Chapter 9

Willow stretched herself awake and wasn’t surprised to find herself alone in bed. A sniff of the spot beside her, a bold woodsy scent, told her that her husband had joined her some time during the night. It was better that way, the narrow bed forcing them to sleep wrapped around each other, leaving them open to temptation.

So she would be less likely to fall sway to temptation, she had slept fully dressed last night, the cold making it an easy excuse to do so. But there was no excuse to lie abed any longer. She wanted to check on Erna and Corliss and see how both were doing, though she imagined if there were any problems she would have been summoned by now. She hoped it would remain that way.

The evening had proved a bit fruitful, she, Slatter, and Devin discussing what might be done to catch the culprit that was causing her husband a multitude of problems. No conclusion had been reached, but ideas were brewing and she believed it wouldn’t be long before they formed a plan.

She straightened her garments, but couldn’t rid herself of all the wrinkles, then freed her hair of the braid and ran her fingers through it repeatedly. The braid had left her hair to wave more than it usually did, and she raked her fingers through it one last time, pulling it away from her face to fall along the sides.

With her cape thrown over her shoulders, she headed out the door to almost collide with Crofton.

“Is Corliss all right?” Willow was quick to ask and his wide smile was answer enough.

“She does well today, less aches, and her walk more confident. I make certain she drinks the brew and I’ll apply another poultice to her knees later today,” he said, proudly and held up a small sack. “Food, not much, but Slatter told me to make sure you got something to eat. He and Devin left early to hunt. Hopefully, we will all feast later. And hopefully, we leave here soon. Slatter promised he would move us from here to a far better place, a permanent home.”

“Where is this place?” Willow asked, wondering over it since her husband had made no mention of it to her.

Crofton shrugged. “I don’t know, but Slatter is a man of his word. He’ll take us there and we’ll be safe.” He handed the sack to Willow. “Visit with my seanmhair today and see how well she does.”

“I will,” Willow assured him, knowing he was seeking reassurance that his grandmother actually did do well.

Not hungry, she left the sack on the table and after turning from closing the door saw her husband and Devin rush out of the woods that surrounded the small area, not a fresh kill in sight. They both stopped and spoke to several people who quickly rushed off, a look of fright on their faces. Something was wrong and when she saw how pale Crofton turned after speaking with Slatter, she knew something was seriously wrong.