Page 266 of A King's Oath

“What’s to be sorry about?” Sharan panted, his eyes going red. “Solankis are always ready. You have to remember that now,” he tried to pat her knee with his right hand but it remained shaking. Samarth’s panic intensified.

“Samarth…” Ava’s face screwed at that wild shake of his fingers. Samarth smiled tightly up at her — “I know. Why don’t you take Brahmi home?”

“No no no, I want to be here,” his brave little girl fought. It was surreal, even in this moment of terror, to see his daughter stopcrying and hold her uncle’s calf tight like she wouldn’t let go. An uncle she had met a few hours ago.

“Bhai,” Sharan squinted, unaware of what was happening. “In my final will, give Brahmi my sketchbook… She can carry on the legacy.”

“Shut up and don’t talk nonsense in front of her.”

He laughed, and the jolt made him half-sit up with a shriek — “Fuuuuck!”

Samarth braced him back to the ground. “Keep lying down.”

“Bhai I can’t feel my arm,” he realised. And Samarth saw the moment the panic set in.

“It’s the shock,” he lied. “Keep steady.”

That made Sharan writhe wildly. He moved and kept trying to lift his left arm, then right. Nothing.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck…” his eyes widened. And then collapsed shut.

44. Dada Sarkar & Dadi Sarkar

— AVANTIKA —

“We could rule out spinal injury in the first four hours if the patient was conscious and alert…” the Indian doctor went on in the background as Avantika fed Brahmi from a wrapped sandwich. “In the case of His Highness, it’s been thirteen hours and he is still unconscious.”

“But he did not hit his head…” Samarth argued. “Not that I saw…”

“There is moderate TBI, trauma brain injury. That is why I suspect a spinal injury…”

“When will he wake up?”

“There is mild movement. We are hopeful it will be within the next 12 hours.”

“And after that?”

“After that we conduct the rest of the tests to rule out a spinal injury. As for his left arm, I suspect a Radial Nerve Neuropraxia with the Mid-Shaft Humerus Fracture we talked about this afternoon. We will be able to confirm everything only once His Highness wakes up.”

“Why is he calling Sharan Kaka highness?” Brahmi asked between bites.

“It’s a term of respect,” Avantika answered honestly but kept it crisp.

“Why?”

“My family doctor is flying in,” Samarth informed the doctor. “He will be here in the next hour.”

“Why, Mama?” Brahmi shook her forearm. Avantika tuned her ears back to her question.

“Brahmi, I want you to finish this quietly. We will talk about everything else at home. You can see Sharan Kaka and then we will leave.”

“Ok,” she said in a small voice and opened her mouth for the next bite. Avantika sighed, feeding her and handing her a water bottle.

Samarth turned away from the doctor and she glanced up at him. He had been here all day, still in the shirt and jeans from this morning, riding boots on as he had run with Sharan in the ambulance. She had taken Brahmi home and gotten her here only after lunch and a forced nap.

“They are coming now?” She asked. He nodded.

“I’ll take her and leave then, I didn’t know.”

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