Page 17 of The Prince's Curse

Haldric rose uncertainly and shuffled forward until he stood where the chirurgeons had been. The man lying in bed looked less regal than Haldric had expected. His body appeared surprisingly frail given his booming voice. His lined face was pale and drawn, his skin sallow. Haldric didn’t need to be a healer to tell that the king was not well.

Still, his bright green eyes, so much like Haldric’s own, regarded him keenly. For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

“You look good,” the king said. “When I heard you’d spent the past few months on a farm, I worried you’d return a starving husk of your former self.”

To Haldric’s shock, the king’s face grew heavy with emotion. He stretched out a trembling hand. Not knowing what else to do, Haldric clasped it, the skin cool and clammy to the touch.

“My boy…” the king whispered, clutching weakly at Haldric’s hand. “My beautiful boy… Thank the Goddess you’ve come back to us unharmed.”

Feeling horribly awkward, Haldric managed a nod. It was surreal to know he was speaking to the king of an entire nation, let alone see him act so emotional. Haldric felt guilty for not being more affected himself, but it was hard when he barely recognized this man beyond the faintest stirring of memory.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long for the king to recover. He let his hand drop to his silken sheets as his face grew more stern. “Your return comes none too soon. As you can see, I have little time left to me, and this nonsense has already wasted far too much of it. We must ensure nothing else happens to ruin your ascension to the throne.”

He seemed to expect something of Haldric. Haldric cleared his throat, searching for anything to say. “They…they tell me that the ritual to restore my memories is to take place soon.”

“Thank the Goddess for Dexil—I don’t know what I’d do without him. Soon, you’ll be yourself again. And that traitorous commoner who dared to kidnap you will learn the price of threatening the crown prince.”

“We don’t know for certain how Benjin was involved,” Haldric protested. “He may be as much a victim here as I am.”

The king snorted. “Unlikely. Regardless, what matters most is that you’re all right. There is much to do once you’ve regained your memories, starting with solidifying our alliance to Khordan.”

“Alliance? I hadn’t heard anything about that in Gerald’s Spring.”

“Well, of course not.” The king shifted atop his blankets, clumsily adjusting the pile of pillows he sat propped against. “The details still need to be ironed out, but you’d been assistingme with it prior to your disappearance. I only hope this debacle hasn’t soured Lord Galax on the engagement.”

Haldric blinked, certain he must have misheard or misunderstood. “What sort of engagement?”

Chagrin flashed across the king’s drawn face. “Ah, forgive me, Son. I hadn’t meant to bring up such things until after the ritual. We can discuss it more once you’ve recovered.”

Haldric knew he should probably take the hint and let it go, but something in the king’s expression compelled him to push. “Please, Your Majesty, tell me what you mean. I want to know.”

King Roland studied him for a span of breaths before letting out a rattling sigh. “Very well. Prior to your disappearance, you were engaged to marry Lord Galax’s eldest daughter, Lady Katalin.”

The room spun around Haldric. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or to weep. As if everything between him and Benjin wasn’t already muddled enough, now he apparently had a secret fiancée to contend with as well?

Some of his distress must’ve shown on his face because the king reached for him, patting his hand. “Don’t fret, Haldric. You can handle this. You’re strong.” He managed a feeble grin. “Just like your father once was. Obey Janelle and Dexil’s counsel, and you’ll be fine. As soon as the ritual’s complete, come visit me, and we’ll—”

A sudden cough racked the king’s frail frame. His grip on Haldric’s hand tightened as he doubled over, wheezing for breath. Fear choked Haldric when he saw the spray of blood left on the king’s sheets.

“Someone, help!” he cried.

Guards burst through the door in an instant, trailed closely by the chirurgeons. The pale white glow of soulflame soon suffused the darkened room, shining like shimmering moonlight.

A strong grip fastened around Haldric’s forearm, and he startled until he realized it was Janelle guiding him from the chamber. She shut the door behind them, cutting off the king’s hacking cough.

“Is he going to be okay?” Haldric demanded. His frightened gaze flicked from Janelle to the door and back.

Worry creased Janelle’s brow. “For now, yes. Dexil’s potions have done wonders to slow the king’s sickness, and the healers do what they can to bolster his flesh. But there are some ailments not even magic can fix.”

“What’s wrong with him?”

“We don’t know—even the dawnflame priests we sent for from Khordan couldn’t determine for certain, though they suspect he picked up some form of voidflame affliction during a long-ago expedition to the Void Peaks along our southern border. Whatever the cause, the reality is that your father is old and sick. He…he does not have much time left in the Mortal Realm.”

For a moment, she looked close to tears, her face that of a sister afraid of losing her beloved brother. Then, she clenched her jaw and became the grizzled warrior once again. “Which is why it’s all the more important we get your memories restored as soon as we can. Come!”

He followed without complaint as she led him out of the royal chambers toward the palace’s western tower, struggling to process everything he’d learned. A father he didn’t remember who was near death? A betrothed princess from a distant empire he was supposed to marry? It all seemed like so much—too overwhelming for him to handle.

Focus on the here and now,he chided himself as they walked. He took a deep, calming breath.You can’t do anything about the rest of it right now anyway.

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