was right before his face. "The guild master has heard about my failing sight," Nathaniel said. "He knows of my slowness and mistakes."
He stopped. Peg stood and patted his shoulder, and he continued, "I told him it were true and he ordered me, with affection and pity but ordered me nonetheless, to cease practicing by summer. 'An apothecary,' he said, 'who can't be trusted to tell angelica from almond oil is no apothecary at all.'" As he said this, Nathaniel's eyes filled with hopeless tears.
Matilda was moved at the sight of those blue eyes overflowing with sorrow. "Father Leufredus says God uses illness and disease to punish the wicked. Perhaps if you were to repent?" she asked softly.
Margery stood up so quickly the bench fell over. "You ungracious, thoughtless, ill-mannered girl! You think Nathaniel's eye troubles stem from
wickedness?
Why, Nathaniel is ... is ... is ..."
Matilda stood also. She had suffered enough from this goose girl, but before she could respond, Nathaniel reached over and touched Margery's arm. "She was speaking to me, Margery. Let me answer her." Margery hauled the bench upright and sat back down with a thud, and Nathaniel turned toward Matilda, motioning her to sit as well. Matilda did so, grateful that Nathaniel had saved her from the temptation to speak her mind to Margery.
"It would be easier if I
were
wicked," Nathaniel said, "for repentance is well within my abilities. But unhappily I am no thief, no murderer, no traitor or seducer of women. I do not commune with devils or magicians. I am just an old man, young Matilda, and no better and no worse than any other man, not perfect but not wicked. I am an apothecary. I know and love herbs and healing. I can do nothing else, and I do not wish to." He snuffled, wiping his eyes on his sleeve.
Matilda could think of nothing to say to that. Glowering at Margery, for her anger was merely stifled and not forgotten, she took another bite of her pie.
"Would a wee bout of draughts comfort you, Nathaniel?" Peg asked, drawing her red eyebrows together in consternation.
Nathaniel shook his head. "No, thank ye, Peg. Not at the moment. I can think about little but my bad eyes. I saw Leech the bloodletter, but the bites of his leeches festered." Matilda was not at all surprised. "Walter had to anoint them with powdered larch bark and egg white. And my eyes are no better. Peter Threadneedle told me how the worm doctor had destroyed the worm that was paining his tooth. I thought perhaps he could help me, too." Nathaniel shook his head. "He could do nothing, and indeed, two days later, Peter himself betook his throbbing tooth to Barber Slodge to have it pulled. So desperate am I that I too stopped to see the barbers."
Boggle and Slodge were Blood and Bone Alley's barber-surgeons, who would cut your hair, your whiskers, or your leg off if you had the coin, for the alley was too poor a place to attract the kind of surgeon who does not also cut hair. Matilda knew their shop by the buckets of blood and bloody rags outside but had never been within.
"The barbers?" she asked. "Were you not afeared? Did you have to watch them cut off someone's leg?"
Nathaniel smiled and answered, "No, no. Indeed, much of their business is but tending dog bites, pulling teeth, and trimming beards."
"Were they any help with your eyes?" asked Peg.
"Boggle said obviously I want vomiting. Never, said Slodge, just a good cleanout of my bowels. 'Foul fiend!' Boggle shouted. 'Would you kill the man?' When they began talking about boiling oil, blistering, and excisions, I left the shop in a hurry."
Margery, Peg, and Nathaniel all laughed. The noise finally slowed to a wheeze and a sneeze, and Peg said, "Poor Nathaniel, is there no help for you? My mother used to say there was nothing like cabbage and honey to improve eyesight, though do you eat it or spread it on, I do not know. Or onion juice in the eye, or the blood of a tortoise, or seed of wild cucumber crushed in water,
He stopped. Peg stood and patted his shoulder, and he continued, "I told him it were true and he ordered me, with affection and pity but ordered me nonetheless, to cease practicing by summer. 'An apothecary,' he said, 'who can't be trusted to tell angelica from almond oil is no apothecary at all.'" As he said this, Nathaniel's eyes filled with hopeless tears.
Matilda was moved at the sight of those blue eyes overflowing with sorrow. "Father Leufredus says God uses illness and disease to punish the wicked. Perhaps if you were to repent?" she asked softly.
Margery stood up so quickly the bench fell over. "You ungracious, thoughtless, ill-mannered girl! You think Nathaniel's eye troubles stem from
wickedness?
Why, Nathaniel is ... is ... is ..."
Matilda stood also. She had suffered enough from this goose girl, but before she could respond, Nathaniel reached over and touched Margery's arm. "She was speaking to me, Margery. Let me answer her." Margery hauled the bench upright and sat back down with a thud, and Nathaniel turned toward Matilda, motioning her to sit as well. Matilda did so, grateful that Nathaniel had saved her from the temptation to speak her mind to Margery.
"It would be easier if I
were
wicked," Nathaniel said, "for repentance is well within my abilities. But unhappily I am no thief, no murderer, no traitor or seducer of women. I do not commune with devils or magicians. I am just an old man, young Matilda, and no better and no worse than any other man, not perfect but not wicked. I am an apothecary. I know and love herbs and healing. I can do nothing else, and I do not wish to." He snuffled, wiping his eyes on his sleeve.
Matilda could think of nothing to say to that. Glowering at Margery, for her anger was merely stifled and not forgotten, she took another bite of her pie.
"Would a wee bout of draughts comfort you, Nathaniel?" Peg asked, drawing her red eyebrows together in consternation.
Nathaniel shook his head. "No, thank ye, Peg. Not at the moment. I can think about little but my bad eyes. I saw Leech the bloodletter, but the bites of his leeches festered." Matilda was not at all surprised. "Walter had to anoint them with powdered larch bark and egg white. And my eyes are no better. Peter Threadneedle told me how the worm doctor had destroyed the worm that was paining his tooth. I thought perhaps he could help me, too." Nathaniel shook his head. "He could do nothing, and indeed, two days later, Peter himself betook his throbbing tooth to Barber Slodge to have it pulled. So desperate am I that I too stopped to see the barbers."
Boggle and Slodge were Blood and Bone Alley's barber-surgeons, who would cut your hair, your whiskers, or your leg off if you had the coin, for the alley was too poor a place to attract the kind of surgeon who does not also cut hair. Matilda knew their shop by the buckets of blood and bloody rags outside but had never been within.
"The barbers?" she asked. "Were you not afeared? Did you have to watch them cut off someone's leg?"
Nathaniel smiled and answered, "No, no. Indeed, much of their business is but tending dog bites, pulling teeth, and trimming beards."
"Were they any help with your eyes?" asked Peg.
"Boggle said obviously I want vomiting. Never, said Slodge, just a good cleanout of my bowels. 'Foul fiend!' Boggle shouted. 'Would you kill the man?' When they began talking about boiling oil, blistering, and excisions, I left the shop in a hurry."
Margery, Peg, and Nathaniel all laughed. The noise finally slowed to a wheeze and a sneeze, and Peg said, "Poor Nathaniel, is there no help for you? My mother used to say there was nothing like cabbage and honey to improve eyesight, though do you eat it or spread it on, I do not know. Or onion juice in the eye, or the blood of a tortoise, or seed of wild cucumber crushed in water,
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