The Green Witch

Chapter Twenty Eight

     She awoke on a soft bed and felt blankets of soft cotton against her bare skin. She looked at her hands, expecting to find them manacled to the bed, but they weren't. The wound in her chest was covered by a bandage, and when she touched it gingerly with her fingers she felt stitches under the cloth.

     "Your name is Brigitte," said Gareth.

     She looked around to see him sitting in a chair beside her. "We were attacked by bandits," he added. "I fought them off, very bravely if I say so myself, and then I carried you to the road where a passing farmer found us. His wife did his best for you, and then the farmer took us to Fessiwell, to the healer. That's where we are now. The healer's house."

     "I'm Brigitte?" said Tala in surprise, pulling the blankets up to her neck. "Why am I..."

     Gareth touched his fingers lightly to her lips to stop her talking. "William the Healer is in the next room. Careful he doesn't hear you. Tala is a witch, being hunted by the Knights. They're out there now, combing the woods for her. It'll probably only be a matter of time before they wonder whether Brigitte and Tala are the same person, so we have to leave. I'll carry you out of here tonight, when everyone's asleep. I know it's dangerous to move you while you're in this condition but if you stay here you'll definitely die. If we leave, you only might die."

     "Why would you do that? Why help me?"

     "You helped me time and again. You risked your life to save me. Maybe you're right. Maybe not all witches are evil. I can't see you put to death, not after what you've done. I just can't."

     "But they'll know it was you who took me."

     Gareth nodded. "Yeah. You've been lying there asleep for a full day and I've had plenty of time to think. I can't be a Knight any more. If I stay, how long would it be before they found another young witch? How could I watch her being stoned to death knowing that maybe she's not evil? I couldn't do that. I just couldn't. I'd have to leave the Knighthood, now that I know what I know, even if I could get you out of here without revealing myself."

     Tala stared at him in wonder. "So what will you do? How will you earn a living?"

     "I was thinking of becoming a farmer. Perhaps you could teach me."

     "Me?"

     "Yeah. I think we'd make a pretty good team. We could start out as hired hands, working for someone, and then, when we know the business well enough, we could find a place of our own. There's plenty of empty plots out there where they left to join the army or died of the fever. We could find one. Get it going again."

     "You and me?"

     Gareth looked suddenly embarrassed and ashamed. "I know. You probably want nothing to do with me. Just a few days ago I wanted to see you put to death. You'd probably prefer to be on your own. On the other hand, though, there might be advantages to living with someone who knows you're a..." He glanced warily at the door, then lowered his head closer to hers and spoke in a low voice. "Who knows you're a witch. With me, you wouldn't have to hide what you are. You could talk to the animals and birds as much as you want. Think about it, that's all I'm saying. It's early morning. We've got all day before we can leave, and then we'll be travelling together for a few days before you're well enough to go your own way. You'll have a while to think about it."

     "It's a lot to take in all at once."

     "I know and I'm sorry, but I had to talk to you the moment you woke up, I had to tell you your new name before you gave your real name to the healer. I was busy being sewn up by William yesterday while his wife was looking after you, and I was afraid you'd wake up and give yourself away. That would have been bad."

     "I wouldn't have told her who I was. I'm not an idiot."

     Gareth smiled apologetically. "I know, but you might have been delirious or something. I don't know. I just wanted to be here when you woke up. I'm sorry to spring all this on you all at once like this but the healer could come in at any time." He glanced fearfully at the door but it remained closed.

     Tala nodded as she turned over everything he'd said in her head. "So I'm Brigitte now. Who's Brigitte? Where does she live?"

     "I told them I didn't know. I just found you in the woods, injured by the highwaymen. You told me your name then passed out. You'll have to make up the rest yourself. Something plausible. Of course, the Knights suspected you might be the witch they were looking for, but they trusted my word when I said you weren't." He frowned unhappily. "That's the bit I'm not too happy about. They trusted me and I lied to them."

     "To save me," said Tala. Her hand reached out towards his all by itself. She stopped it, but after a moment's thought she let it do what it wanted to do. His fingers curled around hers gratefully. Tala was surprised by how good it felt.

     "I can't promise I'll stay with you," she said a moment later. "It's going to be hard to trust someone who was once a Knignt. When we're away from here, when I'm well enough to go my own way, then I'll see how I feel."

     "That's fair enough," Gareth replied. He gave her hand a grateful squeeze.

     "And even if we do decide go stay together for a while, I can't promise not to change my mind at any time. Living with someone who knows I'm a witch... It'll be scary."

     "But it could also be wonderful. You could tell me what the animals are saying to each other. You could tell them that I want to be their friend too."

     Tala nodded and found herself smiling despite herself.

     "And the Knights might not always be hunting us," Gareth continued. "I told you that the King is thinking of disbanding the Knights. It was always his father who wanted the witches killed. Abulard seems a bit more relaxed about the whole thing. His heart's not really in it, they say. We'll always have to keep it secret, what you are, but before long there might not be any more tests. No more having to sit there while some poor animal's tortured to death. All we'd have to do then is be careful what we say to the neighbours."

     "Like I said," said Tala. "I'll see how I feel. I need time to think about it. A lot of time."

     Gareth nodded and gave her hand one last squeeze before letting go. "Better get some rest now," he said. "There won't be much chance to rest once we get going. No more soft beds for a while. You're going to be clattering along the road in a bouncy carriage and that injury is going to hurt. A lot. But it's that or wait here to be found out and put to death. Okay?"

     "Okay," Tala replied. "Until tonight, then."

     "Until tonight."

     Just then, the door opened and William the Healer came in. "Ah, you're awake," he said. "And how are we feeling this morning?"

     Tala smiled gratefully at him, and Gareth left the room while the healer pulled back the blankets to examine her wound.

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And they both lived happily ever after.