Doctor Abbott

Doctor Abbott Part 11

The next morning Lúta woke her husband early, then sat on the bed watching him get dressed. "I packed you some food." She said, as he went through his medical supplies assessing what he had and thinking on what he needed. Lúta couldn't help but worry about the danger he was facing on a trip like this. King William's village was far and Ben still had so much to learn still about the culture here. No matter how much he tried to learn it was clear he was out of place, "Listen, the guards are fools, they may bait you to get a reaction. Do not take it no matter what, please."

"You have nothing to worry about there, my dear. I know what's going on and will stay on my toes, I promise."

She stood and walked over to him causally. She ran both her hands up and down the fur lining of his new jacket, and looked nervously into his eyes, "There is something else, that village is notorious for lonely women. William's village is a refuge for women escaping abusive mates or fathers. They get lonely and you may find their curiosity for humans interesting."

Ben reached up and brushed her face with his hand, the morning fire gave her delicate features a golden hue. Her big brown eyes teetered between skepticism and eagerness. He had no trouble easing her fears there. "Despite the fact that I was never asked to marry, I honestly have no regrets in whom I am married to. Women can be curious as much as they like, but they will quickly discover how boring I am when my only interest is in my wife. I suspect they will want someone who is in the least bit capable of performing for them." Her relief was evident in the smile she rewarded him with. She reached for the hand he still had on her cheek. He shook it off and took her by the back of the neck to pull her in for a tender kiss. "I love you, Lúta."

He took the sack of goods she had packed for him and his new medical bag and headed out to meet up with the caravan. The caravan was already at the gates of the village. The caravan was something he had seen coming and going every other day or so up until the ambush. Then it seemed as all commerce outside the kingdom had halted. Ben found it interesting that despite the conflict with each other the Joutone people found it necessary to trade and barter with their neighbors.

In a desolate and unforgiving landscape this may be far more for survival than for profit. Although just like humans, the Joutone seemed to enjoy the elevated status that profit brought.

The caravan consisted of a dozen or so merchants. Some were warriors simply paid to transport goods, while others had their own wares to pedal. There were a few goats and sheep, some sort of ancient breeds Ben had not seen any place else in the world. The adult animals were tethered to their masters while two young lambs were bound to the travois style carts that were commonplace in their world. The carts were all piled high with goods. Furs from hunts. Pots and pans. Various scraps of litter that had washed ashore made up another cart. One peddler had a few sacks of grain that he needed to trade before it rotted and bags of dried fruits, some of which he was dispersing to the guards and a few young lads that were tagging along for the journey in hopes of bringing back something fun or unique for their mothers.

Ben passed the merchant with the dried fruits and no sooner had he passed, an adolescent boy trailed after him. "Hey, healer!" The cub had tan fur with a splash of black on his nose. It radiated out looking like someone had hit him in the face with a black paint ball. Ben found the color pattern rather cute. The boy had a hand outstretched. "You are from the palace, are you not?"

"I am." Ben pulled off his glove to see what he was being offered. The boy hesitated because he was not fully prepared for the naked hand that appeared. His face lit up and his fangs revealed themselves in a smile as the boy dropped a fist full of the fruits in Ben's hand. "You need your strength for the journey. If no other merchants will feed you come to my father. We like humans. We liked King Nathan. He was a good king." The boy darted back to his father to begin the journey and Ben was left wondering who this Nathan might have been.