Page 20 of Discovered Magic
Jonas ignored the surgery to concentrate on the woman’s predicament. First, he needed to detour Gus. After stepping outside the cloak and silently adjusting the spell to encompass Draven and Stands-in-Shadow, Jonas kicked gravel over the rock ledge.
“Lady? Lady, are ya alright up there?” Gus called.
“No, she’s not, Green,” Jonas replied, bracing himself to see below. “That good-for-nothing Eustace Larkham caused her to fall, and she’s badly injured.”
“Sheriff?” Gus’s voice squeaked in fear.
“Yes. It’s Sheriff Thorne. I was chasing rustlers through the canyon when I heard the shots.” He paused for a beat to let his plausible lie sink in. “You wouldn’t know anything about those rustlers or the gunfire, would you, son?”
“Uh… well… no, sir.” The unmistakable panic returned the boy’s voice to prepubescent.
“I see.” And he did. Having dealt with the underbelly of society, Jonas saw a heck of a lot. No words needed. “Gus, climb back down and ride away. For your own safety, mind. I don’t want those murderous rustlers to stumble upon you, son.”
“But the lady… how will you get her down?”
Lord love the kid for the tender spot Harlan hadn’t yet beaten out of him.
“Don’t worry your head none. I’ve already rigged a sling from my rope,” Jonas lied. “Go on, now. Get. I don’t want to worry about your neck in a gunfight.”
“Yes, sir.”
Sounds associated with Gus’s scrambling down reached Jonas. The following silence indicated the young man was rethinking leaving.
“Sheriff?”
Jonas sighed and shot a Goddess-help-me glance skyward. “What is it, Gus?”
“Should I have Doc come out here?”
“No. It’ll take too long, and I don’t want Doc to run afoul of those bandits. I’ve some medical training. It comes with the job.”
“Alright.”
A rare protective feeling washed over him, and he leaned over to meet Gus’s worried brown eyes. “Stay clear of Harlan. He’ll be your death, son.”
“He’s my Pa.”
“Don’t mean you have to follow him to the noose.”
The young man paled.
“If you need a job, come see me tomorrow afternoon. I’ll find work for you. Maybe we can get you out from under his boot.”
The offer extended, Jonas returned to examine the Traveler’s child, wondering who and what the hell she actually was.
As one of the Six—the original families blessed with magic—he’d learned early on that only a select few could manipulate time to their will, as he had. But he’d never met anyone able to travel through time and space. Yes, he’d heard tales of one legendary man’s ability, but no one knew the guy’s name or from whence he came.
Perhaps the Traveler would come looking for his daughter one day soon.
7
Fevered dreams took the Traveler’s child from pale and knocking on death’s door to scarlet and raging about something called a carabiner. And no amount of medical knowledge, human or otherwise, could cure her. Jonas had appealed to the Witches’ Council on the woman’s behalf, pleading for a Healer from The Authority’s ranks, but he was continually denied.
“Red sent me to check on you,” Draven spoke from the foot of the bed, startling him.
“Christ alive! You walk as soft as a cat.”
Other than a twist of his lips, his friend said nothing.
