Page 161 of The Courting of Bristol Keats
Bristol’s eyes stung.Don’t, she thought.Don’t make me say it.She hadn’t resolved in her own conflicted head what she was feeling. She was still juggling lies and loyalties, and it was tearing her in two. She blinked, her vision blurring. “No, that’s not all I care about,” she answered quietly.
“Good,” Melizan answered, and gestured toward Tyghan’s chamber. “Go.”
And astonishingly, neither Quin nor the High Witch tried to stop her.
The counselor was walking out of Tyghan’s bedchamber as Bristol walked in. “I heard what you said out there,” he whispered. “If you can somehow give him six or seven hours, that’s all he needs. A few hours of real rest to get his strength back. To fortify his resistance and close the doors that were opened. He already went three days without sleep during Beltane and then last night—” He winced, like the events of the previous night were too unspeakable. “Be careful. When the demons take hold, he’s not himself. They may not physically be in the room, but when they enter his mind, the torture is real. Their control is real.”
Bristol nodded and closed the chamber doors behind her.
Eris settled onto the sofa beside Dahlia. She leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder, forgetting her revered protocols.
“Do you think it’s safe for her to be in there?” Cully asked.
“Safe for him or for her?” Quin asked.
Cully thought for a moment. “Either one.”
“Neither,” Dahlia murmured, her eyes closed. “But as our shining recruit noted, what more do we have to lose?”
“What do you think she’s doing in there?” Quin asked. “It’s too quiet. I don’t hear him screaming.”
Melizan stretched and headed for the door. “Thank the gods. I’m going back to my suite to sleep. If one of them murders the other, don’t call me.”
Eris rose from the sofa and intercepted her at the door. The unexpected snag of Tyghan’s health had pushed Rose’s confession to the back of his mind. “I didn’t want the others distracted by some news I received,” he explained, “but since you aren’t going on the mission tomorrow, I thought you might be able to follow up on something else for me—discreetly. It was told to me in confidence.”
Melizan smiled as he conveyed the details of Rose’s news. “The Runic River? That’s a thousand miles of riverbanks to search, but we’ll look into it. I may have resources to help me narrow it down.”
Eris nodded. He knew exactly who she meant. Cosette’s relatives ranged far and wide. When Melizan left, he returned to the sofa and the stifling silence. After a few minutes, Cully got up and went to listen by the bedchamber door.
“Hear anything?” Eris asked.
Cully shook his head. “Nothing.”
And none of them were sure if that was a good or a bad thing. Eris put his arm around Dahlia and pulled her closer. She didn’t resist, and that, at least, was a good thing. Unless it meant she had given up entirely.
The room was dark, the drapes drawn, but the walls flickered with warm light from a single candle in the corner. Tyghan lay in his bed, his sheets and blankets twisted in piles on the floor. His body sunk into the mattress like he was dead. He was so still it made Bristol pause.
She inched a few steps closer. His bare chest glistened with sweat, and she watched to see if he was breathing at all. His eyes were open, but they only stared blankly at the ceiling and he didn’t seem to know she was there.
Most disturbing, an iron shackle embedded with unknown stones was secured around his wrist and attached to a long chain anchored to the wall. That’s what the thick bandage on his wrist was for—in case he strained against it. But he wasn’t straining. He was like a trapped animal that had given up. Her throat knotted. This was what the demons had done to him in one night?
She didn’t move. She barely breathed herself. Now what?
She had no plan. She had rushed into his suite the same way she had rushed into Elphame—recklessly. But she had to act while she could and figure out the finer points later.
Bristol stared, wishing he would move or even flutter a finger—and then his chest rose in a shallow breath. He hadn’t given up yet. She’d make sure he never did. Though she didn’t have a plan for that either.
She stepped forward, and as she approached, his head turned. He tried to brace himself up on one arm but fell back. “I already told you, I don’t want you here.”
“Lovely welcome. Hello to you, too.”
“Get out.”
“Or what?” she taunted. “What are you going to do? Chase me until your leash runs out?”
“I still have some magic.” But he only lifted his free hand a few inches off the bed before it fell limply back at his side. His lids shut momentarily, like he was shamed by his weakened state. “Please. Go away.”
Instead, she stepped up to his bedside and looked down at him. “That was a stupid thing you did.”
