LITMIR.BIZ

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and his chest rattled as his body fought against the racking coughs. She heard Davidh move behind her and Suisan walked closer, but she waved them off with a nod of her head. ‘Wait,’ she whispered.

      ‘He needs this.’ Davidh thrust a small bottle in front of her. ‘The healer said three to four drops when he begins.’

      He’d already removed the stopper and she could smell the concoction within the bottle. Juice of the poppy. A strong blend from the smell of it.

      ‘Nay.’

      She shifted on to her knees and brought the boy up to sit. With an arm in front of him, she eased him to lean against her and she placed her hand on his back, trying to feel the source of the cough. Anna had seen this before, as had her mother. Poppy was the last thing the boy needed.

      ‘This will quiet the cough, Anna,’ Davidh said, holding the bottle out again before her. ‘He is in pain.’

      Davidh was in pain, that much was certain. She heard it in his voice just as she heard the rattling in his son’s chest. She hated to make either of them suffer, but giving that concoction to Colm would calm the coughing even while making it more difficult to breathe.

      ‘Davidh.’ Suisan spoke then, whispering to the commander, and his shadow moved away.

      Anna listened and watched until the boy’s fit eased and he could once more draw in breath. She did notice that he continued to pant, probably afraid that taking in too much would cause another round.

      ‘Now that it has ceased, can you stand up, Colm?’ The boy agreed just as his father said nay. After glancing nervously at his father for permission, Colm allowed her to help him up once Davidh nodded. ‘Come, I will help you. You may feel better sitting on that chair than lying down when the coughing strikes you.’

      Once she’d seen him settled there, she took a small sack out of her basket and handed it to Suisan. ‘Would you brew this in a small pot for me? By the time it cools, ’twill be the right strength for him.’

      Then she began her true work.

      ‘Davidh, ’tis better for him to sit up more and lie down less. Suisan, can you leave the shutters in the back of the cottage open like that for most of the time he is here? Smoke, from the fire or the smithy, is not good for him.’ Anna glanced at the pallet. ‘When he does lie there, he should not be flat. The higher his head, the better.’

      She waited until the tisane had brewed and was cool enough for him to drink before saying anything else. Instead, she examined each bottle or jar and asked Colm about the taste. His remarkable sense of humour and resilience showed through as he made faces to describe each one.

      ‘How many years have you, Colm?’ She thought she remembered Davidh mentioning his age, but she wanted the lad to speak.

      ‘Eight years.’

      ‘Mistress Mackenzie,’ Davidh said over her shoulder.

      ‘Mistress Mackenzie,’ Colm repeated. ‘I have eight years.’

      ‘Nearly full grown, then?’ she said. His face lit up at her words and she saw the same eyes staring at her as his father had. The shape of his face and his colouring was not familiar so Anna knew those traits were from his mother. ‘So, you are old and wise enough to understand and follow instructions?’

      Colm nodded and took another mouthful of the tea as if to show her how compliant he could be. ‘Aye, mistress.’

      ‘Firstly,’ she said, meeting his wide and serious gaze, ‘is that I want you to lay on the pallet only when you plan to sleep.’

      ‘He is weak...’ Davidh began.

      She ignored him and spoke only to his son.

      ‘’Twill be hard at first because you are accustomed to lying abed, but soon you will feel strong enough to sit up or even stand all day long.’ She nodded at the boy. ‘What say you, Colm? Will you try this?’

      ‘Aye, Mistress Mackenzie!’ From the tears she saw in Suisan’s eyes now, Anna suspected that this enthusiasm was something not seen in the lad in some time.

      ‘And I fear I will have other concoctions that you must take. Some will have a terrible taste, but they will help you. Can you promise to do as I say?’

      ‘I will try, mistress. I will!’

      * * *

      Davidh could not stand this any longer. True, his son had rallied in a way he’d not seen recently, but it could not last. Had he made a mistake in bringing this woman to see Colm? Other than her appearance at Caig Falls, her claims of being a healer, and the bottles and jars that seemed to indicate it was so, he had no proof that she’d ever treated anyone successfully. And yet, he’d brought her to his son on what? His gut reaction to her?

      As he listened to her voice as she spoke to Colm, her manner of addressing the boy as though he was in charge surprised Davidh. She did not coddle him or order him. Instead she explained and asked for co-operation. It was how he spoke to the men under his command.

      This Anna Mackenzie seemed to know what she was about, even if her suggestions and changes so far were completely the opposite of previous advice he’d received. Watching her now, he understood that she had a plan and he waited to speak to her about that. Even Suisan nodded in agreement as the woman instructed Colm on what he would take and when he would take it.

      ‘Now, if you would kindly pour some boiling water in that pan and place it here on the table,’ she said, aiming her words at Suisan. ‘Colm and I will play a game.’

      Davidh walked to the doorway and leaned against the frame, watching as Anna chose some leaves from a sack in her basket and then retrieved one of the thick blankets from the pallet. She shook it out and folded it in a particular way, repeating her actions until it was as she wished it to be. Curious, he watched without asking any questions—though he had many she would need to answer before long.

      Soon, a pan of steaming water sat before his son. Anna crushed the leaves in her hand and sprinkled them over the water. A fragrant aroma filled the cottage within a few moments. Anna tossed one end of the blanket over the pan and then directed Colm to lean over it.

      ‘This is to see how long you can go without coughing. First, take in slow breaths while I count and try not to cough.’ Then she draped the rest of the blanket over and around his son’s shoulders, creating a tent over the pan. ‘Are you ready, Colm?’ His son’s muffled assent could be heard even through the thick wool over his head.

      Davidh could not help it, he found himself inhaling and exhaling to her soft, slow count. As it went on, he waited and listened for signs of distress in his son and heard none. Then it came.

      Colm burst out into a coughing fit and Davidh took a step towards him before Anna waved him off. She held Colm’s shoulders to steady him and softly spoke to him, telling him how to let the coughs happen and how to breathe to calm them. Rather than escalating into an uncontrollable wave that would see Colm collapsed on the pallet, with blue lips and bruised eyes, this time the coughs subsided and soon Anna was back to counting. He met Suisan’s gaze over Anna’s head and saw her tentative and yet hopeful expression.

      But Davidh dared not hope too much this soon. Other treatments and medicaments had seemed effective in the past, only to stop helping his son. Would these as well? At this desperate point, as long as Colm did not worsen, Davidh would be happy. After a short time, Anna lifted the blanket off Colm and placed it with care to the side of the now-cooled pan.

      ‘How does your chest feel now, Colm?’ Anna asked his son.

      A smile that made it hard for Davidh to breathe settled on Colm’s face and he shrugged. As the boy inhaled, they all waited to see if the coughing had truly been eased by the vapours of whatever those leaves were.

      ‘Better,’ Colm said, drawing in a deeper breath than he would have dared just an hour ago. ‘It doesna hurt now.’

      All three of those observing the boy

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