74, Islands

Tenac walked through the hall with cots full of sick women. He kept his eyes cast to the floor in an attempt to show them respect and a bit of privacy. Jason had wrapped his arms around Tenac's neck and buried his face in his shoulder. He weighed next to nothing as Tenac carried him, following Ayya as she made her way through her maze of cots. 

“Josefina and Lina Kreusen?” he heard her ask. 

“My lady,” a weak female voice answered.

“Please, it’s just Ayya. How are you feeling?”

“Not so good, I’m afraid. Lina is drifting in and out of sleep. I keep coughing and I feel like I’m burning up,” the woman said. “No one will tell me what is happening to us, but I think it’s bad.” Tenac heard Ayya draw in a breath and he heard the creek of the cot as she sat down on the edge of it.

“It is,” she confirmed. “I don’t think I will find a way to cure this illness before it claims both of your lives. I’m sorry,” Ayya told her. There was a long string of coughs. 

“It’s okay, my lady. Sorry, Ayya. I haven’t had hope of surviving this since I got sick. Do you know how my husband and son are?”

“Your husband is sick as well, but not as bad as you and your daughter. Jason is healthy and is doing fine. I have brought him with me as he wanted to see you. Do you feel up to talking to him?” Ayya asked. 

“Thank you, yes please,” the woman said, and Tenac could hear the excitement in her voice. Tenac felt Ayya’s hands joined his around Jason. 

“Are you ready to see your mother, Jason?” she asked. The boy nodded. Tenac let go of him as he felt Ayya lift him and place him on the floor. “You can open your eyes now, Jason,” she told him. 

“Jason, there’s my handsome boy. I think you have grown since I last saw you,” Tenac heard the woman say. He also heard the soft sob that came from Jason. Tenac felt a pang in his heart as he listen to the conversation between Jason and his mother. His mother tried to teach him everything she had wanted to teach him growing up in the brief moment they now had. She reminded him to be good to other people, to be polite and treat those that were weaker with respect. She told him that when he met a girl he liked, he should be respectful, not just to her, but to her family as well. That he needed to have a good and stable income before he started a family and that he was a good boy and that he could do anything he wanted to do in life. Lastly, he told him he needed to listen to what the nuns and Ayya told him. Jason listened to his mother and her words became coughs and then stopped. He told her he loved her and that she made the best biscuits in the world. He promised he would be good and listen to the nuns and Ayya. Tenac heard the soft chuckle from his mother. And then he heard them say goodby. Ayya led Jason to Tenac and Tenac lifted him into his arms again and the boy clung to him even tighter than before. Ayya stood with them for a while. She had a hand on Jason’s back and Tenac knew she was trying to rein in her emotions. Then she walked back to the woman in the cot. 

“Thank you for bringing him,” the woman said. Her voice was even weaker. As if the brief conversation had drained her. 

“It was my pleasure. He is a smart and polite boy,” Ayya said.

“He is. He is a really good boy.”

“I will make sure he ends up someplace safe,” Ayya promised. 

“Thank you. God bless you, your grace,” the woman said.

“And you, Josefina. May the gods smile on you. Now rest. We have taken up enough of your time,” Ayya told her. Tenac felt Ayya’s hand on his arm, signalling him they could leave. He followed her as she made her way back through the sea of cots. She led them to the place where they had lunch and Tenac looked up at her. She had tears running down her face and he opened up his arm so she could step in and together they hugged a crying Jason. When they all had calmed down, Ayya took a step back and dried her tears while Tenac let Jason down. He had stopped crying but looked heartbroken. 

“How are you doing?” Tenac asked the brave boy.

“Okay, I’m happy I got to see her,” Jason said. The rest of the afternoon, Jason followed Ayya and Tenac. He and Tenac would stand a little to the side when Ayya interviewed other people. “Why is she talking to so many people?” Jason asked.

“She is trying to find out why they aren’t sick,” Tenac explained. 

“Like me and my family?”

“Yes, just like that. We hope that if we figure it out, we can figure out why your families get sick and then stop it.” Jason nodded and kept listening when Ayya talked. When it was time for them to return to the castle, Ayya found a nun who promised to stay with Jason. They said goodbye and promised to be back the next day. Tenac saw how much it pained Ayya to leave the boy. He felt the same way. But he was safe, and he was close to his family and that was for the best. 

———

In the evening, after eating, they sat down and shared what they had learned during the day. Regardless of which angle they came at the problem from, they couldn’t find a common denominator to why these people would be healthy when their families were sick. 

“It’s easier to find what the sick families have in common,” Firlea sighed. 

“Yes, it really seems it happens in clusters,” Ayya agreed. 

“Do you think it would help if we looked at a map of the city?” Tenac asked. 

“It can’t hurt,” Ayya said. They called a servant and asked for a detailed map of the city. As they waited, they tore paper into smaller pieces to use as markers. When the map came, they spread it out over the table and took a stack of papers. They started on separate parts of the city, marking down households and neighbourhoods they knew had been affected. When they were done, they stood back. 

“That is…” Firlea started.

“Strange,” Hinat finnished. 

“I agree,” Ayya said. The map had several white areas where the sickness had been spread. They were more common in the poorer parts of the city, but two spots were in the neighbourhoods closest to the castle. The strange thing was there were no single occurrences. Not one white piece of paper sat alone on the map. What made it even more strange was that none of the spots touched. They were isolated from each other, like islands.

“No disease behaves like this,” Firlea said. 

“What if it doesn’t spread in the air? What if something else is causing it?” Ayya asked.

“Like spoiled food?” Hinat asked.

“On the battlefield it’s important to keep the human wast away from the source of water. If they mix, you will get sick,” Tenac said. 

“That is a good point. But it still dosen’t explain why there is no trail between the different outbreaks. Why this pattern? If it’s contaminated water, it should be connected as it flow through the city. I can’t believe twenty parts of the city are having a problem with contaminations going into the water and nowhere else,” Ayya said. 

“We are missing something. If it was a contamination, it dosen’t explain the waves of the sickness. If the contamination had passed, why does it come back?” Firlea thought out loud. 

“I wonder if we can get some form of historical data. What we see here is just the latest wave. I don’t think anyone else in our neighbourhood got sick besides my parents,” Ayya said as she tried to remember. “Maybe I should go and talk to Mrs Korpi tomorrow,” Ayya said. 

“Hinat and I can go to Father Link. He might know if there is any historic data,” Firlea suggested. 

“Take four riders with you,” Tenac told her. Firlea and Hinat smiled at him. Ayya smiled at him, too. He was sweet and even though he only needed to worry about Ayya’s safety, he made sure her two friends were safe and comfortable. When her friends left for bed, Tenac staid and pulled Ayya into his arms. “Are you okay? It’s been a rough day,” he asked. 

“I’m a little frayed around the edges, but nothing that a good night’s sleep can’t cure. How about you?” she asked him. He looked tired. 

“It was hard to see the boy and listen to him say goodbye to his mother,” he told her. 

“Yeah, we need to make sure we go by and look in on him tomorrow.”

“We will. What will happen to him?” Tenac asked.

“It depends on what happens to his father. If he survives, Jason and he will have to build their lives up again. If his father dies,” Ayya paused and sighed. “The best option is that a family friend will take him in. That is unlikely as everyone is so scared of the sickness. Most likely, he will end up at an orphanage. Father Link and his church have one.”

“The one you used to volunteer at?” Tenac asked. Ayya smiled.

“Yes. There are positives with him going there. He will be surrounded by other children which have been through what he has. The nuns are used to taking care of children with his background. They work with reputable businessmen in the city and make sure the children that don’t find a home get good apprenticeships. They follow up on the children and make sure everything is okay,” she explained.

“Sounds like a good option,” Tenac said.

“It is. There are worse places. If it comes to that, we will make sure he gets to come to them,” Ayya told him.

“We will. We will make sure he is safe,” Tenac agreed.