you came out here?”
Amber nodded. “We’re crazy but we’re not that crazy.” She smiled cheerfully. “William and I eloped almost ten winters ago. We tried to make it on our own in town.” She shook her head and shrugged. “It was impossible. Everybody knew our families and that they didn’t approve of us. The children came and we needed more for them than we could do for them in town.”
“How did you happen on this place? It’s a trifle out of the way.”
Amber laughed. “That’s a bit of an understatement, mum. It was a place that William knew from huntin’ out here as a boy. About six winters ago, he came out and found it again. Then we set about recruitin’ our friends and fellow castoffs to move out here to start a new town. It took a couple of winters but we finally managed it and here we are.”
While Amber talked, Tanyth took in the hut and its contents. She stood near the foot of the steps and Amber crossed to open the far door to let out the chilly, stale air. A thin patina of dust coated the table and there was a pair of chairs along with what looked like an oil lamp, complete with glass chimney and reflector. Along one wall, a neat collection of shelves held bundles and bags, boxes and crocks. Tanyth turned her gaze upward and realized that more bundles of dried flowers and grasses hung in long hanks from the rafters.
Amber followed her gaze upward and gasped. “My goodness! What are all those?”
“It looks like a particularly well stocked supply of herbs and medicinal plants that has overstayed its time.” Tanyth grimaced. “What a lot of work to go to waste.”
“How do you know it’s gone to waste, mum?”
“There may be a few things we can salvage here, but most things lose their strength if left too long.” She waved a hand at the hanging materials. “This stuff all looks like it’s been up there since last winter, or longer, and there’s probably little that can be saved. The dust, if nothing else.” She shrugged helplessly. “If there’d been anything that wasn’t too far gone, we would have smelled it when we walked in. We didn’t, so…” Her voice trailed off. “These all must be things that Mother Alderton gathered in the summer and fall of last year, never to be used.”
Amber looked somberly at all the dried goods hanging from the rafters. “She died shortly after the Ice Moon. We just kept the cabin closed after that. There was no need to come in here.”
Tanyth looked at Amber and then back at the rafters. “Pity. You might have gotten some use from this, if you’d known what you were doing with it.” She said it wistfully and crossed to look at the containers along the wall. Each was labeled in a spidery handwriting of uncertain provenance but showed the contents and a date. Tanyth realized that Mother Alderton must have been very busy right up to her death.
“You say the flux took her?” Tanyth turned to look at Amber when she asked.
Amber shrugged helplessly. “We think it was the flux, but when your healer gets sick, how can you be sure?”
A cot stood in the corner and a porcelain lady’s chamber pot was visible under it. The cot’s rope bracing was exposed by a complete lack of mattress and it looked somehow indecent, exposing the china resting underneath.
Tanyth crossed back to the hearth and noted that it had been cleaned and swept some time ago. A fine layer of dust had built up on the fire scorched stones. The andirons and pot hanger were clean and free of rust. Small rodents had wandered through the dust at one point, leaving small turdlets in the trail. She ducked her head and looked up the chimney to see a well crafted fire shelf and throat beyond which was just black.
“The chimney is blocked?” She straightened and dusted her hands against her pants, looking to Amber for the answer.
“William put a cap on it last winter when we lost Mother Alderton. It kept the animals and weather out.”
Tanyth stood on the hearth stone and looked around at the hut. “I’ll need to stay for a day or two to get you settled with some simples.” She looked at Amber. “May I use this cottage for now?”
Amber looked confused but as realization dawned, joy swept the listless frown away. “Of course, mum! Of course. As long as you want to stay.”
Tanyth looked around the room once more. “Well, my dear, let’s not get too carried away just yet. We’ll see what we’ll see, huh? And we’ll want to talk about the terms before we get too far along.”
“Terms, mum?”
“Come, come, my dear. You’re a goldsmith’s daughter. There are always terms.” Tanyth smiled at Amber to take away any sting. “For now, we have a sick woman who’ll need care, and I’ll help you learn a few simple things like how to gather willow bark and make tea. We can probably find some other simples in the area.” She cast her eyes up to the rafters. “I see cattail and burdock up there and some bundles of mint. I’m sure we’ll find others as we go.” She turned her gaze back on Amber. “In return you’ll help get me a mattress for the cot, some wood for the hearth, and have the chimney opened so I can have a place that’s not underfoot and littered with littles?”
The shrieking flock of children wheeled past the door in punctuation and the two women couldn’t help but smile at each other.
“Agreed, and I may come join you!” Amber’s mouth quirked in a rueful grin as she eyed the door.
“It’s only for a few days, mind. Just until we get things settled here.” Tanyth looked sternly at the younger woman, quashing the look of growing hope there.
“Of course, mum. Whatever you say.”
Tanyth nodded slowly to herself, looking around the room once more. “In that case, we should go see how Sadie’s doing and I can fetch my things back here.”
Amber led the way out into the morning light and Tanyth felt something stirring in the wind that made the hairs on the back of her arms stand up.
“Foolish old woman,” she muttered.
4
Settling In
Sadie slept comfortably, rousing briefly at Tanyth’s touch but sinking back into a healing slumber almost immediately. Tanyth turned to Megan. “I’ll be in Mother Alderton’s hut if you need me, dear. She should be fine now although I suspect she’ll need one more dose of tea before she’s ready to get up and about.”
Megan, a spare woman with luxurious chestnut hair and a constellation of freckles across her nose, nodded hesitantly and then her eyes widened as the import of what she’d heard sunk in.
Tanyth shouldered her pack and took up staff and hat before heading out of the hut. When she returned to Mother Alderton’s, she found the ox and cart standing in the path and William coming down a ladder from the top of the chimney. He disappeared behind the roof line and emerged around the corner of the house, Amber and a chunk of oiled canvas in tow.
“The chimney should be clear, mum.” He smiled shyly. “If you have any problems with it, I’ll be back around sunset and I’ll look into it.” He tossed the canvas into the back of the ox cart and with a quick kiss to his wife, led the lumbering beast off down the track and onto the Pike.
Tanyth eyed the position of the sun. “He’ll not get in a full day’s cutting today, I wager.”
Amber shook her head with a smile. “No, he won’t, but he’ll get enough done today and there’s always tomorrow.” She eyed the sun’s position herself. “If we’re going to get some work done, though, we should be at it.”
Tanyth nodded and entered the hut, ducking down to clear the lintel. She stood her staff beside the door and hung her pack from a handy peg, her hat going on the same peg. She was pleased to see that someone had put an armload of wood in the woodbox already.
Amber followed her into the hut. “We’ll get you a tick for the bed, mum, and a bucket of water. I’ve already sent Riley for one. You feel free to send him on any errands like that you need.” She smiled happily.
“We have two pressing bits of business, my dear.” Tanyth pointed to the rafters covered with dried vegetation. “We need to clear that away before anybody thinks it’s useful. A summer in the heat of t
his hut has robbed it of any goodness and the dust won’t help any.”
Amber looked up in dismay. “All of it is ruined?”
Tanyth relented a bit and shrugged. “Well, perhaps not all, but most of it is less than useful at this point. There may be some useful bits in it, but at the moment, its most valuable function is as tinder.”
The younger woman looked subdued. “And the other?”
“We need to show you some basics. Who else in the village would you like to have trained?”
“Who else?”
“Yes, it would be a waste to go through all this and then have something happen to you and leave the village without the knowledge again, don’t you think?”
Amber looked startled by the thought but nodded almost unconsciously in agreement. “Of course. That would make most sense. And we could check each other as well after you’re gone to make sure we’ve remembered correctly.”
Tanyth smiled. “Indeed you could, my dear. Excellent thinkin’.”
Amber’s gaze turned inward. “Sadie would be the most likely. She’s the most knowledgeable of plants and growing things, but she’s also rather sick.”
Tanyth pursed her lips in contemplation. “She’ll be movin’ about by mornin’, I’d guess. Who else might have the interest and potential to do a good job?”
A voice piped up from the doorway. “What about me, mum?” Riley stood there with a bucket of water and an anxious look on his face.
Amber turned to her son in surprise. “You, Riley?”
He struggled through the door and down the steps with the heavy pail. “Why not me, ma? You said I’m quick to learn!” His child-voice fairly squeaked in excitement.
Amber seemed at a loss, so Tanyth turned to the boy. “This is serious work, young man. It will take a lot of time and a lot of effort to do well. You’ll need to use what you’ll learn responsibly. Do you think you can do that? If you don’t, people could be hurt or die, and that would be a terrible thing to carry around with you.”
Amber started to interrupt. “You can’t be serious, mum.”
Tanyth kept her gaze focused on the youngster as he settled his burden on the hearthstone before answering. “I don’t wanna hurt nobody, mum, but seems to me if I start young, then I’ll have more time to learn.”
Tanyth nodded slowly. “Good thinkin’, young man. Are you prepared for it to be borin’ and messy?”
He looked startled. “Borin’ and messy, mum?”
She shrugged, still watching his face carefully. “Most things in life are borin’ and people—and their illnesses—are often messy.”
Riley nodded in return. “Missus Hawthorne was kinda messy wif it runnin’ out of both ends like that. Zat what cha mean?”
Tanyth’s lips twitched slightly but she nodded. “That and sometimes worse.”
He shrugged. “It’s not that bad, I s’pose.” He got a calculating smile on his face. “And I’m too little to be ‘round too much yucky stuff anyway.” He shot a sideways glance at his mother.
Amber snorted a laugh and hid her mouth behind her hand.
“Very well.” Tanyth looked to Amber. “Is it alright with you, my dear? Might be handy to have a strong young lad like this to do some of the work for us. Crawlin’ under logs and muckin’ out vats and such.”
Riley’s eyes grew large but Amber saw the twinkle in Tanyth’s eye. “It’s alright with me, mum, but shouldn’t we have somebody not in our family? If something happens to us and we leave…” She left the thought unfinished.
Riley caught the question. “Where would we go, ma? This is our home now.”
She turned to her son. “Yes, Riley, but if something happens to either of your grampas then we may find that we have to go back to Kleesport to live.”
“What could happen?” Riley seemed genuinely puzzled.
“Oh, I don’t think anything will happen!” Amber grinned. “I’m just thinking that if we need somebody besides me to learn this, then we’d be better off if the other person wasn’t attached to me.”
Riley nodded. “Well, Missus Hawthorne, she’s the bestest grower we have. She’d be good.”
“What about Megan?”
Amber shook her head with a glance at Riley. “Good with kids, and a decent cook, but not where I’d put my time.”
Tanyth caught the look and stopped pressing. “Good enough, then. We’ll get some things ready here while we wait for Sadie.” She indicated the hanging material in the rafters. “Let’s get all of this down and into the hearth and then we can see what we have.”
In a matter of an hour, they cleared the rafters of dried material, and Tanyth stacked it in the corner behind the woodbox. “I’ll burn it later tonight when it’s a little cooler.” She looked around once more, quite satisfied. “I’ll go through the stuff on the shelf over there tonight, too, but that’s going to be more delicate sorting than this lot.” She waved dismissively at the dried goods and then paused. “What time is it getting to be?”
“Lunch time?” Riley’s piping voice sounded hopeful.
The two women laughed. “Come along then, light of my life.” Amber swept a hand toward the door with a nod to Riley. “I’ll find you a bit of crust and some stale water to reward your efforts this morning.”
He grinned happily. “Might we have a bit of cheese as well?”
“Only if it’s moldy, my dear.”
“Sounds yummy, ma.” He raced out the door pelting for the Mapleton cottage and shouting for his sister that it was lunch time.
Amber watched him go with a fond expression and turned to Tanyth. “You’re welcome to join us for lunch, mum. I promise it won’t be crusts of bread and stale water.”
Tanyth’s stomach growled at that moment, the gurgling sound loud in the quiet hut. “Thank you. That would be lovely, if you’re sure you have enough…?”
Amber smiled. “This is harvest season, mum, or near enough. It might be plain fare, but we’ve plenty for now.” She lowered her eyes in embarrassment. “You’re delaying your trip to help us. The least we can do is feed you.”
Tanyth felt the warmth and a sharp pang inside. She’d been so long on the road, traveling from teacher to teacher, spending a season or so before moving on. It was to be expected. The women she visited seldom had family and were often glad for the company, but the connection was always the knowledge. Tanyth would share what she knew in exchange for whatever knowledge she could gain. More and more, of late, she found herself covering known ground and was anxious to meet Gertie Pinecrest in the far north at Lammas Wood. There were whispers in the night, quiet comments about the Witch Woman and what bits of the Old Knowledge she still carried. Tanyth hungered for that knowledge but this simple need, the small hamlet in need of a healer, the warmth and acceptance these young people gave her, plucked a chord in her that had been still for a very long time.
The thoughts flashed through her mind in a heartbeat, and she smiled at the young woman. “In that case, my dear, let me check on Sadie once more and I’ll be honored to join you for lunch.”
Amber beamed and the two of them set off for the center of the village, arm-in-arm. They separated at the Mapleton hut and Tanyth went to check on Sadie while Amber prepared luncheon.
Tanyth found Sadie and Megan chatting quietly. Sadie was smiling and had a bit better color but didn’t seem too anxious to get up and move about.
Sadie beamed as Tanyth came in. “I heard you’ll be staying with us for a few more days, mum.”
Tanyth crossed to the cot and pressed a palm against the young woman’s forehead before answering. “Yes, it seems that the All-Mother has a small task for me here.” She shrugged and smiled. “We’ll have to see how long, but at least a few more days.” She looked down at the woman in the bed. “How are you feeling, my dear? Any better?”
Sadie nodded gently but stopped almost instantly. “Thank you, mum, I’m on the mend, although I still ache and I can’t really seem to get warm.”
Tanyth’s ta
ke on the room was that it was already too warm and stuffy but she nodded to Sadie. “Another dose for you, then, and a long nap this afternoon to get you ready for a good night’s sleep tonight.”
Tanyth crossed to the hearth and looked in the pot of willow bark. It had been steeping all night and all day so far, so it was undoubtedly going to be exceptionally unpleasant. She nudged the pot closer to the fire to warm it up and stepped out the back door to pull a handful of mint leaves from the clump she’d seen earlier. Adding those to the pot filled the room with the fresh green scent of the mint and in a matter of a few minutes, the tea—willow bark and mint together—was warmed and ready. She fetched the cup and rinsed it carefully with hot water before pouring a healthy dose of the bitter tea into it. Sadie grimaced a bit at the flavor but took the cupful without complaint.
“Are you getting hungry, then, Sadie?” Tanyth asked.
Sadie’s response was to turn just slightly green. “I don’t think I could eat just yet, mum.”
Tanyth smiled. “No, then you shouldn’t. When you feel hungry again, that’s the sign we’re looking for. You’ll be on the backside of it and ready to get up. In the meantime, sleep, child. Tomorrow will be here soon enough.”
Sadie settled down in her cot, the warm tea having done its work at soothing even if the medicinal properties of the willow hadn’t yet taken effect. “That’s a good idea, mum. I think I will.”
“We’re going to take Megan away and let you sleep on your own now. Will you be alright by yourself, do you think?”
Sadie nodded sleepily. “Yes, mum. That will be fine.”
Tanyth nodded to Megan and the two of them left the hut. “You probably have your own work to attend to this afternoon, yeah?”
Megan nodded. “Indeed I do, mum. And thank you.”
She smiled in return and gave the younger woman an encouraging nod. They separated, Megan heading to her hut, gathering her children as she went. Tanyth headed for the Mapleton’s door and some food that her stomach assured her would be most welcome.
In spite of the fresh breakfast, she missed her morning oatmeal and lunch was a very attractive notion.
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