Jayne Castle [Jayne Ann Krentz] (23 page)

Fortunately, the innkeeper's wife answered Kalena's summons immediately.

"I'll fetch the village Healer at once," the older woman promised. "Go back upstairs to the poor girl. I

saw her earlier. She's so young. This is probably her first and she'll be scared to death."

Kalena nodded and ran back up the stairs. For the second time she ignored the shouts of laughter and

the smoke that emanated from the tavern doorway.

Her breath was coming quickly by the time Kalena had finished her dash back up the stairs. She paused

to collect herself before she reentered. the young woman's chamber. A good Healer always presented a

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calm and soothing image, she reminded herself.

A good Healer. That was a joke. She was no Healer and never would be. The thought brought a wave

of unhappiness that was all too familiar. Kalena would have given a great deal to have been born with the

Talent. She had certainly been cursed with a longing desire to learn the arts of healing. It had always

seemed so unfair to have the wish and not the ability.

Quickly, she produced a comforting smile and pushed open the door. "There is no need to worry," she

assured the patient on the pallet. "The village Healer will be along very soon. We might as well get ready

for her."

"You're very kind."

"Don't be silly. Women must stick together at times such as this. What woman would turn her back on

another about to give birth?" Remembering the occasional glimpses she'd had of Olara at work, Kalena

lit a fire on the tiny hearth and put water on to boil. She dampened a cloth to cool the mother-to-be's

brow and generally tried to make the young woman as comfortable as possible. Mostly she just held her

hand and felt the woman's nails dig into her palm as each new wave of pain arrived. Kalena would have

given anything not to feel so helpless.

If she were a Healer she would be able to do so much more.

She had seen Olara use certain herbs to blunt the pain and stop excessive bleeding. Certainly, she knew

Olara's skills could make the whole process so much easier and safer. But Kalena knew so little of them.

Only a trained Healer with the Talent could really help.

The woman cried out and Kalena began to fret that the village Healer would not make it in time.

"You're doing just fine," she said soothingly as she began to push aside the bedding. If no one came she

would have to deliver the babe herself. She could only hope the birth would be normal.

"Breathe deeply and don't fight the pain. It will soon be over. Just breathe deeply."

Olara always used an almost hypnotic monologue to quiet her patient's fears. Over the years Kalena had

heard bits and pieces of it. She tried to remember the soft, soothing sounds.

"That's it. Everything's going to be just fine. Don't be afraid to yell if you want. You've got every right."

If only she knew more, Kalena thought in a mixture of anger and despair. She should know more. It

wasn't fair that such knowledge had been kept from her. She should know what to do.Something within

her insisted she had a right to know.

There was a quick, perfunctory knock, and then the door swung open. Kalena looked around gratefully

to see a woman in her middle years step confidently into the room. The innkeeper's wife was right behind

her.

"No need to ask which of you is my patient," the Healer said cheerfully. "How are we doing here?" She

was removing a packet of herbs from her bag and handing them to Kalena. "Looks like everything's

under control. Here, mix these in some warm water and let the little mother have a few sips. The drink

will ease the pain."

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Humbly, Kalena took the herb packet and did as she was instructed. The Healer took charge and the

whole process of birth was soon moving along its inevitable path under the watchful eye of a trained

expert with the Talent.

Kalena watched in fascination, holding the young mother's hand and letting her sip from the mug of herb

tea as needed. There was something about all this that reinforced Kalena's deep sense of longing. She

wanted to know exactly what to do. She wanted to be able to offer comfort and skill. The desire to be

doing what the Healer was doing was so deep and so painful that for a moment Kalena felt her eyes burn

with frustrated tears.

And then the baby arrived and everyone, including Kalena, was much too busy to think of anything but

the present.

Downstairs in the tavern, Ridge lounged at a table, a tankard of ale in front of him, moodily considering

his past, present and future.

For some reason they all seemed tied to Kalena. The past because he was just beginning to realize how

empty it had been without her. The present because he didn't know how to deal with her now that he had

her. And the future because he had a deep fear that he might not be able to hold on to her.

At times, he felt he was making progress with her. But inevitably such moments disintegrated all too

rapidly, usually because of something he said or did. He gripped the tankard of red ale and wondered

broodingly if he would ever receive the welcome he wanted from Kalena.

He was a fool to wait for it, he decided after another swallow of ale. A man's obligation was to insist on

his marital rights. He had been crazy to think he should wait until Kalena came to him. At this rate he

would wait forever.

By the Stones, he didn't have forever. No one did.

Surging to his feet, Ridge threw a few grans down on the table and stalked out of the tavern. He had

been taking the wrong approach with Kalena. If he let her establish the rules of this game he would find

himself sleeping alone for the rest of the journey. He had to ensure the bonds between them. He couldn't

afford to waste any more time.

Ridge was still telling himself that when he reached the top of the stairs and shoved open the chamber

door. His mouth opened to tell Kalena that things were going to be different henceforth. The words were

clear in his head and his body was taut with an assertive determination.

But he blinked and floundered to a halt when he realized the room was empty. Bewildered, he glanced

around and saw that Kalena's travel pack was gone.

For an instant he simply stood staring into the empty chamber, trying to adjust to the obvious fact that

Kalena had left him.

Somehow he hadn't expected her to run from him. He was at a loss to comprehend the depths of his

own stupidity. Of course she would run at the first opportunity. And tonight had provided that

opportunity.

A wave of fury washed over Ridge. "Damn you, Kalena. You

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can't leave me."

But of course she could. All she had to do was slip out while he was downing ale in a tavern. She knew

how to saddle a creet. What else did she need to know to make good her escape?

He had been a fool to indulge her. He must have been out of his mind to be so gentle and restrained with

her. What had he been thinking of when he had assumed she had accepted her fate as his wife?

Whirling around, Ridge went back to the door. She couldn't have gotten far. He would find her and

bring her back, and this time he would make certain she understood her place. She was his wife, and by

the Stones she would learn what that meant.

A heavy, bewildering sense of frustration that bordered on pain rose inside him to counter the explosion

of anger. Ridge stormed through the door and out into the corridor just as an anxious looking young man

reached the top of the stairs and pounded on one of the chamber doors.

"Betha?" the young man called, sounding frantic. "Betha? Are you all right?"

Ridge ignored the other man's obvious state of distress, his attention turned inward as he made for the

stairs. He would have walked right past the other chamber without a single glance if the door hadn't

swung open in that moment to reveal his flame-haired wife.

"I suppose you are the husband?" Kalena demanded of the young man in front of her.

"Please," the man said helplessly. "My wife. Is she all right?" A cry sounded from the chamber and he

looked stunned. "The babe!"

"Congratulations," Kalena said disdainfully. "You have a fine son. Your wife and child are doing well, no

thanks to you."

Ridge heard the chastisement in her voice and winced on behalf of the hapless young man. Kalena didn't

pause in her lecture.

"What sort of husband are you to take your lady traveling when she was in this condition? She should

have been safely at home with her village Healer who knows her and is familiar with her background. She

should have had her women friends around her at such a time. Instead, poor Betha finds herself in some

strange inn with only strangers to help her. And where is her husband? Downstairs drinking in the tavern

while his son is brought into the world. I'll wager you were willing enough to participate at the conception

of your babe, weren't you?"

"Please, lady. I would go to my wife," the man pleaded.

"But you took little enough responsibility for the havoc you caused," Kalena continued, undaunted. "It is

a man's duty to protect his wife. She is' in his care and it is his business to look after her. Where were

you when you should have been honoring your obligations to your wife?"

Ridge let out a long sigh of relief and lounged against the wall, his arms crossed on his chest, to listen to

the rest of Kalena's speech. Never had he been so glad to hear a sharp-tongued female tearing into a

defenseless male. He simply gave thanks that he wasn't the man she was ripping apart. Safely out of

range, he watched his wife with a mixture of amusement and admiration and overpowering relief.

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She hadn't run from him after all.

“I thought you'd left." Ridge stood at the tiny window and stared down into the inn yard below

Kalena closed the door of the small chamber and leaned back against the wood. She had been surprised

to see Ridge in the corridor outside Betha's room. He hadn't said a word as she had lectured the young

father, but as soon as she had released the poor man to go to his wife, Ridge had stepped forward to

take her arm. He asked her quietly if she was ready to go back to their chamber and she had nodded her

agreement. His first words once inside the room startled her.

"I don't understand," she said calmly.

He didn't turn around. Instead, he braced one arm against the windowsill and continued to stare out into

the darkness. "You heard me. I came up here a short time ago and couldn't find either you or your travel

bag. I assumed you'd taken your leave."

Slowly, Kalena moved away from the door. "That wouldn't be possible, Ridge."

He glanced back over his shoulder, searching her calm face.

"Why wouldn't it be possible? You could have taken a creet and ridden until you found some farmhouse

where you could have paid for shelter for the rest of the night. You're not frightened of the darkness and

you don't lack intelligence. It would have been easy enough for you to escape me."

Her mouth curved faintly. "I can't escape you, Ridge. I'm bound by a trade marriage contract,

remember? I signed the document."

"It's nothing but a piece of paper."

Kalena began to grow indignant. "It's a legal document. By signing it, I bound myself to the provisions of

that contract. It would shred what's left of my pride and honor to walk away from you before the journey

is finished."

Something suspiciously akin to admiration gleamed in the depths of his eyes. "You speak as if you have

very little left of your pride and honor. But I can vouch for the fact that you have more than enough of

both for any one woman. More than enough for any one man, come to think of it."

"Is it so hard for you to understand that a woman's sense of honor can be as great as a man's?"

"Before I met you, it would have been hard for me to believe such a thing," he admitted softly. "But you

have taught me differently. There have been times, my lady, when your notions of pride and honor have

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made life very difficult for me. But tonight I am grateful for them."

She realized he meant every word he was saying. Kalena's brief flare of anger faded quickly. "You can

be a thickheaded man, but you're an honest one." She smiled faintly. "Honesty is a good trait in a

husband."

"I'm glad that on one point, at least, I'm proving satisfactory"

She blushed at the direct look in his eyes and turned away to busy herself retrieving her travel bag from

the privacy chamber. "You were virtually tricked into this marriage by my aunt's manipulations. You've

had every right to be annoyed with me from time to time."

"Kalena."

She paused and looked back at him. "Yes, Ridge?"

"I am satisfied with the conditions of our marriage."

She had the feeling he wanted to say a great deal more but couldn't find the words. Poor Ridge. He was