Page 58 of Visions & Shadows

Ugh. I don’t have the strength to stand around and talk to someone.

“Peace be, River,” he greets the other man, who’s a little shorter and leaner built than him.

“Peace be, my friend. Roark mentioned you were home.” He lifts an eyebrow as he glances at me. “You must be Princess Alchera.”

I’m starting to feel downright awful and can only nod.

“Yes, this is my Alchera,” Raighne replies, the word ‘my’ making my eyebrows fly into my hairline.

Like hell, I’m not some piece of property he can claim.

My mood sours even more, and feeling miserable, I wish I could just go to bed.

Raighne must see something on my face because he says, “I mean it in the way a guardian would refer to his charge.”

Not wanting to argue about it, I nod.

Just as I’m about to continue walking, River says, “Peace be, Princess. Welcome home.”

“Don’t call me that,” I snap, immediately regretting my harsh tone. “Ah…I’m going to go.” I don’t even glance at Raighne as I add, “See you around.”

“Walk with us,” I hear Raighne tell River.

Just great.

I have to suppress the urge to growl as I focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

My vision starts to blur when I hear Fleur call out, “Alchera!”

I don’t stop walking because I’m afraid I’ll just sink to the ground and cry my heart out.

“By Awo,” she gasps when she catches up to me. “When it looked like things were getting out of hand, I went to find Raighne but I see he’s already found you.” Her eyes are filled with worry as she glances up and down my body. “Are you okay?”

I hook my arm through hers so I can lean on her and whisper, “Just get me to the healers before I pass out.”

“Of course.” Wrapping her arm around my lower back, she tries her best to support me.

As she helps me walk, she smiles at Raighne and River. “Peace be.”

Raighne doesn’t say anything, but River returns her greeting, which makes a blush form on her cheeks.

If I weren’t dying of pain, I’d be curious whether something’s going on between the two of them.

I try to pick up my pace, but my aching body doesn’t want to know a thing. Chills spread over my skin, and I wipe sweat from my forehead.

Suddenly, an arm wraps around my waist and another slips beneath my knees. I gasp when I’m picked up bridal style, and my face ends up inches from Raighne’s.

He doesn’t look at me as he mutters, “That’s enough. I’ll carry you therest of the way.”

The instant I feel his body heat, it somehow manages to ease the pain a little. Giving up on getting my stubborn ass to the healers on my own, I let out a sigh and rest my head against his shoulder.

“We’re almost there,” Raighne says, his tone comforting.

My vision blurs again, and I let out a groan before I lose consciousness.

I wake up with a start as a horrible sharp pain shoots through my shoulder and into my neck and back.

I’m unable to stop a cry from bursting over my lips, and feeling feverish, I can barely focus on anything.

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