Stripping off my frozen clothing was a new form of torture.
After peeling off what felt like a second layer of skin. I reluctantly climb into the copper bathtub, the steaming water heavenly to my aching body. The oils meant for cleaning and pampering stung as I sank into the water, my open cuts and scrapes hissing in protest. The camomile and jasmine would sterilise the wounds, the ointment my ladies having applied already doing its work. Still… it was better than being stuck in dirty clothes and chilled through to the bone. My frozen flesh thawed in the bathtub, heat returning to my blood after a few minutes. An experience that should have been relaxing brought me more anxiety than it should have. After my last ordeal in the bath I refused to be alone, and allowed Ceilia and Marie to sc
