“You grow silent and your hands grow still. What’s wrong?” she asked, unable to keep the worry from her voice.

He didn’t hesitate to tell her the truth. “A stick has managed to embed itself in your side. How long the stick and how deep it goes, I don’t know.”

“The only way to find out is to remove it,” she said, trying to be practical like her sister Willow, but fearful nonetheless.

“True enough,” Tarass agreed, but he had seen men with similar wounds and once the object was removed some bled to death.

“How deep it is, is what matters,” Snow said. “So let’s be done with it and, Tarass,” —she paused briefly— “if anything should happen to me, please let my family know I love them.”

“Nothing is going to happen to you… you’re too obstinate,” he said, the thought that she would die sending a sudden anger through him.

“Then we have something in common,” she said and was surprised when he laughed.

Thaw seemed to understand what was happening and jumped up on the bed to curl against her other side and stare at Tarass.

“He’s watching you, isn’t he?” Snow asked.

“Like a hawk ready to attack his prey,” Tarass said, the pup’s eyes intent on him.

Snow caressed the pup. “It’s all right, Thaw. Tarass helps me.”

Thaw looked at her and whimpered.

“All is well, worry not,” she assured him softly.

He turned his attention back to Tarass to keep watch.

“I’m not going to lie to you, this is going to hurt,” Tarass said.

“Then be done with it quickly,” she advised, her one hand gripping the blanket beneath her.

He carefully used his knife to probe at the top of the embedded stick and he wanted to curse seeing Snow cringe in pain, but not saying a word.

It took a couple of more pokes and prods, and winces and a grasp or two from Snow, with the knife to get the stick high enough for him to grab it and pull it out.

Tarass smiled as he announced, “It’s a little one.”

“It didn’t break off in there, did it?” Snow asked anxiously, and Thaw whined.

“Not that I can see,” he said, taking a closer look at the wound that thankfully bled little. “I’ll clean it and wrap it. As soon as you possibly can, have Willow look at it.”

“My thought as well,” she said, relieved.

After he got the wound cleaned and tore a strip of cloth from the blanket, he helped her to sit up, Thaw sticking close to her.

“It will make it easier to wrap the wound,” he said, and she didn’t argue.