Page 52 of The Elven Healer's Apprentice

Wincing, I turned my face away. “Sorry for what, Lippin?” I asked. “Could you please step away from the ward? The flare is making my head hurt worse.”

Lippin stepped back. “Sorry I let you go.” His usually petulant features crumpled into barely restrained tears.

“You are forgiven. It wasn’t your fault,” I assured the faun. “There was no way you could’ve known who he was.”

Lippin appeared reluctant to leave, but I knew he had work to do.

“I will be well,” I promised him before gesturing that he should head off. With a sidelong glance to Illeron, Lippin appeared appeased and left.

“You can see magic?” Illeron radiated intense interest.

“I sense magic and see spells,” I explained. “They flash and flare when someone interacts with them.” Closing my eyes, I almost missed the shift in the room’s atmosphere when a shadow elf arrived.

“Emrys,” Illeron acknowledged the new arrival.

I opened my eyes to find a regal shadow elf assessing me. Again, the familial similarities were there. The height, the cheekbones, and something about the eyes reminded me of Merlon, but the eyes themselves were very different. Cooler, more constrained, and very blue, they met my regard with a slight flicker of amusement. “Adela, I presume.”

“My apologies, Your Majesty, but Merlon ordered me to stay put. I don’t wish to incur the wrath of the healer yet, since I am still far from completely healed.” I offered my hand and a head dip. If I had moved any more, I suspect I would’ve ended up face first on the floor.

To my astonishment, the king took my offered hand and bowed over it.

“No apologies needed, my lady. Any woman who can imprint a unicorn to the extent that it will rampage through a fortress searching for her has earned some latitude in formality.”

“Sage?” I had forgotten about Merlon’s warning that she would seek me out should I be gone too long. “Where is she? Is she well? No one hurt her, I hope.” My father would make a fortune from her parts should they catch her.

The elf king laughed. The shadows in the corners retreated, showing his amusement was genuine. The connection between the elves’ magic and their emotions made conversations interesting. Considering the level of power rolling off the shadow elf across from me, I hoped to never have to cross him over anything.

“Your unicorn returned to her pen after I informed her that Merlon was bringing you home to heal. Though, I suspect she would like to see you soon. She appears willing to wait.”

“And Hectorius?” asked Illeron.

For a moment, the temperature in the infirmary dropped by a degree or two, and Emry’s eyes flared silver as he smiled dangerously. “He has been reminded of whom he has allied himself with. I revoked some of his privileges. No more demanding help of passing elves, and I rescinded our protection of his borders.”

“They’ve been dependent on our joint protection against the raiders on his southern border. That will force him to reposition his forces entirely.” Illeron frowned gravely.

“An effective consequence then.”

“Very,” Illeron nodded. “I will spread word of the updated terms.”

A flash in my peripheral vision made me flinch as the surrounding ward collapsed.

“Illeron.” The king’s tone reproved the spymaster.

“I was just testing her,” Illeron protested.

I closed my eyes and tried to ride out the sudden increase in throbbing pain the light had caused.

“Now is not the time.” The king’s voice threatened consequences.

“Seriously, Emrys? It wasn’t that large of a spell.”

Just then, Merlon returned from the depths of the mysterious closet. I didn’t need to open my eyes to know. The room felt different once he entered.

“What did you just do?” the king demanded.

I slit my eyes open wide enough to see that he was glaring at Illeron.

“Her sensitivity to magic bears testing,” Illeron protested. “None of the other humans we have encountered see magic,spells or otherwise. Perhaps she has elven blood somewhere in her ancestry.”

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