Rhaiven’s hands cramped as he struggled to maintain his grip and keep his brother’s pace. For a man constantly sitting in a chair, Math was able to keep a surprisingly brisk pace with the burden they carried. Rai was hard pressed to hold on and keep up, but he wasn’t about to be the one to slow down their dash for the doctor.

The doctor, or someone, had erected some crude canvas shelters on that side of the town’s square. As they arrived, the press got closer and Thea dropped behind. Rai gave a concerned glance behind, trying to keep track of her, but almost stumbled in the process. A moment later he felt her hand on his back, reassuring him as she clutched the back of his shirt to make sure they didn’t get separated.

He was still amazed at how quickly he’d fallen for the young woman. Named after her father, who had apparently been expecting a son, Theodora was clearly a source of pride to the frail man. Whip-smart and deceptively strong for her thin frame, she had no trouble handling the ailing innkeeper’s books or rolling out casks. Those traits helped her elsewhere as well: she had taught more than one larger boy a lesson when too much ale took flirtatiousness across the lines of decency.

Her spirit was evident the first time Rai had laid eyes on her, the night his brother had dragged her and her father into the house through the driving rain. She had looked up at him with wide and impossibly dark eyes peering out between the clumps of long brown hair plastered to her forehead. But she wasn’t hunched under the weight of the wind and rain. She stood straight, defiance gleaming from those eyes even then.

That willingness to stand up to the world served her well as she assumed more and more responsibility over her father’s tavern. It served her tonight, as she played guardian to their injured cargo, protecting her from collisions by the panicked mob. It had served her well earlier, when Rai had found her, standing by her father in front of the bar and trying to force calmness on a frightened and riotous crowd of patrons. He wouldn’t have tried to pull her away even after he saw she was safe, but her father and the other staff had matters in hand. She and Ana had become close themselves, and she was just as concerned as Rai and his brother.

Ahead, Math’s efforts to work his way through the crowd paid off, and suddenly space opened up around them as they passed through an opening in a rope cordon. Inside the roped-off space, volunteers had set up orderly rows of improvised cots and beds made from whatever could be salvaged or scavenged on short notice. The doctor himself was directing a man to lay the young boy in his arms on a nearby empty cot. The boy cried softly, blood dripping from his nose. The doctor gave him a quick inspection, then patted the father on the shoulder and moved on, looking for patients in more urgent need of care.

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The doctor spotted the brothers as the brothers found an empty cot and headed towards it. He hustled over and met them as they arrived.

“Where is she injured?” he asked, even as he inspected the impaled leg.

“Her other leg is broken I think, and her shoulder, some cuts on her head,” Math answered.

“Mmhm,” the doctor mumbled. “Needles, water and cloth!” he yelled to a young boy, who scurried off to fetch the doctor’s tools. “We’re going to need to take this out, but we have to be prepared to stop the bleeding.”

He looked over the leg, probing it with his hands. Ana moaned as he touched her leg below the knee. After a brief but through exam, he moved up to the shoulder, probing again with expert fingers. “The leg is broken,” he stated, then looked up at Math. “You placed the splint?”

“Rai did,” he replied.

“It’s excellent work. You did well,” he said to Rhaiven. Rai saw Math nod his own appreciation, while Thea gave his arm an affectionate squeeze. He nodded, keeping a straight face despite the flash of pride.

“The splint can stay for now. The shoulder is dislocated. I’ll set it back in place before we remove the splinter,” the doctor said.

Splinter is a bit of an understatement, Rai thought to himself as the doctor undid the binding on his mother’s arm.

“Brace her down,” the doctor ordered as he lifted the injured arm. Rai and Math bent over their mother, holding her body in place as the doctor pulled her arm out and up. With a loud pop, the joint snapped back into place, and Ana gave a stifled cry.

Rai straightened up and saw her eyes open wide. She was conscious again and struggling to stay stubborn and strong in front of others.

“It’s ok Ma,” Rai said calmly. “We’re taking care of you.”

Ana gave him a tight smile in return as the doctor’s apprentice returned with a tray stacked high with supplies.

“You’re going to need to bite down on this,” the doctor said as he placed a length of leather-wrapped wood between Ana’s teeth. “You two will need to hold her still while I remove the wood and repair the damage.”

Rai and Math again bent over their mother to keep her from jerking and injuring the leg further. Math held her by the waist, leaving Rai at her shoulders and looking at her. “I’ll be ok, sweetheart. No worse than bringing the two of you into this world, huh?” She mumbled around the bit and winked at him. Rai chuckled. Then the doctor went to work, and she threw her head back, the sinews on her neck bulging as her jaws clenched tight around the leather.