Page 18 of Flame and Starlight

“Ash has been doing this for a while now. And every High Lord and Lady that came before him did it

as well. Each court has responsibilities they would rather not have. But life isn’t always sunshine and

rainbows, Wheezy.” He elbowed me, and I gave a weak laugh at his nickname for me. We reached my

door, another guard standing next to it, and I could hear Mavka behind it.

“Thanks for walking me back. Let me guess, see you at first light for round two?” “At your service,” he said with a bow and then walked off in the direction we had come from. “Hey,” I said to the guard next to my door as I twisted it open, but he stared straight ahead. I stuck

my tongue out at him and slipped inside. The room was filled with warmth and the scent of hickory. “Come on, then. Let’s get you in bed. I think you’re about to fall asleep where you stand, child!” For the first time, I didn’t fight her as she made quick work of getting the dress off and my

nightgown on. My eyes were heavy as I picked up the small tin and rubbed some salve into my

forehead. There was no more pain, and when I looked in the mirror, only a yellowish bruise

remained. It was almost completely healed. I sat the tin back on the vanity and kicked my slippers off

as I crawled into bed. I barely registered Mavka closing the curtains of the bed around me, sealing me

in darkness, before I plunged headfirst into sleep.

CHAPTER SEVEN

I woke up to yelling in the hallway. When I threw my eyes open, I was still cloaked in darkness. My heartbeat hammered in my chest to the point where I thought I was going to pass out. I couldn’t help but remember Asher’s warning that people here would be out to get me, to kill me. I sat there, breathing in and out of my nose, listening. A loud thump into my wall made me jump up, throw the curtains back, and climb out of bed. My fire had almost died down to coals, making it very difficult to see.

It must be late.

I grabbed the cloak from the wall and, as quietly as I could, unlatched my door and peered out into the hall. There was no guard at my door, and that made my stomach twist again. Something had to have happened for my door to have been left unguarded. I stepped out into the hall and closed my door behind me, wrapping the cloak around my bare legs as tightly as I could. I heard voices to my left, and shadows danced across the walls around the corner.

Clinging close to the wall, I padded down towards the voices in bare feet. I tried to keep my breath calm so that I could hear if anyone was coming my way, but all I could hear were muffled footsteps and urgent whispers. As much as I dared, I poked my head around the corner. I spotted Emric, his dark hair in tangles around his shoulders, and another guard I didn’t recognize. They were standing outside an open door, Emric talking animatedly with his hands.

“Go…the healer…blood…” were the only words that drifted down to me. The other guard took a short bow and turned towards me. I ducked back and pressed my entire body against the wall, heart in my throat, praying I could blend in with the shadows. He walked out, and I watched him walk away from me. I stared at his back until he was too far away to see and slowly peeked out again. There was no sign of Emric, but the door was still wide open, firelight pouring out of it.

Curiosity got the better of me. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very, very wrong. I got more confident when I realized I couldn’t hear anyone talking, so I tiptoed down towards the open door. The cloak did very little to keep the cold out with my bare legs and arms in the flimsy nightgown Mavka had dressed me in earlier. It was no more than an insubstantial piece of silk with thin straps and a hem that stopped midthigh. Gooseflesh raised across my skin, from cold or fear, I didn’t quite know.

I shivered as I approached the door, the warmth of the fire pouring out and drawing me closer. I looked into the doorway and saw Mavka wringing a cloth into a large basin next to the sofa at the fireplace. The water was streaming crimson over her small hands. The back of the couch faced me, but I could see a leg draped over the arm and a massive wing folded over the back. In the dim light of the room, its feathers looked inky as oil.

“Mav?” I whispered, taking a step into the room. Her head shot up to look at me, her eyes wild and wide.

“Get out of here, girl. This is not a place for you.” She stood up, rag in hand, and walked the couple of steps to the person lying on the couch. I had never seen anyone severely injured before, but I had taken care of my mother as her body had withered away into nothing, the cancer eating her up from the inside. In those final months, I had bathed her, held her hair as she vomited, and changed her diapers. If I could handle my mom in that much pain, a stranger should be easy. And it wasn’t like I could’ve gone back to my room and fallen asleep.

I slung the bright white cloak across the bed. I felt naked in the thin fabric covering my body, but I didn’t dare get blood all over that pristine thing. I tied my hair up in a knot on the top of my head with the strip of leather I kept tied around my wrist for training. I made my way over to the couch and watched Mavka lay the cloth on the Fae lying on the couch. When I looked over the back of the couch, Asher lay there, a gash so deep across his chest I could see the cartilage of his ribs.

“Oh, my,” I said and pressed the back of my hand to my mouth.

“If you aren’t here to help, go back to bed. He doesn’t need anyone else gawking at him.” I had no idea Mavka could be so stern, but then as I watched her push fingers through his hair as a mother would, I could see the worry in her eyes. The wrinkles at her eyes seemed more pronounced now, filled with dread.

“No,” I said, pulling myself together. “Tell me what to do. I can help.” She eyed me warily, still twisting her fingers through his hair. His eyes were closed, and his eyebrows were knitted together in pain. He groaned with almost every exhale, but he was clearly either passed out or so close to it he couldn’t comprehend what was happening. “I took care of my mother for months as she died. I can handle this.”

Without waiting for a response, I walked around to the bowl of water, muddied with his blood, careful not to touch his wing. I took it from the floor and carried it to the bathing chamber. His room was set up almost identical to mine so everything was easy to find. I dumped the dirty water into the bath and watched the water, thick and red, swirl down the drain. I let the water run for a minute to let it get scalding hot. While the bowl filled back up, I got several new cloths from the drawers next to the door and threw them over my shoulder. I walked back into his bedroom and made my way across the floor, careful not to spill the steaming water all over myself.

“This needs stitches, Mavka,” I said as I knelt next to them both. His head lolled to the side to face me, like he could hear my voice, but his eyes never opened. I swallowed thickly and looked at Mavka. “Where’s the healer?”

“I’m not sure. Emric is flying to get him now.”

“He doesn’t live on the grounds?” I slowly peeled the filthy cloth Mavka had laid across the cut in his chest and handed it to her.

“No,” she said, standing up with some effort. “He lives in town. I would hope he would be here within the half hour.” She dropped the bloodied cloth into a basket filled with them under the window.

---