Turbett turned away shouting orders once again. “There’ll be no rest today; we have hungry warriors to feed.”
The kitchen bustled like never before, though the workers did seem a happy lot. Flanna had mentioned once that Turbett fed them well and allowed them to take some food staples home to their families. Many had gotten to realize that while Turbett blustered and brandished a wooden spoon, he had never harmed anyone. And it was obvious that he enjoyed cooking and took great care in preparing tasty meals.
Dawn and Elwin were soon on their way, though the snow had worsened and slowed their pace. Visibility was poor and the wind snapped at them like icy whips. Dawn was never so happy to enter the cottage. She tugged Elwin in with her and when he tried to protest, she stepped in front of the closed door, hands on hips, shaking her head.
He attempted to argue with her but it did little good and when she finally got him to understand what she was trying to tell him, that no one could possibly be out and about in such horrid weather so there was no need for worry, he nodded.
“Only a fool would risk venturing out in this,” Elwin said finally realizing it himself.
The door burst open then and Sloan rushed in the cottage. “Is Old Mary here?”
“No,” Elwin said. “We haven’t seen her.”
Dawn grabbed Sloan’s arm and looked at him anxiously.
“Someone saw her go into the woods earlier and now she is nowhere to be found,” Sloan explained, then looked to Elwin. “Cree orders your return to the keep to help search the village and her old cottage. But we must hurry the storm worsens by the minute.”
Dawn had wandered over to the hearth, her worry for Old Mary growing rapidly. The old woman had been good to her since they had first met. And the thought that she could be out there in the freezing snow alone, chilled Dawn to the bone and angered her. Both men knew as well as she did that if Old Mary was without shelter she would not survive the storm. But with visibility so bad any attempt at searching for her would surely prove futile and dangerous to those who searched, for they too could get lost and succumb to the blinding storm.
“Dawn.”
She turned to Sloan. “You are to remain here. You will latch the door when we leave and you are not to open it to anyone except me, Elwin or Cree. Do you understand?”
Dawn nodded and removed her cloak. She did as Sloan ordered; she latched the door once they left. She looked at the baskets of food and told herself to get busy fixing a meal for later, but she had no want to do it. She could think of nothing but Old Mary.
Why would the old woman go into the woods when she knew a snowstorm drew near? And she certainly could not feign ignorance of the approaching storm, for Old Mary—more than anyone in the village—was the most accurate in predicting the weather. What could possibly be of such importance that she challenged a storm to go into the woods?
Dawn paced thinking about it. Old Mary knew the woods well, especially since her old cottage had sat a bit of a distance from the village. A sudden thought stopped her pacing. There was another spot Old Mary frequented not far from her cottage. It was the remnants of an old shed. Dawn never understood why she puttered around the place, though lovely wildflowers did grow there in spring and summer. It made no sense though for her to go there now when a snowstorm brewed.
But what if she did go there? The warriors didn’t know that area well and in the storm they certainly wouldn’t be able to find it. Her thoughts continued to ramble and she continued to pace. The knock on the door startled her and she wasn’t sure if it had been minutes or hours since the men had left.
“It’s Elwin; open up.”
Dawn anxiously lifted the latch, eager to find out if they had found Old Mary.
Elwin stepped in, his cloak covered with snow and his cheeks stung red. “We’ve had no success in finding her and the whipping snow blinds so badly that you can’t see your way through it. “You’ll not be needing a guard tonight. No one can brave that weather and survive.” Elwin cringed realizing what his words meant. Old Mary would die if she was stuck without shelter from this storm. “Latch the door and thank the heavens you are safe.”
She should be grateful for her good fortune while her friend could possibly be dying? She latched the door after Elwin left, her decision having been made as soon as Elwin had informed her that they would search no more today.