no memory of him. She told him not to be sad, but thankful that they had shared this rare experience.
Whill knew it was time to go but protested. She reassured him once again, and communicated a great sense of love and pride. Then she was gone, and the world was back. He knelt at the foot of the bed, vision blurred, his eyes burning with hot tears. He could hear the infant wailing loudly, and he smiled to himself as he passed out.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Will was again in the state he had been after healing Tarren. His body ached, his head pounded, and he floated in and out of strange, feverish dreams. He dreamed of his parents, and the mountain, and of places and people he had never known. He awoke briefly to find an old woman wiping his brow with a cool cloth. He attempted to ask of the infant but his head swooned with pain as he fell once again into a deep sleep.
Again the elf woman came to Whill, and with her soothing touch and warm smile she took away all pain. Her beauty surpassed that of any mortal he had ever seen, and he was sure he would be content to stare into her eyes forever. Her face radiated with great compassion, but Whill could sense an urgency born of fear. As she soothed his many pains with her own healing energy, she spoke.
“Whill, he can sense you. You must not use your powers again until you are among us. He knows where you are. You must go now.”
Whill awoke abruptly and sat up. Abram jumped, his eyes heavy. Whill surveyed his surroundings. He knew where he was the house of healing. The old man and woman who had tended to the baby now tended to him, and they seemed as shocked as Abram. Even Tarren stared in wide wonder as Whill attempted to get out of the bed.
“Abram, we must go, we have to leave know!”
Abram gave Whill a look of concern. “Whoa, whoa there friend relax, give yourself a minute. Are you alright?”
Whill found his shirt and other clothes and hurriedly put them on. Tarren retrieved his boots. “Thank you,” he said. “Abram, the elf woman from before told me we should leave, just now, before I awoke.”
Abram’s face turned to a hard scowl. “What else did she say?”
Whill tied his boots quickly. “She said something like ‘he can sense you,’ though I don’t know who she was talking about.”
Abram paced the room for a moment as if in deep thought. “You’re right, we must go, and we must go now. Tarren, go and tell Hagus we are leaving.”
The boy ran out of the room without a word. The old man peered out the window with a scowl. “I don’t know how easily you will escape the crowd, good sir.”
“What crowd?”
“That crowd there.” The old man pointed.
Whill went to the window. “They have been outside for four days now, awaiting a glimpse of the great healer; he being you of course sir.”
Whill was not surprised this time that he had been unconscious for four days, but he was surprised by the crowd. More than fifty people were camped outside of the small home. A man noticed Whill and cried, “There he is, there he is!”
Whill quickly ducked away from the window as the people began to cheer. The old man smiled at him. “That was a wonderful thing you did for that child, though I know not how you did it. You have a great gift, son-an elven gift, if I may. Tell me, are you part elf?”
“Uh, no, I am not. I do not understand my…abilities, either. How is the child, anyway?”
The old woman smiled as she poured Whill some tea. “She is doing excellently, thanks to you. You know, upon learning your name, the mother named the baby Whilliana in your honor. She was most grateful. Every day she has come to see how you are. The town has been in an uproar for the last four days. The sick have even begun coming from surrounding towns to ask to be healed by you.”
She handed Whill the tea and he thanked her. Abram peered out the window, wearing the same scowl. “Not all of them are adoring fans, mind you,” he warned. “Just last night a band of fools arrived carrying torches, demanding to have the sorcerer handed over. The soldiers would not let them pass, of course, but they came nonetheless. Word of this will soon spread throughout Agora, Whill. Our troubles have only just begun.”
Whill could sense that Abram had much more to say on the issue but held his tongue for now. Outside the crowd was still cheering and demanding for Whill to come out. He peered through the side of the window. Twenty armed Eldalon soldiers had formed a barrier in front of the house, and he suspected that there were more guarding the rest of the building. He could hear women and men alike pleading for him to come out and work another miracle.
“Please, my son is blind, if you could just help him,” one woman pleaded.
“My father is sick, good sir, would you take just a moment-” said another.
“My mother, she cannot walk, surely you can help us?” asked a young man. And there were countless other pleas for help.
Whill looked at Abram, who gave him a look that said clearly, “No!” The pleas made Whill feel sick to his stomach. He wanted to be far from this place, as fast as possible.
“How do we get out of here without being noticed?” he asked.
“I have had four days to plan our escape, Whill. Do not worry. As you know, many of the herbs and roots and such needed by a healer must be kept cool.”
Whill nodded. “An underground storage room.”
The old man pointed to a door built into the floor near the northern wall. “It leads to a small tunnel ten feet long and opens into our cold room. It can be entered from the outside and therefore exited from the inside, through a small door built to look like a large tree stump.”
“I have asked Hagus to bring a wagon around to the back a few minutes after Tarren returns,” Abram said. “From there we should have no problem escaping to the woods without having to deal with the mob, adoring fans or no.”
Whill was satisfied. “Sounds like you have thought of everything. But what shall we do with Tarren?”
Abram gestured to the old man and woman. “I have asked I am and Laurna here if they would be so kind as to watch over him until we return. They have agreed.”
“We would be happy to,” said I am.
“It is our honor,” Laurna added with a smile.
“Thank you both so very much,” Whill said. “And please accept payment for this deed. I insist. If not for yourselves, then take it for your patients. I know that gold can buy medicines that are scarce in these parts. And though I cannot help these people right now as I would wish, perhaps my money can.”
From the window, Abram spoke. “Tarren has returned. We must go.”
Abram had readied his and Whill’s things so they could leave as soon as Whill awoke. Their weapons, packs, bags, and supplies sat in a heap at the foot of the bed. Whill and Abram prepared for travel as Tarren entered the room and quickly closed the door on the screaming crowd. The sound of the mob was unsettling; Whill tried to block out the sounds of the pleading people but found it difficult. He wished he had control of his powers; he wished he could help every one of them. But knew he could not. Tarren helped as much as possible as they loaded up with the heavy packs.
Once ready, Whill turned to him. The boy smiled bravely, though Whill could tell he was scared. He stood smiling up at Whill with a slight shimmer in his eyes. Whill bent to one knee. “You be good for I am and Laurna, alright, lad? Help them out and stay out of trouble.”
Tarren tried to be tough as always. “When will you be back?”
Whill knew how Tarren felt. He saw himself in the boy now more than ever. “We will return before the tenday. I promise, Tarren, we will come back for you. You have my word.” He gave the boy a hug and turned
