Page 30 of Beneath the Cursed Veil

No. I couldn’t afford to think that way.

I turned the corner and nearly faltered.

In a windblown snowbank, Meera lay on her side, unconscious, her arms and dress dusted with snow. I collapsed beside her, my fingers going to her pulse.

My chest eased a fraction at the steady thrum.

Slowly I turned her body onto her back, searching for any visible wounds. A quick cursory glance didn’t find any, apart from the smattering of bruises on her left side. She must have landed sideways.

Not wanting to waste more time, I scooped her up into my arms and started back toward the castle doors. Kaia met me halfway.

“Is she . . .”

“Breathing. I didn’t see blood, but there’s no telling what kind of internal damage she could have suffered.”

Fucking Corvo. If he hadn’t been wrapped around her legs, she wouldn’t have tripped. My familiar and I were going to have words.

The second we crossed the threshold, I shouted. “We need a healer!”

People scrambled to get out of my way this time, not needing to be told. We made it halfway up the stairs when a high-pitched voice made me pause. “Is that her? My son’s abductor?”

“Deal with her,” I told Kaia, not even turning to address my brother’s widow. She was a constant thorn in my side, but I would lose my temper if she so much as laid a hand on Meera.

Whispers followed us up the first floor, only giving way to silence by the time we reached the fourth. I was most of the way to my room when a healer came jogging down the hall, trying to catch up to me.

“My King?—”

“Room,” I barked.

“Y-yes, of course,” he murmured, moving swiftly to my side. I didn’t spare him a glance as I passed through the open door to my bedroom. With as much care as I could muster, I placed Meera on the fur blankets.

“Fix her.”

“Tell me what happened.”

I pointed to the broken glass. “Fell out the window. Landed in a snowbank.” I stepped to the side, giving him room, but not moving far. Something feral stirred in my chest, restless and violent. With clenched fists at my sides, I counted the seconds while he looked over her. His hands hovered over her body, a slight glow emitting from his palms.

“Well?” I prompted, trying and failing to not scare the healer. He lifted one of her eyelids gently and used a light to look at her pupils.

“No concussion. That snowbank must have saved her head.” He brushed his hands over a mark on her head, then moved back to her abdomen. “I don’t sense any internal damage or broken bones, but there’s a spot I’m unsure about. I’ll have to remove her dress to get a better?—”

“Do it.”

Too slow for my liking, the healer dug a pair of sheers out of his bag and started to part the luscious material covering her form. I averted my eyes, while keeping him in my periphery.

I didn’t trust anyone with her. Not with the crusade Eleanor was waging. I refused to stare at her naked body. She had panicked enough already. The last thing she needed was to wake up and have me standing and watching.

“Just heavy bruising, Your Majesty,” he said at last. “That was a serious tumble. The winds changing yesterdayturned out to be a good thing, it would seem. Without that snowbank, this could have been a very different outcome. My recommendation is food and rest. Nothing too strenuous for the next couple of days. I’ll prepare a tea that should speed up the healing process.”

I released a tight breath I didn’t realize I was holding. A knock at the door drew my attention. Kaia slipped in without waiting for my reply.

“Thank you,” I told the healer as he let himself out.

“Where’s her bag?” Kaia asked.

“Bathroom.”

She nodded once and disappeared to get it. I moved to take a seat in the armchair, my gaze falling to the shattered glass window.

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