The Heart Forger (The Bone Witch #2)(60)

“We’ve been waiting to see the boy!” another man shouted. “My child is sick. We will not wait another day more!”

“What is all this?” Likh gasped.

“They have come for the Heartforger,” Althy said. Few here could afford heartsglass cases, so many kept them in small bottles worn around their necks, and most glowed an unhealthy green. “They cannot afford a doctor.”

“And Lord Khalad and his master treat them?”

“As frequently as their time allows. The Heartforger is often away, so these duties have fallen to Khalad. Why did you think he left the palace?”

Kalen scowled. “We’ll be lucky to see him today.”

“Their ailments are common enough,” I observed, watching a heartsglass near me flicker the bright emerald color of bronchitis. “Fox, where is the nearest shop selling pots and pans?”

“There is one not too far from here,” Kalen said before my brother could speak. “I’ve been there before.”

“Purchase half a dozen of the largest pots they have. There are a few more essentials I need that might be harder to find. Silver needles and thread, a mortar and pestle, some small vials to put medicine in.” I reached into my bag and drew out several poultices.

“You knew why Khalad left the palace, didn’t you? He and the Old Forger always open their doors to the sick around this time of the month.”

“Khalad prides himself on being both a healer and a forger. I wasn’t expecting this many patients though.”

Kalen smiled, his eyes softening. “Write them down. There’s an apothecary nearby.”

“Can you find clean water?”

“There is a fresh stream that runs through the eastern district. It’s near the Deathseekers’ barracks, and they see to its maintenance.”

“Thank you. Fox, clear some space and find wood for kindling. Likh, make a fire where he shows you.”

“What do you intend to do, Lady Tea?” the younger boy asked.

“Khalad has too many people to see. Perhaps I can whittle down the number.” I looked at Althy, who was looking wordlessly back at me. “Althy? Is something wrong?”

“Merely looking at one of my better achievements,” the older asha said gravely. “Move over and make some room for me.”

Kalen returned promptly and departed again with a longer list of items. I filled two of the largest pots with water, setting them atop the fires Likh and Fox tended. Once the water boiled, Althy placed the instruments into the second pot and ladled some of the liquid into a smaller bowl. I plunged both my hands into the bowl, gritting my teeth at the scalding heat. Some of the people watched us warily but did not protest.

“Princess Inessa, would you mind grinding these herbs?”

“I’ve never ground anything before,” the girl said dubiously.

“Place them inside this bowl, Your Highness,” Fox said quietly, “and pound them with the mortar until they are as fine as you can make them. I’ll show you how.”

The princess hesitated, looked back at the crowd, then nodded.

Councilor Ludvig rolled up his sleeves. “I worked as a healer’s apprentice in my younger days,” he said. “This brings back memories.”

I approached the old woman who had called out and the young girl with her. “She has food poisoning,” I said, watching her heartsglass pulse yellow.

“Are you an apothecary, milady?”

“A bone witch,” I said honestly. “Her fever will grow worse before you can expect treatment. Let me help.”

“I do not have much money to spare…”

“I ask for nothing.”

The woman cast an agonized glance at the long line of people before her and nodded.

I led them to the space Fox had cleared, took up the ground herbs Princess Inessa made, and placed them inside a metal bowl. I ladled hot water into it, then poured it all through a sieve. A little of its contents I poured into a vial and handed it to the old woman. “She must drink everything,” I instructed. “Boil two spoonfuls from this pack in a glass of water, and have her drink it every two hours for the next eight. She should be fine by morning.”

“Bless you, miss!” the old woman said, nearly crying, clasping the small vial to her chest. The young girl no longer looked as ill, pink creeping back into her heartsglass.

There were people who decided against leaving the line, but there were many others, tired of waiting, who approached Althy and me for help. Together, we prescribed treatments for horserash, persistent coughs, small chills, and migraines. Althy set splints and stitched open wounds, and I wrapped sores and cuts in clean bandages. Kalen was constantly coming and going, leaving us new vials, herbs, and gauze. Likh and Fox manned the growing number of fires where pots boiled and smoked, the former stoking them with well-placed runes and the latter maintaining their heat. Both stopped to assist us when we needed bones set. Princess Inessa had grown proficient with the mortar and pestle, grinding at the wooden bowl with gusto.

I worked on a dislocated shoulder, Councilor Ludvig holding the man in place and Inessa waiting with clean bandages, her face turning pale with every crack and pop.

“Red limebeet?” someone asked.

“Yes,” I said, looking up. The crowd had thinned noticeably, and the half dozen people remaining stepped to one side to allow Khalad closer. Dark shadows lined his eyes, and he looked wan.