Chapter 8
Cassandra walked away in a huff. How could he say that? She thought that Colin had a few vices, but nothing as large as this. Did he really think that she would just stay at the manor, birth as many children as he wanted, and be content with embroidering? Cassandra regretfully wished that she had saved the punch for her husband instead of the drunken man.
Walking towards the villagers, she tried to make her glare disappear fully. Every time she thought of something else, her thoughts somehow went back to the same subject, Colin. The man was everywhere. She could feel his eyes on her now, watching as she exchanged stories with these men and women.
Cooper held onto to her skirts with a surprisingly strong grip. She needed to teach the lad to loosen his grip or hold her hand, if he did not, she would injure herself before she could even begin working on the village. Not that she minded the little boy clinging to her, it was actually quite nice. The feeling of a child putting so much trust in her sent a warm feeling throughout her body. Was this what it was like to have a responsibility, to have someone depend on her for everything?
She looked down at him and smiled. Even if he was a handful, he would be an adorable handful. She thought about who the boy's mother might be. Cassandra could not take him away without first asking the woman. It wasn't a proper thing to do, going around and taking people's children.
Cassandra was determined to keep her thoughts anywhere but where they wanted to stray. Glancing at the villagers, she found one man that looked wiser than the others. She knew that you couldn't always judge from appearances, but there was a certain glint in this old man's eyes that let her know the he knew things many did not.
Turning towards him, she said, "Do you know who this lad's mother is?"
The man flashed her a smile and answered without a single glance at Cooper, "He is an orphan, my lady. We feed him when we can, but other than that, the boy has been on his own for a while now."
Her eyes widened, "The boy can't be older than three years, and he has no one to look after him?"
"It pains me to say so, but no, my lady. No one could take the lad in. We only have enough for feeding our own."
"I understand," she said while nodding. How could she think ill of these people when they had no choice in the matter? She couldn't condone the fact that no one took the boy in, but she did understand it.
"My lady?" the old man asked hesitantly.
Cassandra looked at him, "Yes?"
"Do you think you would be able to take a look at me wife?"
The man's proper accent was beginning to slip, and she knew right then that the man was used to not receiving any help.
She flashed him a smile, "It would be my pleasure." The truth was that she was filled with dread. The bag with all her jars should be used on these people, but she still wasn't ready to face the questions they may ask.
Not letting her thoughts show on her face, she followed demurely behind the man. Cooper stayed in his spot the entire time making her remember her earlier battle with herself. She shouldn't wish things that she won't like the consequences of. Wishing Colin out of her mind had only given her something else to worry about.
It wasn't long before they arrived at a small dilapidated house. Scanning it, she realized that this was one of the better ones that littered the village. Instead of a gaping hole that marred the other homes, this one had straw tied tightly together to keep the rain from leaking through what would have been a hole otherwise. The outside was still in bad shape, but overall the structure looked sound.
She only hesitated briefly before walking in behind the old man. She really needed to stop calling him that. Glancing around, she saw an older woman lying in a makeshift bed. Her skin was pale from lack of sunlight or an actual illness; Cassandra didn't know which, but she would find out.
"May I ask your names?" she questioned aloud.
Only the man could reply, "Frank and Anne. You may call us Frank and Anne."
She gave him a reassuring smile, for the man looked about ready to fall over. Sweat was pouring down his face, and he kept rubbing his palms on his dirty shirt. Cassandra knew he was just nervous about his wife, but he need not worry overly until she actually checked her patient.
"Then you may call me Cassandra."
Surprise flashed in his eyes, "My lady, I couldn't very well do that. T'would be improper."
"Ah, don't you worry, Frank. Will you do me a favor though?"
He looked at her skeptically before nodding his head, "Aye, I'll help you anyway I can."
"Good, good," she nodded, "Will you mind taking Cooper out and letting him play?"
She hoped the man would do as she asked with no questions. It would be easier this way. Not only would she get the boy away from any sickness that may spread, she could also keep the old man from asking questions.
Luckily, the man nodded and grabbed her new son's hand. Cooper only put up a tiny fight as he clung and Frank pulled. As soon as his grasp was broken, he sent her a frown. Bending down, she looked into the small boy's eyes, "I just need to make sure she is well. Then, I shall come outside and play with you. Then, we can pick flowers for our home. Does that sound fun?"
He gave her a hesitant smile, but didn't open his mouth. She knew she would have to gain Cooper's trust. As soon as she could, she would begin working on that task, but now, she needed to focus on Anne. She gave Cooper a little nudge towards Frank. He went with the old man, but as they reached the doorway, he glanced back once more and stared at her as if committing her face to memory. One more small yank on the boys arm, and Cassandra was alone with her patient.
She opened her bag first, and slipped the mask over her face. The old woman who had taught Cassandra always told her that if she didn't take care of herself, she wouldn't be able to take care of others. Cassandra had no idea where the woman got the mask from or if her mentor had made it herself. One thing that Cassandra regretted was the fact that she would never find out the answer to that question.
Taking confident steps forward, she made her way to Anne's bedside. She looked down on the lady. As she observed earlier, her skin was pale, but on closer inspection, it looked like a natural thing for the woman. How long has she been holed up in this unsanitary shack? Cassandra knelt down beside the woman and reached her hand out. Using the back of her hand, she felt Anne's head. It wasn't hot to the touch, which meant the lady had no fever.
What could be wrong with the lady? The question was answered when she let out a cough. Cassandra grimaced; she had heard that gurgling cough before. It was something that kept people in their beds for weeks, but it was treatable. She reached her hand out blindingly as she searched for her bag. Her hand connected with the familiar leather surface.
Pulling it towards her, she didn't even need to look down as she opened it and searched its contents. She had the placement of everything memorized. If she didn't, the bag would have never helped her during darker times. Glancing down, she took her eyes off of the lady for the first time to make sure that this was indeed the correct jar. Better safe than sorry.
This would be a perfect time to have an apprentice, she thought as she glanced from the jar to Anne. It would be a difficult task, but she could do it. She had done harder things in her life. She stood and walked to the head of the bed. At this moment, Cassandra was glad that the woman didn't recline in a fancy bed because frankly, a headboard would just get in her way.
Lifting the lady's shoulders, she began to untie her gown with one hand. Finally, the thing loosened and she was able to slip it down in the front enough to reach the woman's upper chest. Cassandra dipped her hand into the jar. What came out was an off-white gel that could be smoothed over someone's chest, which was exactly what she did.
She rubbed the medicine onto the lady's body. Cassandra had used this on herself, and knew for a fact that it would ease the woman's cough and the pain in her chest. She never understood how the stuff worked. She knew what was in it, but how it made coughs go away was still a mystery to her.
A noise sounded behind her. Jumping back from the woman, she hurriedly twisted the top onto the jar. She didn't turn her head to look at the person who had just walked into the house. No, she hid the jar with her body while she slipped it into her bag. Even then, she did not turn. Reaching out, she pulled Anne's gown up to cover her properly. After that, she walked, once more, to the head of the bed to tighten the strings.
Their footsteps got closer, but she was afraid to look up. Had the person seen everything she did? Did they see what was in her bag?
"Here, let me help."
She looked up and her eyes made contact with Colin's. She watched as he held the women's shoulders off the bed to make tying an ease. Cassandra knotted it together as fast as she could. She needed to get away from her husband. At one time, she thought they could be friends, but even a friendship was too risky.
"Thank you," Cassandra whispered as she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
Colin watched as she walked out the doorway. What had he done to scare her off this time? The look on her face while she was leaving almost broke him, and her "thank you" sounded more like a good-bye. He wanted to follow after her and demand to know why she had run from him once more.
Colin's emotions were frantic, and he didn't like it one bit. Questions flew through his head. One of which scared him the most. Was he really falling in love with his wife? He had wanted friendship and nothing more for he knew you could not live with a woman and not be cordial, but what he was getting was a one-sided love affair.
He knew the effects of loving someone who didn't love you back. He had seen it every day with his parents. His mother had sat at home and waited while his father found a woman who was not his mother to slack his lust. Colin made himself a promise at that exact moment; he would never be like his father. He would never keep Cassandra home if he could help it. Colin nodded to himself; the idea that she would be with him everywhere he went gave him immense satisfaction.
Shaking his head, he followed after her like he had wanted to in the beginning. He stepped out, and his eyes immediately found the blonde hair he was looking for. It wasn't a hard task in this village. The villagers were all so dirty that, even if their hair was blonde, it would be hard to tell. A smile crossed his face as he watched her chase after Cooper. He could tell she was going slower than normal for the boy kept stumbling on his feet. She was right behind him to keep him from falling.
Colin knew she would be a great mother, but seeing it with his own eyes made him want to start a family of his own. The lad was adorable on his own, but Colin just didn't feel a connection with him yet. Guilt ran through him; he knew that things like this took time, but how could he feel nothing towards the child while Cassie looked at him with obvious devotion?
How could she grow attached to someone so fast? It took Colin years to fortify his friendship with Peirce, but in one day, his wife had become friends with Peirce and a mother to Cooper. Colin had to admire her. He also had to walk towards her. There was no way that he could stand back and watch as she ran around and had fun. When was the last time he had any fun? The worse thing about his answer was that he honestly did not know.
As soon as he got close enough, he could hear their laughter. It was such a beautiful sound; it was a sound that made one want to laugh along without reason. So, that was what he did. He laughed as he watched the two chases each other. As the sound left his lips, two sets of blue eyes snapped towards him. Both the boy and Cassie looked at him in disbelief.
Feeling self-conscious, he dropped his smile. They both looked startled as if they had been slapped. Cassie glanced down at Cooper and held her hand out. The boy studied at it, before walking to her other side to grab onto her gown. Colin shook his head. They were really going to have to teach the boy a few things and quickly.
They began walking towards him, and Colin momentarily panicked. What were they coming towards him for? Were they going to ridicule him because of his laughter? The question quickly seemed silly as he looked at the smile on Cassie's face. She would never purposely hurt someone; therefore, he knew that she did not come towards him to mock him.
Colin studied her as she came within touching distance. Her hand reached out and tapped him on the arm, and with a smile she said, "You're it."
Standing there dumbfounded, he did nothing as she scooped Cooper into her arms and took off towards their manor. His eyes followed her as she became further and further away. Finally, he snapped out of his daze and took off towards her. As he ran after her, his eyes caught on a familiar brown leather bag. His steps slowed. Had she forgotten it? He could only assume that she had.
He walked until he stood over the bag. He had never thought to ask what was in it, but now his curiosity was burning. Bending down, he picked it up. Clanking sounds met his ears; he could identify the sound. It was glass hitting glass. What was in this bag? His hands reached towards the flap that kept it closed. Should he look inside? Or wait until his wife was ready to confide in him?
***Chapter title by LamaAhmad***
***Edited by Twilight_moon***