Page 15 of Ties of Frost

I clenched my teeth until they ached. Why was she so determined to hate me? And here I was, thinking of her ungrateful dragon hide as a close friend.

“I smell a human and an elf,” Zidra said.

“Ice elf?” I inquired without thinking, but quickly added, “I know, we smell the same unless we’re actively using magic, sorry.” As useful as it was that shifters could usually discern human from elf from shifter by scent, it would be nice if they could tell the differences within those groups.

Based on the impression I was getting of her emotions,she was probably thinking again that I had sea-foam for brains. Maybe she wasn’t wrong.

I kept returning to what she had claimed.Wasit my fault that her life was in danger from the ice curse? She wasn’t entirely wrong that my presence had complicated her meeting and distracted her.

“Stop blocking the doorway,” Zidra groused.

Ignoring her, I stepped into the hall. The apprentice was returning, a lantern in hand, and with a spindly ice elf woman at her side. Reassured, I returned to my seat in the corner.

“The ice elf physician, then?”

I nodded, not in the mood to talk to Zidra.

She returned to sit on the bed with her legs dangling off the side. The sight of her feet hanging above the floor almost made me smile. I’d never met any other wyveri, so I didn’t know if she was short for her people, but she was short compared to most elves. She’d never appreciated me pointing out how much taller than her I was. Her height did make her easier to carry…although she probably wouldn’t see that as a positive.

The glow of the lantern preceded the apprentice and the healer into the room. Mirlanwen bustled around the apprentice and made right for Zidra. Her white hair fell down her back in a braid, and her unwrinkled skin and pink-tinged cheeks indicated she wasn’t old. For an elf, that could mean anything from being around my own one hundred fifty-five years to being in her early five hundreds.

“Rengir Eilmaris, I’m Physician Mirlanwen.” She bowed,since her russet physician robes weren’t wide enough to accommodate a proper curtsy. “Quillan explained the situation. How are you feeling?”

Zidra lifted her left shoulder in a noncommittal shrug. “The entry site still hurts, but less than it did. It feels like a minor burn, but also cold, in addition to the pinching of the stab wound.”

Mirlanwen nodded. “May I remove the bandage and examine it? I will use my magic to probe the wound and the ice magics.”

“Of course.” Zidra adjusted her position to give the healer easier access.

Since I couldn’t get a good view from my chair in the corner, I stood and moved closer. Subtle hints of pale blue swirled around Mirlanwen’s fingertips as she felt around the wound. A chill brushed against my own arm at the same moment as Zidra shivered.

Mirlanwen drew her hands back with a frown and then turned to me. “You did well, Rengir Ilifir. To say I am impressed with your work here would be an understatement.” She faced Zidra again. “And you, Rengir Eilmaris. I am astounded you are not only alive, but so hale. To look at you, one would assume you’d suffered a far less serious injury. I can sense the traces of the ice curse and Kyrundar Ilifir’s magic. They came very near your heart, yet your dragon fire appears strong and unharmed.”

Along with the flattered pride coming through the bond, I sensed the physician’s words eased a little of Zidra’s anger.

“Unfortunately,” Mirlanwen continued, “there is nothing I can do.” She turned both her hands palm up and dropped them back to her sides. “Rengir Ilifir’s power is far stronger than mine.” She looked to me. “You were unable to extract the curse?”

I gulped and shook my head. “I tried, but I wasn’t even sure how. What I was trying wasn’t working, so I did the best I could.”

“You did well,” she reassured me with a smile. “The problem is, if the curse was too great for your power, and your power is greater than mine, I will be unable to remove it as well. You will need to remove your magic, and a more skilled ice elf healer will have to then remove the curse.”

Zidra paled. “I thought Physician Quillan said you were the only ice elf at Merael’s?”

“I am.” Mirlanwen’s expression pinched. “I recommend you find Gautindar Rouven. He was a senior physician—in fact, he wasthemost senior physician on staff until he abruptly retired around six months ago.”

“An old man?” I tried and failed to hide my skepticism.

“Rouven is six hundred, yes. But he’s still very capable, and he’s more powerful and far more experienced than I am. If anyone can extract this corrupted ice magic, it’s him.”

Zidra took a deep breath. “Where can I find him?”

Mirlanwen grimaced. “I don’t actually know.”

My breath lodged in my chest, and I wasn’t sure if it was my own reaction or Zidra’s. “I beg your pardon?”

“When Rouven announced his hasty retirement and that he was leaving Laedresh, he said he didn’t want to bebothered. He was always an eccentric old grump, but he loved being a physician. His behavior when he left was odd, to put it mildly. He refused to tell anyone where he was going or why he was leaving. He hails from a noble family, but his relatives in Glacori haven’t seen him.”

“Is there any other physician that can help whose whereabouts youdoknow?” Zidra demanded.

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