Jacob lay Nicholas his couch, which was soft enough that it should feel comfortable to him. Again, Jacob silently cursed himself for allowing his things to get soiled. He could always try to get the blood out, though. If this kid was strong enough to cut his own arm off to survive, and possibly to protect Mattie and that baby, then there was no telling what he'd accomplished once he recovered.

[i]If he recovers,[/i] Jacob found himself thinking. He shook the thought out of his head. There was no way that he was going to let Nicholas die, not on his watch.

The fire was dying down, so the room had gotten a bit chilly. Jacob took a thick piece of firewood and threw it in the fireplace, squirting a bit of lighter fluid on it, just enough so that the remaining sparks at the bottom would ignite the rest of the wood. He turned to Mattie and gestured at the couch across from the one Nicholas was lying on, "You can take a seat."

For the first time, Jacob examined Mattie. Her hair was all astray and her eyes were...obviously traumatized. She was wearing a rather nice looking shirt, but behind her shorts Jacob could see a makeshift bandage.

"What happened to your leg?" he asked.

---

When Jacob put Nicholas on the couch, Nicholas couldn't have been more thankful to be lying on something so soft. He struggled to keep his eyes open, especially now that he was so comfortable, but he did. He watched Jacob and then his eyes drifted over to Mattie and Cole. Cole had seemed to have found peace with everything, because he wasn't fussing. Nicholas was glad for that. He wanted Cole to be happy.

The fire was ignited, and the room seemed to get warmer. Nicholas felt thankful, because he had been getting colder and colder. He'd heard of people, before they died, knowing that they were going to die. They could feel it. Nicholas didn't feel it; he just felt like he was going to live through this suffering. Maybe he would. That was what he hoped, at least.

He heard Jake ask Mattie what had happened to her leg. He wanted to laugh a little, but couldn't. After Jake had asked Mattie that, he came over to Nicholas and laid a blanket across him. Nicholas looked up at him a nodded a little in thanks.