“Where were we when you found us?” Robinton asked.
Idarolan chuckled, rubbing his chin. “Halfway up the coast from Fort. You’d’ve done better to go to port. You weren’t that far from a fish-hold.”
Robinton groaned, but then reminded himself that they’d had no idea at all where the storm had blown them.
“Kasia told me right, starboard,” he said, gesturing with the appropriate arm.
“Not to worry. We have you now.” Then, as Robinton could not suppress an immense yawn – one part relief, one part being warm, and the other total fatigue – Idarolan added, “Come, man, I’ll bed you down.”
“Where’s Kasia?” Robinton asked, looking up and down the
passageway.
“In there,” the captain said, indicating a door they were passing by. “You’re in here.” He opened another door across the way and slid the little glowbasket open. “Take the lower bunk. Ellic’s on this watch.”
Robinton wondered how long “this watch’ was before he’d have to leave the bunk, but as soon as he laid himself down, he lost hold of the question and never heard the answer.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Clostan went over both of them thoroughly. Kasia had recovered some of her normal colour and strength by the time they docked at Tillek, where relieved folk helped them on to the wharf and up to the Hold. Lissala supported Kasia on one side and Robinton on the other, though Robinton wanted to carry Kasia and spare her the walk.
“You can barely carry yourself yet, man,” said Idarolan.
Robinton had to admit that he was shaky on his feet. He was only too glad to follow Clostan, who met them at the Hold door and swooped Kasia up in his arms to carry her down to the infirmary.
By then the Lord and Lady Holder had learned of their safe return and hurried to the infirmary too. Juvana hovered anxiously over her sister and Melongel frowned, having clearly been very worried.
“You’ve both had quite an ordeal,” Clostan said with a deep sigh.
Kasia coughed politely into her hand, and the healer scowled. “I’ll fix a soothing draught to ease that right smart. But neither of you is to do anything for the next three days. I’ll go over you again then.”
Juvana insisted they stay in one of the low-level guest apartments.
Their own level was cold, being too far from the source of heat with which the Ancients had warmed the Hold, and they needed the warmth of hearth-heated rooms. Indeed, Robinton couldn’t seem to heat the cold out of his bones and was drawn to
the fire like a forest insect. Following Clostan’s orders they rested in bed a full day, Juvana keeping hot water-bottles in a row under the furs, causing Robinton to complain that his feet were fine – it was the rest of him that wasn’t warm.
Mostly Kasia slept, not even rousing when she coughed. Rob dosed fitfully, waking briefly every time she coughed. He woke once to find himself beating out the cadence of “Got in, get out …” And another time from a nightmare where he couldn’t hear her or see her in the mist which blanketed him. He knew she was calling and he kept trying to answer, but his jaws were frozen stuck.
Captain Gostol came in, apologetic that he had left a search almost too long.
“Kasia’s knowledgeable about the sea and little ships. And you two finally having a chance to be alone for the first time … That storm only reached us late the other night – which is when we began to get concerned with you being overdue back in the harbour.” He kept turning his sea cap in his hands, working round and round on the brim.
“I did what Kasia told me,” Robinton murmured, refusing to take much credit. “You should have seen her handling the sloop in that storm, though. You’ d’ ve been proud of her. As I am.” He patted her leg under the furs, and she smiled wanly up at him.
“You got us home,” she said, just the hint of a sparkle back in her eyes.
Then she coughed, a funny dry hack that Clostan’s potion didn’t seem to ease.