Dem sat and watched Em as she slept. Egfor may have been her adopted father, but he was fond of her for herself. No matter what Egor's final decision was he would always be here for the lass. She was as dear to him as Syllea, Rosie, Lanchthis, and all the other young girls in his life. Egfor was arguing with a craftmaster next door at the new inn he was building, Something he had decided to left Egfor handle on his own.
"Oh Em," he whispered. He kept his voice low and soothing even if the truth of it was he was worried to death about the child. Rae had told him she would be fine, he had a hard time believing him. The stubborn lass who refused to follow doctor's orders until she had one day collapsed and had to be carried to bed, and hadn't risen since, looked pale, underfed, and deathly sick, did not seem to be getting better in his eyes. He missed watching her antics in The Prancing Pony. Now the only time they talked, and it was him who did the talking was when he fed her broth. He would regale her with the latest gossip of Bree, mostly embellished stories to make her smile.
His thoughts wandered to his own troubles. But he quickly shoved them aside, this was neither the time nor the place. Dunwine pawed at the door again. The dogs were not allowed in Em's room. Just as well the cat would eat them for a snack, he thought watching Em's cat glare at the door. That's what he would do for the next time he kept her company, tell her a story of a girl's cat tearing apart the dogs that came near her. He paused in that idea, no that was not a story for Em. But he would think of a story to tell her of a cat and a girl that would be acceptable. Perhaps of a cat who nursed a girl to health by its purrs alone. Yes he would work on that.
His mind drifted to little Make Happy Rosie and her paper flowers, wondering how Em would like a visit from her. He shook his head, he didn't think she would tolerate the bouncy three year old. Ric certainly didn't and the two of them were so alike in so many ways it scared him sometimes. He wasn't sure he was doing the right thing with Ric, or any of the children he loved so much. "Oh Em, I miss your snarky self, get better for me and Egfor. Please."
