Chapter 16 The journey
Sharon
I knew it was stupid since I had only known him for less than a day, but I had always been good at reading people, and I could tell that there was something wrong with Mikel.
Yesterday, before the attack he had been friendly, and willing, one might even say eager to talk to me,but now however he sat there frozen, his gaze fixed on the road, and his mouth clamped shut. Even the way he held himself seemed guarded and closed off.
Of course, this could be explained away in various ways; the man had just been through a near-death experience after all, and maybe he wasn't psychologically ready to come back to his former self just yet, he could be on his guard in case of other attacks, or maybe my herbs had done more harm than good and he was still in pain (what did I know anyway), or maybe (and this was the most likely option) he had finally realized just how cursed I was and had decided that it was a waste of his time to talk to me.
I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn't even realize we had arrived in another town, until he called my name, the first time he had spoken to me since we resumed our journey this morning.
‘ I'm going to drive the carriage in there,” he said pointing to a small groove of trees on the side of the road.
“I need to go find a better carriage and horses,” he explained further, as he carefully guided the horses till the carriage was exactly where he wanted it.
“ I'm going to need you to wrap yourself in both your cloak and mine, till your hair is the only part of you that's visible, and stay still and quiet till I get back.” He said, handing me his cloak.
With a nod, I took it from him and did as he said, he remained seated long enough to give a nod of approval before jumping down and walking off.
I don't know how long I sat there wrapped in both my raggedy cloak and Mikel's luxurious one, but I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, I was being jolted awake by a neigh, followed immediately by three voices, one of which was definitely Mikel's. They must have been close enough for me to make out the cadence of their voices, but too far away to make out the individual words, rather than a continuous hum and drone of voices.
They conversed for a couple more minutes, then I heard footfalls coming towards me, I instantly and unconsciously sat up straighter and grabbed fistfuls of the luxurious cloak wrapped around me. I needn't have feared though, for it was Mikel's face that soon appeared in front of me,with a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
“I found a new carriage,” he announced, reaching in for both my bag and his, both of which he swung over his shoulders.
“Now,I'm going to need you to close your eyes and stay as still as you can,” he added.
When I complied, he adjusted the cloaks, so that only the bridge of nose and upwards were visible and swooped me into his arms. As soon as I was in his arms, my heart flew to my throat and I felt my body go limp. The last and only time I could remember being carried in my entire life was a couple of years ago when I had a sun stroke and fainted in my father's rice fields. When sharp words weren't enough to get me to my feet, they had finally realized that I needed to be carried to the shade, the labourers actually drew lots as no one was willing to volunteer. The task had fallen to a big burly man who slung me over his shoulders like a sack of potatoes. But here was this man cradling me in his arms like I was some sort of precious cargo, was this what it felt like to not be cursed? I wondered.
We were soon at the other carriage with the other men, and although I couldn't see it, I had a feeling that it was bigger and more luxurious than the one I had just left.
“ She does seem exhausted,” one of the men waiting for him said.
“ She is,” Mikel replied.
“ Having to ride in such a rickety carriage for so long with such a high fever has tuckered her out.”
The other man however was in no mood for small talk and he cut in almost immediately. “ The other carriage is ours then?” He demanded.
“ Yes, along with the horses and whatever else you find inside.”
“And you won't come back to ask for your money back?” He questioned further in a tone that I decided was greedy.
“ As long as these horses get us to a physician in time, then you have nothing to be afraid of.” Mikel assured them.
They must have finished the conversation with nods or some other form of nonverbal communication because the next thing I knew, Mikel was taking a few steps forward, climbing a couple of steps and gently letting me fall from his arms and onto a plush and surprisingly comfortable seat, and adjusting the cloaks wrapped around me.
“We hope you find a healer in the next town,” the first voice said.
Mikel thanked him and went to take his place on the rider's seat in front of the carriage. A few moments later, we were clip clopping away.
Still wrapped up all cozy and warm, I was slowly drifting off to sleep again, when Mikel spoke to me.
“ You can sit up now, but keep the cloak on if you're cold.”
I did as he said, and realized that I was right, the carriage was indeed well appointed, it was large enough for five people to ride comfortably without anyone touching the other and well furnished with a seat so soft, they made my bed back hoke feel like a slab of concrete. If the
Drago's carriage was anything like this, I could understand why Lestrange would rather use it than walk even the shortest of distances.
“I told the men back at the village that you were a relative besieged by a serious case of fever and we were on our way to get a healer,” Mikel was saying.
“ That Drago boy had shifty viper eyes, his kind is not to be trusted, they're not known to lick their wounds in peace, he may try to attack again, and while I'm definitely not afraid of him, I wouldn't want to hurt any innocent people in the process, so I had to take precautions.” He finished.
I sat there for a full minute unable to speak, before I was finally able to choke out the words “ thank you.”
Never in my life had anyone deigned to explain anything to me, I had to figure it all out myself and on my own, and I had even been punished by my family for not being able to read their mind to forage the information out myself.